San Francisco Giants Baseball (SF Giants Rumors)

Q&A With Sports Writer Ann Killion

 

Here is a Q&A that I did with Ann Killion. I’m sure a lot of you out there know who she is. She’s an award winning sports columnist based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Here is a little background on her. She’s been a Bay Area sportswriter for the past two decades. She covered the 49ers as a beat writer for a couple of (glory) years in the early 90′s. She’s been a general sports columnist for most of her career. Which means she’s spent a lot of life writing about the Giants, particularly Barry Bonds and his milestones and scandals. Ann says the Giants are definitely her bread and butter. She left the Mercury News last summer and is now working for SI.com and Comcast Sports Net Bay Area.
 
 
King: What are your thoughts on Bill Neukom after his first year in charge?
 
Ann: I haven’t spent that much time around Neukom though I did sit down with him the day he took over. I think he’s very lawyerly – pragmatic and analytic. He might not have the emotional connection to the team that Magowan had, but that could be a good thing. He’s unlikely to make mistakes like giving Barry Zito a ridiculous contract because he looks good or outbidding phantom bidders so as not to “humiliate” Bonds. The team improved during his first year. I think he did the right thing in holding off on contracts for Bochy and Sabean. In terms of spending, I think the jury is still out.

King: Sabean has said the Giants will be after second tier free agents. Who do would you say should be the Giants number 1 target as a second tier free agent?
 
Ann: I’m not too excited about any of the names. Jermaine Dye peaks my interest a little because he’s local, coming off a decent year and is a great guy. But there’s no one I feel strongly about out there.

What are your thoughts on Tim Lincecum hitting arbitration with two Cy Young’s under his belt?
 
I think he’s going to be a very rich young man. And – unlike a lot of overpaid athletes – he deserves whatever he’s going to make. I’m a big Lincecum fan.

King: There has been some recent talk that Buster Posey can be the next Joe Mauer or Brian McCann. What type of a player do you see Posey turning into?
 
Ann: I think if he could be the next Mauer the Giants would be very lucky. I think he shows a lot of promise but is still about 12 years old.

 
King: We all know Bonds was the poster child for the steroids era. Do you think he will get voted in to the Hall of Fame, or do you think he will be on the black list?
 
Ann: I’m a Hall of Fame voter and I can’t tell you. I think all the guys from the steroid era are on the black list right now. I think Bonds will likely have to wait a few years. I’ve written in the past that I think baseball needs to take some responsibility for its own legacy, rather than just foisting it on the writers. Maybe a blue-ribbon committee with Hall of Famers like Hank Aaron could provide some guidance. I think overlooking the “morals” clause is ridiculous – it’s part of the voting guidelines. Everyone says, ‘well Bonds was a Hall of Famer before he cheated.” My response to that is: doesn’t that make it even worse? It’s a problem.

King: What do you think the Giants really need to improve this team?
 
Ann: Get a bat. Just like last year and the year before.

 
King: You have covered a lot of sports, so what’s your greatest sports memory of all?
 

Ann: That’s a hard one. Most of my goosebump moments have come at the Olympics – I’ve covered the past eight and seem some crazy things. Covering the Tour de France in 2004 was amazing – especially the time trial up the Alpe d’Huez. The 2002 World Series is definitely up there on the list of memorable events. My favorite assignment of all time was covering the 1998 World Cup in France – incredible!
 
King: Do you see the Giants turning into a force in the NL West in the near future with the pieces they currently have in place?
 
Ann: Yes. Their pitching is so fantastic. And the Dodgers appear to be headed toward chaos, thanks to the divorce of the MCourts. If some of the Giants prospects, like Posey, turn into the real deal, I think they’ll be back in contention.

 

King: Giants fans are desperate for a World Series Championship. I’m telling myself that McGwire and Canseco were probably on the juice in 89, so I will take that as a forfeit. Giants are now the 1989 World Series Champions. =) Would you agree with me?
 
Ann: Hmmm, if I follow that logic I’m pretty sure there wouldn’t be any teams to award a championship to in the past decade-plus. Including those Red Sox championships…But I agree that McGwire and Canseco were on the juice – everyone talked about it even back then. 
 
King: Thank you very much for taking the time to do this Q&A for us Giants fans. Is there anything that you would like to let Giants fans know about you?
 
Ann: My late father was so excited about the Giants moving to San Francisco he stood on Market Street in the tickertape parade welcoming them, with my older brother on his shoulders. He was a die-hard Giants fan and I grew up with Giants games as the background noise to my childhood. He didn’t like it when I became infatuated with the Swingin’ A’s in the 70s. Sharing Giants games with him late in his life was a real pleasure – I am happy that he lived long enough to see the new ballpark. One of these days he might look down on his team winning a World Series. Maybe.

 

King: Ann does have her own site. You can check it out at annkillion.com, and you can also follow her via twitter.

 

~King of Cali

 

Technorati Tags: Ann Killion, Barry Bonds, Baseball, Free Agents, King of Cali, MLB Hot Stove, MLB Trade Rumors, NL West, Q&A, San Francisco Giants Baseball, SF Giants Blog, SF Giants Rumors, Tim Lincecum, Winter Meetings, World Series

Q&A With Dan Dibley of KNBR

Hey Giants fans here is a Q&A that Dan Dibley was willing to do for us. As most of you reading this know Dibley works for KNBR. The Giants Flagship Station. Dibley is the Sports/Traffic Anchor. He has been a part of the KNBR Morning Show and Gary Radnich Experience since 2005.

 

King: What’s your thoughts on Bruce Bochy and Brian Sabean coming back in 2010?
 
Dibley: I think Bruce Bochy did a nice job by enlarge of making that collection of players successful in 2009. I don’t think many skippers would have gotten 90 wins out of the group of hitters. I’m glad to see him back. As for Sabean, while some of his free agent signings are questionable, I applaud him for “trying” to upgrade the offense with Sanchez/Garko. That said, this is his last contract, unless they make a big run in the next 2 years.
 
 

King: Who is your favorite player, current and all time?

Dibley: My current favorite player is probably Brian Wilson. He has really nasty stuff and just an odd-enough personality to succeed as a closer. I’d put Affeldt and Velez as my two runners-up, though I have a big soft spot for Freddie Lewis and Randy Winn. My all-time favorite would have to be Willie McCovey. He was in his heyday while I was growing up.
 

King: What is your best Giants memory?

Dibley: I’d have to say my best memory, and I cannot recall the exact date, was the night of the double-header with the Dodgers back at the Stick when anarchy ruled. I was in the outfield seats when fans began jumping over the wall, clamoring for home run balls, even on short pop ups. It was the last night they allowed fans to leave the seats and chase down HR balls. The crowd was unruly a bit but it was an awesome night.
 

King: What free agent player out there would you like to see the Giants go after?

Dibley: I would like them to go after Jason Bay, a power hitter who will not totally kill the Giants defense.
 

King: There has been rumors about a Cain, Fielder trade. If you were the GM would you make this trade?

Dibley: Initially, I would have made that trade but something about the deal does not feel right for me. Maybe it’s the fit of Fielder with the Giants but my gut says don’t do it.
 

King: There are some 09 Giants players that are now free agents. Which players would you like to see brought back?

Dibley: I would love for them to bring Bengie Molina back, but for only one year, a pipe dream I realize. Aside from that, it’s good that Freddy Sanchez is coming back but aside from that, they can all pretty much go away.
 

King: There is a lot of people that want to see Posey as the starting catcher next season. Do you think Posey is ready for that role?

Dibley: I don’t think he is ready to be the everyday catcher. The inside word is that he needs to get more musculature. Once he gets bigger he will tear it up. 
 

King: What’s your thoughts on the NL having a DH?

Dibley: Hate the DH. Always have, always will. Baseball is a game of 9 on 9. We teach kids the ethos of playing the field and getting rewarded with an AB. The DH ruins that.
 

King: For the record… Who do you enjoy working with more.. Murph and Mac or Gary?

Dibley: Murph and Mac are the main course and Gary is the dessert. I get a well balanced meal from 5-9 then I get a terrific, varied “treat” from 9-10:30ish. I’m the the luckiest broadcaster in the market to be able to span two great, yet different shows.

King: Is there anything you want to let Giants fans know about you that they might not know?
 
Dibley: I love my job at KNBR and it is a partial culmination of my dreams. The fact that a mediocre student who never played professional sports can be such an integral part of a 50,000 watt sports station is testimony to the fact that dreams come true. I want people to know that dreams do in fact come true so keep believing and don’t give up, don’t ever give up.

I just want to say thank you very much to Dan Dibley for taking the time to do this Q&A for us. You can check out Dibley’s blog at dandibley.com and you can also follow him on twitter (twitter.com/dandibley). 

~King of Cali

Technorati Tags: Baseball, Bengie Molina, Brian Sabean, Brian Wilson, Bruce Bochy, Buster Posey, Dan Dibley, Giants, Jason Bay, KNBR, Matt Cain, MLB, Prince Fielder, Q&A, Randy Winn, San Francisco Giants Baseball, SF Giants Rumors

Q&A With Radio Host Damon Bruce from KNBR

Technorati Tags: Barry Bonds, Barry Zito, Damon Bruce, Edgar Renteria, Giants Fan Fest, Jeremy Affeldt, King of Cali, Manny Ramirez, Mark Grace, Matt Cain, Matt Holliday, Randy Johnson, SF Giants, SF Giants Baseball, SF Giants Rumors, Tim Lincecum