Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News was able to connect with ex-Giant Bengie Molina. Molina said he hasn’t heard from the Giants about his services being requested, and doesn’t think he will be in their plans because of the way it ended there. Molina also chimed in on the Buster Posey topic. He hopes the Giants will be “smart enough to put him at first base or third base. He’s too valuable…” I know a lot of Giants fans are on board with that idea. Posey has been getting beat up all season behind the plate. It’s hard for a catcher to get up to the plate and focus on hitting when then have a lot of aches, pains, bumps and bruises. The Posey era behind the plate may have came to an end!
I’m sure all Giants fans have heard by now about Buster Poseyinjury. Let me start off by saying it was a hard-nose play, and it wasn’t a cheap shot. Scott Cousins was trying to jar the ball loose to win the game. If Posey catches the ball and Cousins slides then he’s out, so I don’t blame Cousins for trying to knock the ball loose. It appears that Posey will be out for probably the season (fracture and torn ligaments). It’s a huge blow to the Giants offense to have Posey out of the everyday lineup. Let’s see how creative Brian Sabean gets via trade market. Let’s not forget about free agent Bengie Molina. I’m sure the Giants are kicking the tires on that option. Roster Moves
Chris Stewart (taking Posey’s spot) is being called up to backup Eli Whiteside. Brandon Crawford is being called up to replace Mike Fontenot.
The Giants have added Crawford and Stewart to the 40-man roster, and designated Ryan Rohlinger and Henry Sosa for assignment.
Welcome Back
Brandon Belt is also getting re-called to take Darren Ford‘s spot on the roster. Ford suffered an ankle sprain.
Belt is hitting .337 with 4 homers and 21 RBI for the Fresno Grizzlies. The Giants are hoping Belt can spark the offense and fill some of the void of losing Posey’s bat in the lineup.
Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle says Edgar Renteria might retire after this season. Renteria has had three trips to the disabled list this year. Renteria also acknowledged he didn’t live up to the deal (2-yrs 18.5 Million).
Renteria said, “I’m not proud of what I’ve done. If they pay me to play, I just want to give back, not get injured. that’s me.”
Side Notes
Juan Uribe hit two homers in the same inning. Last time that was done by a Giant was in 2007 by Bengie Molina. Did I forget to mention that one of the homers by Uribe was a grand slam? The last time two homers by a Giants in the same inning and one was a grand slam was hit by Willie McCovey in 1977.
It was a bitter-sweet moment for most Giants fans as the news dropped that the San Francisco Giants traded Big Money Bengie Molinato the Texas Rangers for RHP Chris Ray and a player to be named later.
Molina really was a clutch performer for the most part of his Giants tenure and a great backstop as well. He’s a career .275 hitter with 142 homers and 692 RBI’s. Molina just wasn’t putting up the numbers this year for the Giants at the plate. The leash for Molina wasn’t long with the future backstop already on the team (Buster Posey).
One of the SF Giants Rumors swirling prior to this trade was the Giants needed to solidify the bullpen and get a relief pitcher. Well that’s exactly what they did in this trade. Ray is currently 2-0 with a 3.41 ERA, 31.2 IP and 16 K’s. He’s going to be a guy that helps get the ball to closer Brian Wilson.
This isn’t a sexy trade, but it’s one that had to be done. The Giants couldn’t continue to trot Molina out behind the plate, when it’s clear that he’s not the best catcher on the team anymore. I wish you well Big Money because you were a great Giant!
The recent San Francisco Giants rumor that is floating around in the thick San Francisco fog is the Giants are interested in the Kansas City Royals OF/DH Jose Guillen. It’s also been reported that the Giants will only be interested if the Royals pay most of his salary.
Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star told me (via email) If the Royals eat all (or nearly all) of the salary and are willing to take (next to) nothing in return. The offer will need to get sweeter for anything to happen.
Chris Haft the Giants Beat writer also told me (via email) He hasn’t heard anything concrete but it absolutely wouldn’t surprise him. He’d be a good rent-a-player.
Guillen is currently hitting .279 with 13 homers and 47 RBI’s. He would be a nice bat to add to the middle of the Giants lineup. There would have to be a lot more juggling with with defense and lineup to keep the hot hitters in the lineup. Aubrey Huff and Pat Burrell have been in the outfield so Buster Posey could get some AB’s at first base.
If this trade does end up going down. We can see Bengie Molina losing a lot more playing time to the young phenom Posey, and then Burrell or Huff can move to first base to free up room for Guillen in the outfield.
This is the road trip that Bruce Bochy is showing he’s in control of this Giants party bus. The San Francisco Giants are currently 3-1 on this trip. Taking 2-out-of-3 from the Pittsburgh Pirates and game one against the Cincinnati Reds.
Bochy has made some statements on this trip, and basically telling these guys if you’re not hitting then you’re not playing. The very first bold statement was dropping Pablo Sandoval in the lineup to the 8th spot. He’s also started Pat Burrell in left field and sat the slumping Aaron Rowand. The young phenom Buster Posey got his first start behind the plate this year and Bengie Molina had a nice view from the bench. Bochy is making it clear on this road trip that he’s going to go with who’s swinging the bat, and not by who’s bankroll may be a little larger.
Molina is really slumping bad right now (4-for-52 slump), but I wouldn’t say the Giants are phasing him out at this point. There is so many up’s and downs during a season. Guys are going to get hot and cold at various times. Bochy’s job is to try to get everyone enough AB’s to keep them fresh. With that said though. I would still go with the hottest hitters at all times. The Giants have a lot of guys that can move around the diamond, so it’s very easy to mix and match lineups to go with the hot bats.
I was asked on SF Giants Rumors Facebook. If I had control of the lineup what would it be? Position and order? Well Jeff Z. from Facebook. You asked and you shall receive my Giants lineup.
This would be my starting lineup for tonight.
CF Andres Torres
2B Freddy Sanchez
3B Pablo Sandoval
1B Aubrey Huff
SS Juan Uribe
C Buster Posey
LF Pat Burrell
RF Nate Schierholtz
P Matt Cain
I look forward to seeing comments with your starting lineup!
Who knew all it would take is a shakeup in the starting lineup to get the San Francisco Giants back in the win column? I know a lot of writers/bloggers/media people tend to always hit the panic button a little early. I must admit I was really getting close to saying get Buster Posey up here immediately! It’s really a catch 22 if you think about it. If our offense is struggling and we have a hot hitter like Posey in Fresno. Yes, we should bring him up to help the team offensively. Now the flip side to that is do you think it’s really fair to Posey?
If Posey had to come up to be the offensive savior for the Giants. Don’t you think that would put a lot of added pressure on the rookie who’s already feeling the pressure of having to be Bengie Molina’s successor? I’m all for waiting to bring Posey up until he’s going to be assured a lot of playing time. There really is no point of bringing him up to spot start here and there. He’s better off down in Triple-A Fresno working on his catching. I mean after all, that was the reason he was starting the season in Fresno right?
Lineup Shakeup
I really liked the lineup that Bruce Bochy decided to go with in last nights game. If Andres Torres is in the lineup. He should always be at the top of the lineup. Let him find a way on base and burn rubber on the base paths. He just plays with a tremendous amount of energy that I think other guys in the lineup really feed off of. The lineup just seemed so balanced from top to bottom last night. Molina finally got to hit lower in the lineup as well as Aaron Rowand. That gives the Giants more ability to drive in runs throughout the lineup. It obviously worked last night, so let’s see if they can keep this Giants train rolling tonight!
Now this has been an ongoing issue. I keep hearing people say Sanchez should step up and should already have joined the team. That he lacks toughness. People have to understand that if you’re coming off an injury. You really want to be sure you’re 100%. You don’t want to rush back and risk injury again. A doctor can tell you when you should be back on the field, but that’s not set in stone. No one really knows how your body is. Only the player coming off the injury really knows when they feel 100%.
Sanchez is expected to join the team tomorrow in Arizona, as the Giants face the Diamondbacks. No, he’s not going to dramatically change the everyday lineup. He will however make an impact in it. He’s a career .299 (avg) hitter. He’s also a 3 time All Star, and has won the National League Batting Title in 2006. He’s no Babe Ruth, but he’s going to get his hits and will be on base for Pablo Sandoval, Aubrey Huff and Bengie Molina.
Side Notes
The Jermaine Dye rumor will never die till he’s signed by a team. It’s not likely the Giants will sign him. They know he had a horrible 2nd half of the season last year. He’s also demanding a hefty asking price and clearly a liability in the outfield. I don’t see the Giants feeling desperate enough to pull the trigger on that deal. They will be waiting for a player to step up, or for everyone to be healthy and on the field at the same time.
Mark DeRosa was quoted as saying “I hope and pray I get back into the lineup within a week, be productive and do what I was brought here to do, which is go to the playoffs and win a World Series.”
The Giants are 0-7 against the San Diego Padres this year. Let’s just chalk up the remaining 11 games with the Padres as losses, and let’s rest all of our players on those days. Who’s with me?
The Giants had a great home-stand against some very “Built Ford Tough” (hope Ford send me a check for that plug) teams. It was a 6-3 record against the ST. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and Colorado Rockies. The Giants had a chance to sweep each team, but dropped the finale in each series.
Now it’s back on the road for the hot Giants. It’s a mystery to see which Giants team will make the trip. Will it be the hot team coming straight from San Francisco, or the cold team that went 1-5 on the Los Angeles/San Diego road trip. It’s like night and day…
Tim Lincecum gets the start tonight against the Florida Marlins. Let’s hope he can get this road trip started off on the right foot. Timmy has been taking a lot of heat for not being able to pitch in the heat. I’m not sure how hot it will be in Florida at game time, but I’m sure it will be very humid. Timmy has been labeled as a cold weather pitcher. Let’s hope he can show he’s dominate in any type of weather.
This is a two city stop for the Giants on this road trip. They will be in Florida for 3 games, and then New York for 3 more. The Giants need to prove to themselves and their fans that they can win on the road. The Giants have proven that they can hang with anyone at AT&T Park. Let’s just hope Bruce Bochy figures out a way to jump start this offense in other places than San Francisco.
Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle says a leading theory posits the Giants will keep Buster Posey in the minors until June to ensure he does not gain an extra year of arbitration eligibility, but team officials have discussed bringing him up sooner.
King of Cali thoughts: Now it’s not rocket-science. If Posey is hitting and Aubrey Huff isn’t. I would bring up Posey, and let him get some games in at first. He can even get some games in when Bengie Molina needs a break behind the dish. This is just to help jump start the offense a bit.
Posey hasn’t been driving the ball so far this season, but he’s still getting his hits. He’s currently hitting .353 AVG with 1 homer and 9 RBI’s in 18 games for the Fresno Grizzlies. We need a guy that can hit. If you place him in this Giants lineup. He’s easily already one of the top 3 hitters in the everyday lineup. That’s how good this kids bat can be. Well then again… him being one of our top 3 hitters isn’t saying much for a team that desperately needs offensive help. Do you think the Giants should bring up Posey now?
Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News was able to connect with ex-Giant Bengie Molina. Molina said he hasn’t heard from the Giants about his services being requested, and doesn’t think he will be in their plans because of the way it ended there.
The Giants had a great home-stand against some very “Built Ford Tough” (hope Ford send me a check for that plug) teams. It was a 6-3 record against the 
