What the Giants Should Have Done...

Bowker should start hitting right handed. Problem solved.

But I want Sandra Bullock to die

THAT’S HOW IT WORKS!

I think it was last year, Grant, when you did a few cross-posts with other SBN authors – before a series, you would answer a set of questions they had about the Giants, and they’d answer your questions about their team. You should do more of those. I liked ’em.

The answer: Grant is gay.

Is this the wrong thread?

Fire Bruce Bochy and hire someone who understands what wOBA is. Hell, I’d settle for someone who understands OPS+

You’re totally going to get called a gay nerd because of this post.

Also, something about chocolate and peanut butter.

Bochy and/or Sabean to go? How about the doctor’s who didn’t know the children’s song

The knee bone’s connected to the shoulder bone
The mouth bone’s connected to the T-bone
The eye bone’s connected to the breast bone….

The post was ok too.

I was just thinking about how the two best Giants acquisitions of 2009 cost them $1,000,000 (Juan Uribe) and something like $75,000 (Brad Penny), and neither involved giving up any players at all.

Invisible Octopus

between ESPN and Baseball Prospectus projections in April / current Giants pace:

Record: 86-76 (3rd in the NL West) / 87-75 (3rd)
RS: 714 / 654
RA: 727 / 605
Avg: .263 / .257
OBP: .313 / .308
SLG: .403 / .388

Our pitchers totally deserve the playoffs.

make me laugh out loud at work

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f5Hqy9lMiU

I’m still too bored from reading about your dream to have anything to say here.

  always package multiple mediocres and prospects for a single perennial all-star (like Holiday)

Is it okay to like Frank Black’s song “Los Angeles”?

Brenly in ‘10!!!!!!
Now that’s change we can belive in !!!!!

…I sometimes wish that I was a genuine giant and could pick Bochy up by his lower legs and wield him like a large, fleshy mace. I’d swing it into the side of my house and watch his head explode against the stucco. When his head explodes, it’s not blood and bits of skull I see, and certainly not grey matter. When his head explodes, there is a shower of bird seed scattered everywhere. All the birds in my neighborhood sing sweet songs of praise to me for this bounty. And I forget, for a minute, how mad that fucking guy makes me sometimes.

But weren’t we ahead of the pack when Richie went down? I’m not saying… oh the hell with it, I’m saying it.

Cunningham?

Hasn’t Brian Sabean been awfully quiet lately? Can I take that as a good sign about Bochy’s future? Then again, might his low profile also mean his days might be numbered as well? I can’t believe Neukom watches these games and is very happy at the lineup Bochy trots out there every night. And I REALLY can’t believe that Neukom is very happy twice a month when he writes out checks for players like Edgar Renteria and Scott Rowand, and realizes he’ll still be writing out those checks next year.

I am just now learning about wOBA.

Is average wOBA scaled to league average OBA for any reason other than to make it more understandable?

http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1997/B09180SFN1997.htm

The answer was Ben Francisco, whom the Phillies got as a throw-in to the Cliff Lee deal. The answer was Jonny Gomes, who’s done well for the Reds filling in for various injured outfielders. The answer was a right-handed hitting outfielder with a little pop.

Once again, this is another reason why Sabean needs to go. We need a GM who is creative and who knows exactly what he needs, but is smart about getting it. We did not need to give up Tim Alderson to get Freddy Sanchez. As Grant pointed out around the time of that trade, we could have acquired Felipe Lopez at a cheaper price. Plus, he would have been a better addition to the line-up.

The Giants don’t have the payroll of the Dodgers, Cubs, Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, or Angels. The Giants need to be run by a smart, efficient GM who will run this organization properly. Brian Sabean makes too many moves at too great a cost that could have been avoided with better analysis, creativity, and planning.

I am sick of how he runs this team; I sick of how the manager creates his line-ups; in short, I am sick and tired of having a GM and manager that are the laughing stock of the baseball world.

After last night, part of me is worried that Johnson will swing and miss… or that Beck won’t get out of the 10th inning jam.

Phil (Danville, CA)
You are familiar with a lot of languages. Is it true that Aaron Rowand translates to “Automatic Out” in some Eastern European dialects?

Keith Law
  (1:27 PM)

In Molvanian, his name translates as a term that can only be pronounced by sticking your entire fist down your throat, producing thirteen minutes of emesis.

Aaron B. (Novato, Calif.)
How much do the Giants need to upgrade their offense this offseason? Drastically, really drastically, or really really drastically?


Keith Law
  (1:31 PM)

Really drastically. Figure they start next season with Panda at 3b (star) and Posey at c (at least above-average hitter for his position). I don’t really like Uribe, but he’s had a good year and they could probably bring him back at a reasonable cost. That puts them, oh, three hitters short of an offense?

This one is actually interesting for our discussion :

Steve (Boston)

I don’t know Keith, I just read Heyman say Ben Molina had another strong year at the plate…


Keith Law
  (1:37 PM)

Ah, speaking of which, I spoke to someone at the Giants about Sabean’s comments that a guy a year out of college shouldn’t be a challenge to Molina. He was speaking just about 2009, not about 2010, which, while I don’t fully agree with it, does make some sense. Yes, I think Posey would be better for the Giants right now, but I understand the reluctance to stick him in there while they’re still in the race. If Molina starts for SF on Opening Day next year, you can boil up the tar and I’ll bring the feathers.

Matt Murton.

Anyone hear KNBR’s interview with Larry Baer last week? Baer said that he was walking down the street in SF when a guy on MUNI hollered out, “Yo Baer, get a bat!” He said he wanted to shout back, “So which arm do you wanna give up?”

Obviously Zito is untradeable and Timmy is untouchable. But it’s still rough to imagine Sanchez, Bumgarner or Cain in a different uni next season. I’m greedy, I want to keep them all. :(

lol

If Ben Francisco was on the Giants, we’d be called the Ben Francisco Giants. Funny

From the time the Giants traded for him to August 26, basically a whole month, the Giants played 28 games. In that time, he got in 25 games, started 21 games, and hit .235/.295/.358/.653 with 2 HR in 81 AB (40 AB/HR), and that HR rate probably looks better than it should be because he hit both of them in Colorado on the same day.

I also find it interesting that the argument for playing Garko now is the same reasoning the Giants used to acquire Hillenbrand long ago: because he had proven he could hit in previous seasons and had been hitting that season as well.

Lets just start with the major prospect the Cards gave up for Holliday: Brett Wallace. He’s basically ready to start in the major leagues next season after hitting around mid- to high .800 OPS in AAA (after adjusting for the fact that both his home team’s parks were pitchers parks in the PCL) this season, at 3B, a position of need for the A’s.

The only player who matches up to or beats that would be Pablo Sandoval, and I assume you would not trade him for Holliday. And Rohlinger is not even close enough where you add a whole farm system and you still won’t do the deal.

So we then have to look at our prospects. Alderson is no where’s close. Neither is Villalona after this so-so season (though I still have confidence in him). They probably would have accepted Bumgarner, but I wouldn’t trade Bumgarner for a couple of months of Holliday.

That really only left Buster Posey. While he’s a C and they already have Suzuki, he’s athletic enough to play 3B if the A’s wanted too, and offensively he’s better than Wallace, so we would not need to throw in as many other parts into the trade, though probably still have to sweeten the pot as the A’s will not trade Holliday 1 for 1. I would not trade Posey for 2 months of Holliday.

So how do we get Holliday? The A’s are not stupid, they will want one of our top two prospects for him, either Bumgarner or Posey, and if I were the A’s I would take the Cards offer even if the Giants offered all the rest of the Top 10 prospects to the A’s for Holliday, Wallace looks that good.

And of course we would trade Garko, Sanchez and a prospect for Holliday, that’s a steal, but the point is that the A’s would not do that trade. And that is who you have to convince.