The Newest Giants player is Jose Guillen. All it took was a high-five, some cash and a PTBNL (Player To Be Named Later).
The trading deadline came and no offensive help was brought in to help the San Francisco Giants. Giants GM Brian Sabean however has made a couple moves this week. Nothing major that’s going to force teams in the NL West to call it a year, but he did make the Giants a stronger team!
Mike Fontenot brings the Giants depth at second base and is going to be the utility guy. He’s batting .282 (AVG) with 20 RBI’s this season.
Guillen on the other hand brings some attitude and some pop that the Giants can definitely use. I really don’t think he’s going to bring any drama to the clubhouse. Guillen will likely be the Giants starting right fielder. Bruce Bochy can platoon Guillen as well if he’s not pulling his weight. It’s nice to have more options on a daily basis for the skipper.
Why I Like The Trade
1. Guillen will not be with the team long enough to be a cancer to the clubhouse. He’s happy to leave a losing team, and join a team that’s trying to win the division. Veteran players will keep him in line.
2. Bochy can go with the hot bat, and have options off the bench.3. If Guillen isn’t starting a game, he’s always a threat coming off the bench.
The San Francisco Giants slugging outfielder Pat (The Bat) Burrell is on fire right now. This guy has clutch written all over his face. He just knows how to work an AB and doesn’t seem to tense up when the sac fly or clutch hit is needed. This definitely isn’t his first rodeo.
In the last 10 games Burrell is hitting .344 (AVG) with 4 homers, 12 RBI’s and 6 runs scored. He’s doing his part with the bat to help these Giants stay within striking distance of the San Diego Padres. The Padres will be in town tomorrow to start a 3 game series with the Giants.
Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News says the San Francisco Giants have acquired infielder Mike Fontenot from the Cubs. He’s going to be used as a utility infielder and is needed since Edgar Renteria is back on the disabled list. The Cubs will receive Evan Crawford in exchange.
Fontenot’s going to be arbitration eligible for three more years before he can become a free agent.
Fontenot is currently hitting .284 (AVG) with 20 RBI’s and 1 HR.
I keep hearing from a lot of San Francisco Giants fans saying the Giants are fine. They don’t need to add a bat, or bringing in Jose Guillen is a bad idea. I recently read an article by Bob Nightengale (USA Today Sports Weekly Aug. 4-10 edition), and he listed the winners and losers at the trading deadline.
The Giants were no where to be found on the list. They weren’t winners or losers, so I guess that’s a good thing right? They brought in Javier Lopez and Ramon Ramirez right before the trading deadline. It was no secret that the Giants needed some bullpen help which they went out and got. They however still didn’t add a bat that they have been saying they needed.
They scored 7 runs in the 4 game series in Atlanta. That’s less than 2 runs a game. Which tells me the offense can still use a little help. Even the New York Yankees who are already an All Star team added two bats (Lance Berkman and Austin Kearns).
Let me tell you 3 teams that made the winners list. That’s the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers. This is what Bob Nightengale had to say about the Padres.
“The Padres rewarded their players and fans by giving them every possible chance of winning the National West. They acquired outfielder Ryan Ludwick and shortstop Miguel Tejada, took on $3 million and didn’t give up any prized prospects. Great work by rookie GM Jed Hoyer”.
Now this is exactly what I have been saying about making some moves without sacrificing the farm system. It doesn’t only take a huge splash to get us over the hump. Just get us some pop or some good players that can give other guys a rest and be a threat to come off the bench!
UPDATE
Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle said (via twitter) Jose Guillen to the Giants not completely dead, but it’s not on the front burner either.
The folks at GrimyInk.com have done it again! They first gave us a cool one of a kind Tim Lincecum shirt, and now they give us a pretty sweet Buster Posey shirt. The Posey shirt has a Ghost Buster theme. It’s a very cool shirt that is a must have for Posey fans.
GrimyInk.com also has some other cool shirts that I’m sure you will love, but don’t forget to get your Lincecum and Posey shirts. I know I have mine!
The San Francisco Giants are looking into maybe acquiring Jose Guillen. I have heard from Giants fans that don’t want to see this happen. I say it’s a no lose situation for the Giants. He can platoon with Pat Burrell in the outfield. Then Bruce Bochy can go with the hot bat and have one of them available in a pinch hit situation where you need some pop.
Yes, we have all heard about Guillen in the clubhouse and being a cancer. He’s not going to be around this team long enough to even get to that point of being unhappy. He’s going to be happy to leave a losing Royals team to a Giants team that’s fighting to win the NL West.
Yes, Guillen is in a big slump right now( 3-for-41 in last 11 games), but that doesn’t mean he won’t get out of it. Just the thought of having a guy on your bench that can bring some late inning pop to an AB when needed. That’s a huge thing for any team to have. I’m not here saying this guy is the difference maker for the Giants. I’m just saying he can help Bochy mix and match lineups and add some pop to our roster.
Is Guillen wanted in San Francisco?
Side Notes
Dontrelle Willis had his outing last night cut short because of a torn fingernail. The Giants still see Willis as a late season addition to the bullpen.
Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star tweets that the Royals have designated Jose Guillen for assignment. Which means if the San Francisco Giants want to bring him over then this could be happening within then next 10 days.
Guillen hasn’t been swinging the bat well as of late. In the last 10 games his AVG has dropped from .271 to .255. He was hitting .081.with 0 home runs, and 3 RBI’s during that span.
The Giants twitter page has a tweet saying “Today’s SF transaction: Denny Bautista has been designated for assignment. Todd Wellemeyer has been reinstated from disabled list”. This was a move that I’m sure a lot of us seen coming. Bautista just couldn’t get it together. The way he was pitching (wild) he wouldn’t have been able to hit water if he fell out of a boat.
If you haven’t been paying attention the San Francisco Giants have been the hottest team in baseball since July 3rd. They are on a 22-6 hot streak right now. The offense has been running on all cylinders. The Giants are currently 1 game back of the Padres in the NL West, and have a 3 game lead in the Wild Card over the Cardinals.
The Giants have won 4 in a row, and 8 out of their last 10 games.Their record against the NL West teams since the All Star break is 10-1. The first half they were 9-21. Talk about a big improvement! If you can’t beat teams in your division, you can’t win it!
Possible Rookie Of The Year?
Stay hottttttBuster Posey!! He had a 3-for-4 night and has hit safely in 24 of 26 games. Posey has played in 48 games, and has a .370 AVG, 8 HR, 33 RBI’s and scored 28 runs.
Possible MVP?
Aubrey Huff leads the Giants in AVG (.310), HR (20) and RBI’s (65). Where would they be without their $3 million dollar man? I’m sure Brian Sabean or whoever the Giants GM is will try to bring Huff back next year.
This post has been written prior to August 4th games.
Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star says give it a week and Jose Guillen will be off the team or on the bench. The Royals want to get younger guys more playing time. Sam also says the Royals will play Guillen this week and hope it’s enough to make a deal. The Giants and Rays are still looking to add offense, and the Royals shouldn’t be asking for much in return.
The San Francisco Giants beat writer Chris Haft told me (via email) that he thinks the Giants will continue to try to obtain players who go through waivers during the next several weeks.
ESPN’s Buster Olney drops a couple tweets today saying Adam Dunn hit the waiver wire today, and a follow up tweet saying multiple NL teams will put a claim on him (Rockies & Giants).
ESPN’s Rob Neyer said on ESPN Radio that he thinks the Padres made a good trade adding a bat (Ryan Ludwick), but doesn’t think they will finish ahead of the Giants. Neyer’s BOLD prediction is the Giants will catch the Padres and win the NL West, but the Padres will win the Wild Card.
The trading deadline has passed and the San Francisco Giants position players remain the same. I do have some mixed feelings about this years trading deadline. Giants GM Brian Sabean did get two relievers in Javier Lopez and Ramon Ramirez. Yes, he did get some much needed help to our bullpen. No, he didn’t get a bat with some power that everyone was expecting.
The Giants have been linked to multiple bats prior to the trading deadline. Name thrown out there like Corey Hart, Prince Fielder, Adam Dunn, Jose Bautista and the list goes on…
My gut feeling was if the Giants couldn’t pull off any big deals that they would at least fallback on Jose Guillen. He would be a rental player, but wouldn’t really cost the Giants much. Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star told me (via email) the Giants could still get him. He can’t imagine Guillen getting claimed off waivers.
I really couldn’t believe that Sabean didn’t pull the trigger on any deals. He’s been saying the Giants need a power bat since last year and still hasn’t made it happen yet. The Padres and Dodger were able to upgrade their teams. Only time will tell how this trading deadline turns out for all teams. I guess let’s just be happy that the Giants are playing some really good ball right now!
I’m relieved that Sabean didn’t hit the panic button and make a dumb trade (right before the deadline) like giving up Madison Bumgarner for a rental player like Dunn. I do believe Sabean could have made a few moves without mortgaging the farm system, or giving away starting pitching. I just don’t like hearing that they couldn’t have done anything without giving up Jonathan Sanchez or Bumgarner. Other teams made trades and I didn’t see everyone giving up those kind of players.
The Giants may be in the mix for free agent slugger Carlos Delgado. Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com reports a couple of teams are showing interest. The Giants are among the teams that could be seeking additional offensive help.
