The San Francisco Giants have activated Edgar Renteria and Dan Runzler from the DL. They have also called up the speedy outfielder Darren Ford. It’s not likely that Ford will get much playing time in the outfield but will be a speedy pinch runner when needed.
Eric Hacker of the Fresno Grizzlies has been named to the All-PCL team as the top right-handed starter in the entire league. Hacker has set a new franchise record with 16 wins this season.
Side Notes
The next 14 games are all against the NL West. There is only 29 games left in the season, and 23 of them are against the NL West.The Giants played 28 games in August and went 13-15.
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.
John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that Aubrey Huff would love to re-sign with the San Francisco Giants. Huff said he and Pat Burrell are really enjoying it here.
“I would love to be back here,” Huff said when asked about 2011.
The way Huff is hitting right now. I’m sure the Giants would love to bring him back. Possibly even Burrell if he continues to produce. Huff leads the team in AVG at .311. There is a few guys with a higher AVG like Edgar Renteria and Freddy Sanchez, but they have half the AB’s that Huff has had. He also leads the team in homers with 12, runs with 41 and is 2nd in RBI’s with 37.
Side Notes
It’s finally official that they are shutting down Mark DeRosa for the season. He will be having surgery early next week. The Giants are just hoping they can get a healthy DeRosa for next year. I was really hoping DeRosa would be a big part of the lineup this year, but the baseball gods had other plans.
We all knew coming into this season that our pitching was our strong point, and our hitting was going to struggle again. Here are some stats to show you where the San Francisco Giants are currently at compared to other 30 Major League Baseball teams.
Batting Stats
AVG: .256 (ranked 17th)
Runs: 182 (ranked 24th)
Hits: 389 (ranked 23rd)
Home Runs: 34 (ranked 24th)
Stolen Bases: 18 (ranked 27th)
OBP: .322 (ranked 21st)
SLG: .392 (ranked 21st)
Total Bases: 594 (ranked 23rd)
Pitching Stats
ERA: 3.45 (ranked 4th)
Runs Allowed: 161 (ranked 28th)
Saves: 14 (ranked 6th)
Strikeouts: 360 (ranked 4th)
OpBA: .224 (ranked 1st)
OBP: .311 (ranked 5th)
SLG: .335 (ranked 1st)
Run Support: 4.02 (ranked 24th)
Do any of these numbers surprise you? From the offensive side of things. The Giants have had some key players injured, and haven’t been able to trot out the everyday lineup they envisioned when they completed their roster in the offseason. Freddy Sanchez finally makes his return to the Giants, but Mark DeRosa has been out (wrist). Now Edgar Renteria is back on the shelf. He was placed on the 15-Day DL with a strained right hamstring. If the Giants can get all these guys in the lineup at one time. I have no doubt that they can’t scratch out a few more runs, and get more wins. No, they will not be “Murders Row” (1927 Yankees), but with this kind of pitching staff they don’t need to be. The Giants are currently 23-22 this season. It’s still not time to panic Giants fans. They still have 117 games left to play. Let’s just hope Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy are keeping any eye on these stats as well. Lets hope they can fix the problem areas before it’s to late for this season.
It’s nice to read some Giants articles today and see that fellow writers are saying Eric Hacker and Madison Bumgarner are ready to take the 5th spot in the rotation from Todd Wellemeyer. Maybe they read yesterdays post “SF Giants Rumors – Not So Wellemeyer, Two Prospects Ready For The Call”, and they are stealing our story? No they are not stealing anything. SF Giants Rumors was just able to do some due diligence, and let fans know about the replacement options first!
If Nostradamus would have told me that the Giants would put up 7 runs in last nights game. I would have chalked that up as a win! Well they got the 7 runs, but Tim Lincecum was struggling with his command. He gave up 5 runs in the fifth inning. Definitely not the Lincecum that Giants fans have come accustom to seeing pitch every fifth day.
The loss was very frustrating, but don’t be worried about the pitching. That was a fluke kind of inning for Lincecum to give up 5 runs. Then the bullpen giving up the other 3 runs. Majority of our games have been low scoring, so in my mind having all those runs scored against our pitching wasn’t anything to write home about. Let’s just hope these guys can step up this weekend in Oakland. Were now sitting in 3rd place, and looking up at the Dodgers and Padres.
Side Notes
Mark DeRosa is eligible to come off the disabled list on Tuesday at home against the Washington Nationals. Larry Baer said on a radio interview with Ralph and Tom (KNBR) that DeRosa may play some rehab games prior to that. He also mention that Edgar Renteria may be in the lineup this weekend against the Oakland A’s. It’s possible that the Giants may finally have all their projected starters (Renteria, DeRosa and Sanchez) in the lineup for the first time on Tuesday against the Nationals.
Pat Burrell is available and the Padres have shown some interest. Any team that signs him will only owe him the pro-rated portion of the minimum salary. He obviously hasn’t been playing good ball, but do you think the Giants should take a stab at him? His defense is a liability and his bat hasn’t been great, but he does still have that right-handed power. I say we pass on signing him but what’s your thoughts on this possible signing?
Welcome to the new home of the San Diego Padres Rumors!(yeah right)
The San Francisco Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow joined the Murph & Mac show this morning on KNBR. Krukow thinks the Padres caught the Giants at the right time. With injuries the Giants have three of their best right handed hitters out of the lineup. That’s Edgar Renteria, Freddy Sanchez and Mark DeRosa. Which puts the Giants at a disadvantage when facing good left handers.
DeRosa has taken a cortisone shot to see if he can play through the pain. If he can’t then he’s probably going to have to go on the DL. Krukow says the Giants need DeRosa, but they need him to be at 80-90% to be a good addition to the lineup.
Krukow believes Giants fans are going to like what they see when Freddy Sanchez comes back healthy to the Giants. Sanchez is likely to join the Giants in Arizona on Wednesday. I’m also with Krukow on that one. Sanchez is a great bat to add to any lineup, and with how bad the Giants are struggling offensively. He’s definitely going to be a spark!
Side Notes
The Giants are 18-9 when they are not playing the Padres. (0-6 when facing them)
Freddy Sanchez went 3-for-3 with 2 doubles, 2 walks and a RBI in his 5 AB’s last night for the San Jose Giants. Sanchez is currently hitting .667 (AVG) with 4 RBI’s in his rehab assignment. He’s 6-for-9 so far and 5 of his 6 hits have been doubles.
The Houston Astros come are in town tonight. They are coming in pretty hot after sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals, so don’t count on it being a walk in the park for the Giants this weekend. I will be happy with two out of three. I am greedy though, so let’s just go for the sweep!
The Giants could use Sanchez as soon as possible, Baggarly says. Juan Uribe is listed as day-to-day, Edgar Renteria is playing through bursitis in his right shoulder, and Mark DeRosa has a bad hamstring too.
SIDE NOTES
Todd Wellemeyer’s start Tuesday probably will be his last until May 8th. The Giants have two days off and are likely to skip his next start.
King of Cali thoughts: The 2010 Giants look like the 2009 Giants right now. They can’t seem to get any clutch hits. I was hoping Aubrey Huff would turn into the offseason steal like Uribe was a year ago. It’s still very early in the season, so a lot can change. I just wouldn’t be buying your “Vote For Huff” All Star shirts this year.
Huff still has that power that the Giants need. Even though he has yet to show it this season. It may take a while for him to get in his comfort zone since he’s coming from the American League. Just an FYI to Huff. Buster Posey is swinging a very hot bat in Fresno. He may force the issue and take over at first sooner or later if Huff isn’t producing! Things that make you go hmmm…
If F-Sanchez joins the team within 2 weeks. That’s going to be a big spark that the Giants desperately need. This guy can flat out hit and get on base. I know that doesn’t solve the problem of guys driving in runs, but it does bring an above average bat to the everyday lineup. This will also give the Giants more options as far as who’s hot to stay in the lineup. If Renteria isn’t pulling his weight. Then he can sit the bench and keep Bruce Bochy company.
Aaron Rowand starts the game off by getting his first hit of the season. Edgar Renteria continues with his hot start by getting another hit. Pablo Sandoval hit into a double play and then Aubrey Huff flied out. The Giants got two hits in the inning but ended up with 0 runs. Matt Cain gets his first start of the season and has a very nice 1,2,3 inning. Getting the Giants back to the plate, so they can try to get on the scoreboard early. Mark DeRosa gets the Astros staring pitcher Brett Myers back in the stretch right away, by getting a lead-off single. Then John Bowker shows why he won the right field job. He hit a 2-run homer to right center field to give the Giants a 2-0 lead. That’s all the Giants would get in the 2nd inning.
Huff made a nice play on a hard smashed ball by Geoff Blum. Jon Miller said on the radio that it was a lucky play, but shows how quick Huff’s hands are. Huff might be trying to show that he doesn’t need a defensive replacement late in games. Pedro Feliz gets the Astros first hit off of Cain by hitting a 2 out double. After 2 innings it’s the Giants 2 and the Astros 0.
3rd Inning
The Giants got right back to work in the top of the 3rd. Renteria continued his hot hitting by getting another hit. Sandoval and Huff also got singles. The bases were loaded for DeRosa. He hit into a double play, scoring on the play was Renteria. The Giants had the bases loaded and could have did some real damage, but just managed to get the one run. Cain gave up a hit in the bottom of the 3rd but that’s all they were able to get. After 3 innings the score is 3-0 Giants.
4th Inning
The Giants went very quietly in the top of the 4th inning. The Astros got a runner on 2nd base to start the bottom of the 4th inning. Sandoval got a two-base-error by making a wild throw to first base. Cain got his first strike out of the year by striking out Carlos Lee in a big RBI situation. Feliz gets the Astros on the board. He gets a 2-out RBI double. That’s all the Astros would get. Cain does end up getting two strike outs in the bottom of the 4th inning. After 4 innings the score is 3-1 Giants.
5th Inning
Renteria gets another hit in the top of the 5th inning. Making him 3-for-3 in the game and reaching base in 8 of his first 11 at bats of the season. Sandoval got a double off the left field wall, and Renteria moves to 3rd on the play. Huff was not able to get a ball to the outfield. He grounded out to 2nd base, and Renteria was not able to score on the play. DeRosa wasn’t able to get the clutch hit the Giants needed either. The Giants are leaving a lot of men on base, and they are letting the Astros hang around instead of blowing this game wide open. The Astros weren’t able to get anything going against Cain in the bottom of the 5th inning. Three Astros up, and three Astros down in order.
6th and 7th Inning
Nothing ever got started for the Giants in the top of the 6th inning, and also nothing for the Astros in the bottom half either. Rowand did get a lead-off triple to start the top of the 7th. Renteria followed that up with an RBI single and knocking Myers out of the game. The Giants end up leaving 2 runners on base. Nate Schierholtz comes into the game in the bottom of the 7th as a defensive replacement for Bowker. Blum gets a lead-off single off of Cain. Feliz flies out to right field for the first out of the inning. Jeff Keppinger gets a single off of Cain. Runners now at 1st and 2nd with one out. Cain was able to get the 2nd out by striking out J.R. Towles (fifth strike out for Cain). Cory Sullivan comes in to pinch hit. Sullivan makes it a one run game by getting 2-run triple. Bruce Bochy comes out to get Cain. Bochy brings in Eugenio Velez to play left field and Jeremy Affeldt in to pitch (double switch). Michael Bourn gets an infield hit scoring Sullivan to tie the game. After 7 innings the game as tied 4-4.
8th Inning
Juan Uribe gets his first hit of the game by getting a lead-off double (off Sammy Gervacio) to start the top of the 8th. Whiteside bunted to get Uribe to 3rd, but the ball was thrown away (by Gervacio). The Giants score on the play, and are now back in front. Rowand gets an RBI single to score Whiteside. Gervacio threw a wild pitch allowing Rowand to move up to 2nd base. Gervacio gets hurt on the wild pitch and Chris Sampson comes in to replace him. He walks the hot hitting Renteria. Runners now on 1st and 2nd for Sandoval. Sandoval and Huff both hit fly balls and were not able to come through in the clutch. Affeldt comes back out for the bottom of the 8th, and has a very nice three up, and 3 down inning.
9th Inning
Travis Ishikawa comes in to pinch hit in the top of the 9th, and gets a pinch hit homer. That’s the first time Ishikawa has hit a homerun as a pinch hitter. Schierholtz follows that up with a single. Uribe hits a shot that rolls all the way to the wall. It’s a RBI double that scores Schierholtz from 1st base. Whiteside has a nice situational at bat. Hitting a ball to the right side to get Uribe to 3rd base. Velez gets a walk to set up 1st and 3rd for Rowand. Rowand gets a RBI single that was high off the left field wall. Scoring on the play is Uribe and Velez goes to 3rd. Renteria gets another hit and scoring on the play in Velez. Renteria now has a 5 hit game (5-for-5). The Giants wouldn’t score again in the 9th. It’s now 10-4 Giants going into the bottom of the 9th. Guillermo Mota comes in to pitch the 9th inning for the Giants to try to get the sweep (no save situation) for the Giants. Mota gets the Astros three up and three down to end the game.
Final
Giants – 10 Runs, 19 Hits and 1 Error
Astros - 4 Runs, 7 Hits and 1 Error
Affeldt -W
Gervacio -L
Highlights
Rowand – 4 Hits, 6 AB, 1 Run and 2 RBI’s
Renteria – 5 Hits, 5 AB, 1 Run and 2 RBI’s
Home Run
Bowker hit a 2-run homer in the 2nd inning.
Ishikawa hit a solo pinch hit homer in the 9th inning.
Andrew Baggarly reported on his blog (last week). Buster Posey isn’t “etched in stone” to begin the season at Triple-A Fresno. Bruce Bochy said him and Brian Sabean have talked about giving Posey a look at other infield positions. This is to increase Posey’s options of getting into games.
Photo by Damon Tarver
When Baggarly told Posey about Bochy’s comments. Posey’s first response was “I hope someone gets me some new gloves!” It’s also been reported by Baggarly that Posey has put on 15 pounds this offseason.
Side Notes
Edgar Renteria (elbow surgery) is healthy and so is Mark DeRosa (wrist surgery).
King of Cali thoughts: Now this really got me thinking. Wouldn’t it be best to just move Posey to another position, so he doesn’t have to go through the everyday grind of being a catcher? Moving him to another position can also prolong his career by a couple more years. I’m sure the Giants are pretty set in having him as their future everyday catcher. They probably won’t really consider moving his position until later on in his career. We just need to get this guy use to some major league pitching, so he can hit like we know he’s capable of.
Jon Heyman of SI.com gives his eight teams that he says have been losers this offseason, at least for the months of November through February. The Giants are listed as the #4 team, so I guess that’s better than the worst team which happens to be the New York Mets.
Heyman says the Giants brought in a collection of hitters – Mark DeRosa, Aubrey Huff, Juan Uribe and Bengie Molina, but ignored the two true middle of the order threats that were available (Jason Bay and Matt Holliday) and badly needed.
King of Cali thoughts: I don’t think the Giants really are losers this offseason. No we didn’t get that one big bat that we have said we needed for the last two years. We did however upgrade our offense. No, it’s not the Yankees lineup. This team does have the potential to score more runs this year. We still are missing our ideal leadoff hitter, and we have no team speed. We do however have some decent hitters.
2010 Projected Lineup
1. Aaron Rowand CF
2. Freddy Sanchez 2B
3. Pablo Sandoval 3B
4. Aubrey Huff 1B
5. Mark DeRosa LF
6. Bengie Molina C
7. Nate Schierholtz RF
8. Edgar Renteria SS
9. Tim Lincecum P
Now we all know this lineup is subject to change. If Sanchez isn’t ready for opening day. The Giants will likely start Juan Uribe and 2nd base. Which means the lineup would need some shuffling.
This was the 2009 Starting Lineup.
1. Randy Winn RF
2. Edgar Renteria SS
3. Fred Lewis LF
4. Bengie Molina C
5. Pablo Sandoval 3B
6. Travis Ishikawa 1B
7. Aaron Rowand CF
8. Emmanuel Burriss 2B
9. Tim Lincecum P
Now by the looks of that. I would say we are definitely starting off this season with a better starting lineup than last year. Would you say the Giants are losers this offseason?
