The Giants Baseball Blog

The Giants have been so busy this offseason with player movement and rumors, so our prospect ranking for 2010 has been delayed a bit, but with spring training quickly approaching, I wanted to get it out there. Especially since a few of the guys off the list will be appearing in Scottsdale with the big club, and I want to make sure everyone knows a little something about players like Thomas Neal, Nick Noonan and Clayton Tanner. These are the top 20 prospects in the Giants system based on our ratings, we're not taking any other publications into consideration when making this post, this is %100 our opinion. #1 Buster Posey, C : The 22 year-old backstop is baseball's #4 overall prospect, according to BA, and figures to play heavily into the Giants' plans in 2010. He was the minor league player of the year last year when he hit a combined .325 with 18 homers and 80 RBI and a .955 OPS split between high-A San Jose and AAA Fresno. He had 17 un-impressive at-bats with the Giants ...

After the Giants inked Bengie Molina to a 1-year, $4.5 million dollar deal last week to shore up their starting catching spot, the Giants appear to have their roster set as Spring Training begins in just a few short weeks. The one piece of news that surfaced last week, and something that could very well impact the potential opening day lineup, was that Freddy Sanchez recently went under the knife in order to clean out his shoulder. The surgery will apparently keep the 2-time all-star and former batting champion out for all of spring training and could cause him to start the regular season on the DL. The Giants are counting on Sanchez to be a huge part of their offense and anchor the top part of their order, especially since they don't have a true leadoff man, so they're going to be very cautious with his rehab. This is where that re-signing of Juan Uribe pays off so big. Instead of having to re-work their whole lineup plan and move Mark DeRosa from left field to second base, th...

Hey guys, I just wanted to give you a heads up that I will be making an appearance on HotStove TV over at http://www.hotstove.com/ . On the Agenda will be the Giants off-season moves thus far, the situation regarding Tim Lincecum and arbitration, and I'm sure we'll also get into the latest news, Freddy Sanchez having surgery and likely missing all of the Spring and the early part of the season. Be sure to tune in and support yours truly and The Giants Baseball Blog! Live at 1PM Pacific Time, be there! If you missed it, here is the video attached below:

In a move that really came out of nowhere, Brian Sabean and the Giants have re-signed Bengie Molina to a one-year, $4.5 million to return to San Francisco for the 2010 season. Molina rejected a better offer from the Mets to return to the Giants, apparently showing who he thinks has the better chance to win in 2010. Earlier in the offseason, Brian Sabean made it clear that the Giants wouldn't be entertaining the idea of bringing Molina back, which made me really scratch my head when I heard the news. I thought KNBR must had made a mistake, but it wasn't the case. With the way the market has shaped up, and the wacky contracts that have been given out to mediocre catchers (2 year deals to guys like Pudge Rodriguez and Jason Kendal), plans obviously changed. The catching market wasn't very lucrative to begin with, and the only other starting catcher options outside of Molina were Rod Barajas and Yorvit Torrealba. Molina is knows the Giants pitching staff inside and out, and wi...

Spring Training reporting dates are exactly one month away, and most teams are putting their final touches on their rosters, while the remaining free agents start to accept lower offers than what they were seeking when the offseason began (see Adam LaRoche) to ensure they'll be employed in 2010. One player who just became a free-agent after being released by the Diamondbacks is Northern California native Eric Byrnes. I think Sabean would be open to adding another outfielder on his terms, and I could definitely see Byrnes fitting into Sabeans plan. Not too mention Byrnes has made it crystal clear that he would love to be a Giant, he lives in the area during he offseason and has an outstanding relationship with the Giants flagship radio station, KNBR 680. Baseball wise, Byrnes is coming off of a couple injury plagued seasons for the D-Backs, as he's hit just .214 with 14 home runs, 54 RBI and a measly .655 OPS in '08-'09 combined. A broken hand cost him 2 1/2 months in ...

The Giants made a move Thursday to officially get their 40-man roster set after the addition of Aubrey Huff. The odd man out was Merkin Valdez, who was designated for assignment by the Giants, but should have no problem finding a home before pitchers and catchers report to spring training in a little over a month. I was a little surprised to see Merkin get released, as I still think he has potential to be a plus late-inning reliever in this league, but he's suffered continuous health problems during his tenure with the Giants. 2009 was actually his longest stint in the majors in his career so far, and he didn't do much too impress the Giants' brass. He finished the year with a 5.66 era and a 1.72 WHIP. A lot of people close to the organization, myself included, expected big things for Merkin in '09 after he sparkled in his brief stint in the 2008 season ( 1.69 era, 14 k's and a .237 BAA in 16.1 IP). As the centerpiece in the trade the sent Russ Ortiz to the Atlanta...

In a low-risk, potentially high-reward attempt to add offense to their lineup, the Giants came to an agreement with free agent 1B/DH Aubrey Huff on Sunday. The deal will pay Huff in the neighborhood of $3 million to be their primary first basemen in 2010, after they failed to add their first choice, Adam LaRoche. Now, Huff doesn't excite me like he would have had they added him 5-6 years back, but It's tough to argue with a potential 30-home run, 100 RBI guy coming in for just $3 million and 1 season. I sort of overlooked Huff this off-season, and didn't write about him at all, even though I probably should have seen something like this coming. I just really thought it would be LaRoche signing with the Giants, and when they had announced they were close to signing a left-handed bat a couple days ago, I figured it would be Adam LaRoche. I would have rather seen the Giants ink LaRoche too, but since his demands were exceeding his worth to the Giants, I see the logic in going ...

The Giants officially re-signed the super-utility guy that came up so big for them in 2009, Juan Uribe , to a one-year deal, $3.25 million deal. Just a few hours later, it was made public that free agent first basemen Adam LaRoche declined the Giants contract offer of 2 years and $17 million. We'll start with Uribe . Now, don't get me wrong, Juan Uribe looked like starting material in August and September of last season when he hit .312 with 11 HR with 31 RBI and a .991 OPS in just 154 at-bats. If t he Giants didn't have Fred Sanchez, or weren't paying Edgar Renteria upwards of $10 million in 2010, I'd be all for playing Uribe at short or second on a full-time basis, but with the way this team is being constructed, I don't like Uribe as the everyday third basemen. As a matter of fact, he'd be option #3 behind Pablo Sandoval and Mark DeRosa . I like the idea of playing DeRosa in left field, which appears to be in the plans, but I think Sandoval brings m...

With the signings of Mark DeRosa and Juan Uribe over the last week or so, the Giants have made their first adds of the winter, but there are still plenty of area's of need on the roster, and just about a month and a half left before pitchers and catchers report to spring training. I didn't love the DeRosa signing, by any stretch, but one positive about it is the flexibility he brings to the ballclub, which will allow Sabean to pursue ano ther infielder if he wants, or turn his focus to the outfield. As far as the infield is concerned, there is still one guy out there waiting to be signed, a guy who I see as a solid fit with the Giants and that guy is Adam LaRoche. He's a real middle of the order type hitter, not these Bengie Molina's and Aaron Rowand's the Giants have been forced to use the last few years. LaRoche would provide the Giants with power at first base that they haven't had since Will Clark, or those first couple of years with J.T. Snow. The good thin...