Burrell is back with Giants

Aubrey Huff gets his wish! The Giants will bring back "The Bat" for 1 year / $1M plus incentives reportedly. Not bad if he repeats his .266-18-51 line. When Burrell is hot, it seems like he can carry the middle of the order for a month. When he's cold, well the results in the playoffs speak for themselves. I'm still glad the old gang returns mostly intact.

Reports are coming out that Juan Uribe was offered a matching deal by the Giants, but he was "impressed" that the Dodgers pursued him early and often once the season ended and the free-agent festivities began. Here's a news flash for Mr. Uribe and his agent -- the reason the Dodgers front office had a lot of free time on their hands is as a result of not making the playoffs -- they had more free time in October-early November  to plan out their FA strategy. The Giants staff had other concerns -- like planning a World Series parade -- and might have been a bit justified in taking a little bit of a post-season breather to decompress before jumping back to work on next season's roster. Apparently, Juan got his nose a little out of joint over the lack of attention. Greeeaaaatttt.

The Giants will turn their attention to the arbitration cases left on the roster. Reports indicate Johnathan Sanchez, Ramon Martinez, Javier Lopez, Santiago Casilla, Andres Torres and Cody Ross will be pursued. Reliever Chris Ray and utility IF Mike Fontenot may not be re-signed.

Giants may still be looking into acquiring SS's Jason Bartlett or J.J Hardy if the Twins do not tender an offer his way.

Giants bring up Pat the Bat

GOOD NEWS FOR THE LADIES!!! AND GOOD NEWS FOR AARON ROWAND !!

REUNITED AND YES!!! IT DOES FEEL GOOD





But I digress. OK, so the Giants just called up Pat Burrell. After first acquiring Pat Burrell from the Rays for a bag of balls or something. Hat tip to my son Erik -- a Rays fan who seemed to be happy to see Burrell leave BTW -- for letting me know about the Gigantes most recent acquisition. I couldn't see that coming BTW. Jermaine Dye must not have been by the phone or didn't want to be reunited with Aaron Rowand.

This move fits right in line with the Sabean philosophy, a sort of reverse-Moneyball or perverse-Moneyball philosophy, whereby we overpay for overvalued assets that nobody wants. Seems like an oxymoron or something.

Anyway, using the Sabean "AAA pitching is horse-shit, batting average conversion", Burrell's robust .313 average in limited time should translate into just the .220 Mendoza-line power surge we need inserted into the middle of our lineup.

BEAUTIFUL!!!

http://www.philly.com/dailynews/sports/20100605_Giants_call_up_Pat_the_Bat_from_minors.html#axzz0pzTRs559

Giants call up Pat the Bat from minors

Associated Press
PITTSBURGH - The San Francisco Giants have purchased Pat Burrell's contract from Triple A Fresno, 3 weeks after the longtime Phillies leftfielder was released by Tampa Bay.

Burrell, 33, hit .313 (5-for-16) with one homer and six RBI in five Fresno games. He went hitless in two at-bats at Las Vegas on Thursday before joining the Giants in time for last night's game in Pittsburgh.

Burrell was in the second year of a 2-year, $16 million contract with Tampa Bay when he was released May 15. He hit .202 with two homers and 13 RBIs in 24 games for the Rays. Last season, he batted .221 with 14 homers and 64 RBI in 412 at-bats. Burrell has 267 home runs and 904 RBI with the Phillies (2000-08) and Tampa Bay (2009-10). *

BTW:
Buster Posey is hitting .478 and last game batted fifth in the lineup, behind clean-up hitter Juan Uribe, yes Juan Uribe!!

This Burrell for Posey shadow-deal is right in the Sabean wheelhouse as well.

"I don't care if you're hitting .478 here, you're embarrassing the organizational brain trust. Besides, everyone knows that the best pitching isn't here at the major league level, it's......it's......it's......it's in the Hall of Fame, dang it. Now get back to Fresno where you belong." - Brian Sabean

And yes, dang it, any blog post where you can reference Peaches and Herb is a good blog post.

UPDATE: I would urge all readers of this post to read it again with the song "Reunited" playing in the background. It really seems to enhance the blog reading experience, if I do say so myself. Enhanced - for your blog reading pleasure.

UPDATE II: It's John Bowker who gets sent down to make room for Burrell. Posey may have to wait until DeRosa comes off the DL or his average slips under .300 whichever comes first. Giants are not on the hook for many $$'s for Burrell, but he didn't hit late in Philly or in TBay. Two hitters ballparks and two strong well-balanced lineups.

Finally a Brian Sabean trade I can embrace....

HELLO BRIAN?, I'LL TAKE YOUR JOB, YOU CAN HAVE MINE. NOW GET OUT!!

During his own local radio show, Giants GM Brian Sabean made what would have gone down as his best trade ever as Giants GM. He offered to trade jobs with the local radio jock!! AND THE GUY DIDN'T TAKE HIM UP ON THE OFFER!! This is every fantasy leaguer's wet dream come true.

"I know that I can't do your job," Sabean told Barbieri on the air Thursday, "but, you apparently think you can do my job. So, why don't we both take sabbaticals and I'll try to do your job and you can come over and (fix things) doing my job!"

from The Brian Sabean Show - KNBR 680/1050 The Sports Leader - The Razor and Mr. T. Show

http://knbr.com/OnKNBR680/RazorandMrT/tabid/595/Default.aspx

And in this case the guy would have gone down as some sort of local folk hero. Plus, he couldn't do much worse than Sabean has done recently. The conversation actually started with the jock steering the conversation in the direction of "when are we going to see some results, Brian?" Not an unreasonable question by the way.

After the Zito debacle, and Rowand and Renteria. And now DeRosa (the DL guy) and Huff and like they say in government, "a billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you're talking about some real money".

That's been the legacy of Brian Sabean recently. A bad contract here, a bad contract there, pretty soon you're talking about a real legacy of failure.

Please someone make this deal if it's offered again, before Sabean tries to revitalize the offense by signing Jermaine Dye to a three-year, $25 million dollar deal or trades a couple of uber-prospects to the Rays for Pat "The Bat" Burrell.

It just seems as if this guy is becoming a bit unhinged. Unfortunately, armed with a fresh two-year deal, he has just enough time to ruin this team before the window of opportunity of the Lincecum-Cain dominance runs it's course.

Where would this team be without it's dominant pitching? Less than .500 and keeping the D-Backs company in the basement?

DARN IT!!! - RAYS GET PAT THE BAT

WHAT DO THE RAYS HAVE THAT THE GIANTS DON'T?

Dang it. The Rays get Burrell. At two years, $16M this is a good move for the Rays lineup. Maybe it's the Rays just have a better chance to win...maybe it's the better scenery in and around the ballpark. Heck, I don't know. Big loss for the G-men.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3811501

This is the guy I think the Giants could have used the most because of his impact on the entire lineup. And without the negative impact on the clubhouse that Manny might bring.

Now they may have to focus on a deal (lose Sanchez) or maybe Crede and Hinske. I'd rather not see Gillaspie blocked for too long, it may be better for him to have a full season in the minors, but we'll see. Hinske gives you some flexibility,, but much less of a respect/fear factor in the lineup.

And they do need some respect. Last year 15th of 16 teams in Offense. A feeble 640 runs scored and only 94 HR's will cause guys to come off the DL to pitch against you, not miss a start to avoid you. Renteria as an addition by himself doesn't add enough to move them up to middle of the pack. So clearly more work needs to be done.

The pitching staff may end up being a shaky foundation even after adding The Unit. Here's why:

Last year 9th of 16 teams in ERA at 4.38 allowed. 759 total runs allowed leaves a 119 run deficit between offense and defense. So even if some some combination of improvement close the deficit to zero, the best you can hope for is a .500 record.

Here's last years record for the projected starters:
18-5 Lincecum
8-14 Cain
11-10 Johnson (with D-Backs)
10-17 Zito
9-12 Sanchez
3-8 Correia

48-56 among returning starters, 56-58 if you take Correia out (please) and insert Johnson with his D-Backs productivity and durability. If he comes in and limps to 300 wins and exits to the DL shortly thereafter, we're looking at Correia or Lowry to pick up innings. Yuck.

We have to hope that Linceum's dad is right about his unique mechanics being so pristine that he won't ever hurt his arm. I do not want to be talking about him in the same vein as Mark Prior five years from now. So there's the hope and the fear in a nutshell. 18-5 is about the best we can hope for out of the top slot especially with the offensive support.

Which brings us to Cain. I was OK with the excuse that he received the worst run support in the league in 2007 when he finished 7-16, but last year he received virtually equal run support as Lincecum and Zito last year (Linceum 5.51, Cain 5.41, Zito 5.30) and he posted his 8-14 record. So the excuse flies out the window. As should Cain if he posts another anemic W-L record in 2009. Because then the entire league will know what many are beginning to whisper and that is that Cain may be just a good enough pitcher to lose games. Great stuff, maybe not so much fire in the belly. He wouldn't be the first guy who dazzled with his stuff but induced vomit with his W-L record.

Zito and his 10-17 has to be better. It's a crime that you almost have to hope against hope for a .500 record from a guy with his contract, but that's where we are. If he brings the same stuff, most fans would be praying for a DL sabbatical for Mr. Zito. As bad as that sounds, that's about where we are. If he's healthy management won't pull him. And although many semi-pro teams would kill for the stuff he has, they don't have enough broken bats or batting practice balls to offer in trade. So, it is what it is.

Sanchez also has to produce a plus .500 record, even with the offense he has to work with.

If we could get:
18-6 Lincecum
12-12 Cain
12-12 Zito
11-10 Sanchez
11-10 The Unit

That works out to 64-50 from the starters. The bullpen has to battle to .500 in the rest of the decisions, which almost by definition are back and forth affairs where the offense is performing reasonably well.

24-24 from the bullpen leaves you at 88-74.

You can compete with that record. Probably not win the division, or the wild-card.
But, baby-steps fans...baby-steps.

This is what we have to expect...even from Giants.

WHERE DO THE GIANTS GO FROM HERE?

Now that the smoke has cleared from the initial free-agent signing blitz and the Rule 5 Draft has been completed, where do the Giants currently stand going into next year and how can they improve their chances before spring training?

The rapid-fire signings of Jeremy Affeldt, Edgar Renteria and Randy Johnson plugged some obvious weak spots, but many remain. First base, Third base and Second base are still question marks. Geez, that's all of the bases!!! At best, we have elevated to a team that may challenge the .500 mark. That leaves fans hoping that like last year, .500 is good enough to challenge for the division crown. Maybe GM Brian Sabean should set his sights a little higher.

The Rule 5 Draft cleared a few items up. First, what was gained. The Giants picked RHP Luis Perdomo from the Cardinals in the Major League phase of the draft, which means Perdomo has to be on the roster next year. He's a 25 year old relief pitcher, 6-0, 170 lbs. with a reported 93-94 MPH fastball and a "dastardly" slider according to Baseball America that allowed him to hold RH hitters to .153 average in the minors last year. A situational reliever. Maybe means bye-bye to Kevin Correia, Merkin Valdez or Jack Taschner.

The Giants lost OF Ben Copeland to the A's in the Major League phase. He was a AA player at Connecticut who was dropping off the radar as a prospect due to his age (25). They lost C Elio Sarmiento to Texas and 2B Kyle Haines to Philadelphia in the AAA phase. Not a highly rated prospect in the bunch.

The Giants did not lose 3B Jesus Guzman (24), recently acquired from the A's, after knocking around the last couple of years in AA with the A's and Mariners. Guzman's bat has blossomed in Venezuela this winter enough to attract other teams attention as a Rule 5 prospect. The fact that he was not snatched may indicate that his recent development is considered a bit of an anomaly, but he should replace 3B Ryan Rohlinger as a challenger to either Conor Gilaspie or Pablo Sandoval at third base.

As for the current roster and positions, here's my current take:

Starting Pitching: STRENGTH
Lincecum, Cain, Randy Johnson and Barry Zito backed up by the pick a lefty combo of Noah Lowry and Johnathan Sanchez (loser traded?)

No need to look at RHP Paul Byrd as an option anymore.

Relief Pitching: STRENGTH
Brian Wilson as the closer, backed by Affeldt, Bobby Howry, Sergio Romo, Alex Hinshaw and Perdomo with Taschner, Valdez and Correia looking for new addresses.

Affeldt signing removes LHP Will Ohlman as a free-agent to look at. If closer were an issue Jason Isringhausen and maybe Trevor Hoffman would be options, but too pricey given the mileage IMO. Howry removes Braden Looper as a potential signee.

CATCHING: STRENGTH
Either Molina and Sandoval split duties (close to ideal) or Buster Posey proves he is the real deal in spring training and forces a Molina trade (be still my heart <3). I think we are OK here going forward.

INFIELD: NIGHTMARISH
The signing of Edgar Renteria takes care of the need at SS. I could live with the winner of Eugenio Velez and Manny Burris at 2B (both are switch hitters) with Kevin Frandsen maybe in the mix as well. Unless Conor Gilaspie is the REAL DEAL at 3B, this is a problem. I'd settle for the second coming of Bill Mueller or even Al Gallagher at this point. Guzman and possibly Sandoval or Frandesen could compete here as well. I'm rooting for Gilaspie on the basis of upside. First base will be a glorious competition between Travis Ishakawa, Sandoval, John Bowker and journeyman Josh Phelps (that's how bad it is).

Signing Joe Crede would help 3B for now, but would delay Gilaspie's development. Sean Casey might help at 1B or Erik Hinske. Pat Burrell could help either at 1B-3B or LF. Hinske is a flex player as well.

OUTFIELD: SOMNOLENT
Freddie Lewis in LF, Aaron Rowand fixed in CF and Randy Winn in RF with Nate Schierholtz competing for a starting spot in right or left and Dave Roberts cashing $6.5M per to backup. Between his salary and Zito's $14.5M, we're paying $21M in salary to guys who suck and are living off their glory days.

Burrell in LF would be an improvement. Bobby Abreu will likely end up elsewhere. Eric Hinske would be the economic option. Burrell and Abreu would lend some credibility to the worst OF group in MLB.

Well, there you go. Get to work Mr. Sabean, the clock is ticking. It won't be long until we hear those magic words, "Pitchers and Catchers Report".