I Don't Know's on third....

There isn't much to write about last night's game. I'm all about taking risks with my opinions, so allow me to drop another controversial opinion: The Giants will never win a game in Coors Field when they have as many errors as hits going into the ninth inning. Bold statement, I know. Remember you read it here first.

In the absence of any profundities from last night's mess, it's time for a little forward thinking. Pedro Feliz is a maddening player to watch. He worked an 11-pitch walk last night, and I'm guessing it was the longest at-bat of his career. The next at-bat, he grounded out on the first pitch. He'll hit mistake pitches. He's also a hot prop bet in Vegas - 19 to 1 - to be the first major leaguer to swing and miss against a mimed pitch. You know all of this already.

He's also a free agent. The knee-jerk reaction: So long, Petey. The defense is good, the power is good, but the out-making is unacceptable. The Giants can do better. So, let's just make sure you have everything, Pedro, the cab's been called, and we'll just wait by the curb for it to come and....

Ah, but the knee-jerk reaction doesn't take into account the free agent market for third basemen after this season. If there are children in the room, please be warned that the following list contains Edgardo Alfonzo:

Before you get too excited about Aubrey Huff, he's in the middle of a two-season slump, and I'm guessing he fields third like Russ Davis in carbonite.

Taking those names into account, here's a rough list of MLB teams who might be in the market for a new third baseman:

California might stick it out with Dallas McPherson, and Milwaukee might shuffle Bill Hall or Ryan Braun over there, so the list is far from perfect. That would still leave about five teams scrambling to fill their vacancy. Try picking the top five players from the first list. Imagine the fifth-best player getting 500 at-bats for the Giants. Yick.

The Giants have no immediate help coming from the farm. There aren't any teams with a third baseman surplus. So Pedro might be the best fit, but he wouldn't come cheap. So, the comment starter for today is:

What makes more sense for the Giants going forward: Overpaying Pedro Feliz for three more years, or trying to make do with a one-year deal to a cagy veteran like Randa, Bell, or Boone, and hope something else comes along for 2008?

I don't have the answer to this one, but I will complain about whatever the Giants decide on. I'd try and trade Adonal Foyle's contract for Adrian Beltre's and hope everything worked out, but that's why I'm not a general manager.