Skip to main content

Posey Impresive in Opening Workouts

Finally, instead of contemplating on Joe Crede and discussing the ongoing Manny Ramirez saga, we have some real baseball to talk about as Spring Training 2009 has officially begun.

Most of the buzz from the first few days of Giants camp has surrounded young Buster Posey. The Giants number one pick (and fifth overall) from 2008's amateur draft showed up to spring training and looked like a top five pick is supposed to. Posey hit a shot over the left-field fence on his first swing in his first spring batting session and he didn't stop there. According to those in attendance for the workout, Posey was ripping the ball all over the yard and was the only Giant hitter to hit a ball out of the park on each of the first two days of workouts. Just by looking at some of the photos taken from the batting sessions, and from the limited at-bats I saw him take for Florida State in last year's College World Series, you can tell this kid has a special swing that's balanced and finishes high, a lot like Will Clark's classic stroke used to look. Posey also appeared to carry a confidence on the field that he belonged and obviously stuck out more than any other player over the first couple of days. I know it's just spring workouts, but I get the feeling we could be seeing this guy in San Francisco a lot sooner than some think (like the second half of 2009, soon). Fred Lewis didn't put on the show that Posey did during his BP, but he also hit the ball hard as he was among a few of the early arriving position players. It's pretty clear Lewis is trying to take that next step this season and become a game changing offensive player. He's added some muscle and has visions of a 20-20 season in 2009. A 20 home run season may be stretching it by a few, but Lewis does have potential and it's good to see him doing his best to reach all of it.

Another new Giant that gained a lot of attention over the first couple days of spring workouts was Randy Johnson. The Unit apparently showed up a little late on day one but apparently looked like the Randy Johnson of old on day two. According to Andrew Baggarly, who is in Scottsdale monitoring workouts, Johnson's bullpen session went so well that teammates started gathering around him to watch the legend go to work. If Randy Johnson improves on what he did for Arizona last season, which is entirely possible now that he's finally entering a season at 100 percent, not only will he be an asset to the teams rotation, but this guy could realistically be an all-star again. Johnson looked very good in the second half of last season (posting an era under 2.5 after the all-star break) and if he gets healthy and comfortable pitching in a spacious yard like AT&T Park, then lookout. Now, I am well aware that Johnson is into his 40's and isn't near the pitcher he was 10 years ago, but still, I could still see him pulling off another 15-18 win season in this yard if he gets the proper support and keeps that back loose and healthy.

Other than the impressive workouts by the newcomers, there really hasn't been much to talk about yet as things are just at the early stage and nothing too exciting will happen until the first full-squad workouts and scrimmages began happening in about a week. Though not necessarily in great shape (Bengie Molina), everyone but Noah Lowry is in good health. Lowry is still battling the stiff shoulder, but he has been out on the field with the pitchers doing some of the things they are doing like bunting and running, but no fielding or throwing drills for Lowry yet. It's still unclear on how long this shoulder issue will keep him from participating but it will be a huge disadvantage for him if he's not ready to start pitching when Cactus league games start up in just 12 days.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Buster Posey is awesome. He has a really good arm and is a good catcher in addition to being a helluva hitter. The Giants could have a bunch of their own drafted players starting in a few years. Pablo Sandoval, Fred Lewis, Connor Gillaspie, Nate Schierholtz, Kevin Frandsen, Manny Burris and Buster Posey could all be starting 2 years from now and that would be so sweet. That would leave room for one big time hitter like too. I hope they don't trade any of them away.
Anonymous said…
....Maybe that big time hitter could be Manny Ramirez???? I'm really not sure who else is a free agent next year or the year after but I'm sure someone will become available.
Anonymous said…
Good to hear Posey is doing well..so far. I watched him play in the College World Series last year for FSU, and he has all the makings to play at the pro level. I wish him luck this year.
Trevor Cole said…
Yeah, I think he's going to be special. Probably not huge power, but 20-25 home runs a year while hitting over .300 with patience and about as clutch as they come. And as you said, a potential gold glove caliber catcher.

And yes Jason, that would be sweet if all of those guys panned out and became solid big league players. They also have guys in the lower levels like Angel Villalona, Wendall Fairly and Nick Noonan, among others, who could be pretty good as well. But you need to remember, Aaron Rowand is under contract for another 4 seasons so he isn't likely going anywhere anytime soon. It's exciting what the Giants have going on with some of their younger players though. A big change from how things were 4-5 years ago.
You Mon Tsang said…
Ah, I love the optimism of the spring!
Anonymous said…
He's the type of player every team wants. Many players would do anything to be a 20-25 HR, .300 BA player. If you can do that on a consistent basis you'll be making millions very quickly.
Anonymous said…
Is there any chance the Giants will allow Posey start the Year in San Francisco. Just think, he could share first base with Travis Ishikawa and back-up Bengie at catcher. If the Giants are planning on having him start next year when Molina is going to be a free agent, then he has to get some time in the big leagues this year. It would be a nice change of philosophy for the Giants if they did that. I mean geese, it sounds like he's the best thing since sliced bread to come to the Giants, and they need the offense.

They brought Connor Gillaspie up last year just a few months after drafting him and Posey is better isn't he???

Popular posts from this blog

WORLD SERIES: Giants Move Up 2-0 on Texas

PreGame After taking game one in a surprising slug-fest , the Giants look to go up 2-0 on the Rangers in the World Series on Thursday night. The Giants are sending out Matt Cain, a guy who I'm sure every Giants' fan is pretty confident in. He'll be a opposed by C.J. Wilson, who's in his first year as a full-time starter, but has been brilliant in the role. He did struggle his last time out though, so hopefully the Giants can get to him early and get into his head a bit. I'm going to do something I've never done here on this unique occasion, and sort of do an in-game post. updating this post every time I feel I have something to add. So go Giants, and be sure to check back throughout the game, and after, to vent or whatever! As long as Matt Cain keeps rolling, and the Giants keep coming up with those clutch 2-out hits, we should be OK. Texas has that high-powered offense that can score in a hurry, as we saw last night, so the Giants cannot let down and have to t

Giants Notes: Lincecum Signs, Ross to Boston

Well, even though I touched on it a little bit in our last post, I haven't really had a chance to get my thoughts out on the new Lincecum deal since he and the Giants agreed earlier in the week. Also, on the other end of things, the Giants missed out on shoring up their outfield by letting Cody Ross sign in Boston for only $3 million in 2012. First off, obviously, wanted to talk a bit about Lincecum. I've already said here that I didn't expect him to sign a long-term deal that takes him through free agency, but it doesn't mean he wants to leave San Francisco like everyone is suspecting. I mean, if I were Lincecum, I'd probably do the same thing, even if I planned on eventually signing with the Giants long-term. Why take a chance at mitigating your value to just sign a deal? Granted, a 5 year, $100 million deal isn't anything to sneeze at, in this market, if he were a free agent, Lincecum could probably easily command a 8 year, $200 million deal. If he could get

Giants Still Need Infield Help

On Saturday, the Giants finalized a 2 year contract extension with Freddy Sanchez, who they acquired in July for Tim Alderson. The new deal for Sanchez will pay him 12 million over the next 2 seasons instead of 8.5 million for just 2010, which was his option for 2010. I've voiced my disappointment in Sanchez a few times here since the Giants dealt for him over the summer. He wasn't able to stay on the field full time to help this club with their run at the NL Wild Card, and even when he was in there, he didn't seem to make much of an impact in th e lineup. Now, I wasn't necessarily hoping the Giants would cut ties with Sanchez (they probably would have had to pay 4 million or so to buy him out), just didn't think he was worth upwards of 10 million dollars, and would have liked to see the Giants pursue someone like Orlando Hudson with that money. The Giants already have an infielder who's being paid about 3-4 times what his play over the last 2 seasons would indi