Monday/Tuesday BP: Marcus Stroman praises Giants organization

Good morning, baseball fans!

I have no idea what happened over the weekend with regards to the status of the lockout. Past me is writing this on Tuesday and current me is out of state, thinking about anything but the lockout.

So let’s talk about something kind of cool that happened recently instead. Marcus Stroman signed with the Chicago Cubs shortly before the lockout started. Which was a bit of a disappointment for San Francisco Giants fans who were hoping to see him in orange and black. But recently, Stroman took to social media to praise the organization:

It’s not a free agent signing with the Giants, but it’s not nothing. The Giants organization over the last couple of seasons has really turned heads (and not for “watching the trainwreck as you pass by” reasons).

A team that most people had considered in a state of perpetual rebuild turned it around, with some of their same core guys from the last championship and accomplished something remarkable. They’ve fostered a winning culture that everyone buys in on, from top to bottom. Other players have noticed.

So that kind of praise from Stroman can make one a little bit optimistic that the Giants won’t always be the runner-up or “also ran” when it comes to big name free agents, if they choose to actively pursue them and be competitive about it.

How many days has it been since the owners locked out the players?

Assuming the owners haven’t had a massive change of heart when it comes to breaking the union while I’ve been gone, that puts us up to 95 days of watching them try.