**2010-2011 SF Giants off season thread**
- Thread starter DUTCH-F.E
- Start date
Giants GM Brian Sabean told reporters Friday that Pablo Sandoval has dropped 15 pounds since the end of the 2010 season.
Sabean also expressed new optimism in Sandoval's ability to open the 2011 season as the Giants' starting third baseman. He had problems with his weight and conditioning throughout this past campaign, but he's still a highly talented hitter and should climb back into fantasy relevancy if he can keep the weight off. "Kung Fu Panda" batted .268/.323/.409 with 13 homers in 2010.
Sabean also expressed new optimism in Sandoval's ability to open the 2011 season as the Giants' starting third baseman. He had problems with his weight and conditioning throughout this past campaign, but he's still a highly talented hitter and should climb back into fantasy relevancy if he can keep the weight off. "Kung Fu Panda" batted .268/.323/.409 with 13 homers in 2010.
(12-04) 21:09 PST -- Another neat thing about winning a World Series, unless you're the Florida Marlins, is shaping the roster for the following season.
You don't clean house and start from scratch, and it's silly to break up the team, especially when most of the guys responsible for the trophy remain under contract.
So what will the Giants' brass, after a busy stretch of re-signing players and replacing Juan Uribe with Miguel Tejada, do at the winter meetings?
"We're going to play cards," general manager Brian Sabean joked. "Boch is going to challenge the writers to an all-night card game."
While wise ol' Bruce Bochy wouldn't mind leaving Lake Buena Vista, Fla. - site of this year's meetings - with a few extra coins in his pocket, the roster work isn't done. Sabean still has a wish list.
He wants more of a left-handed presence at the plate, more athleticism and a more defined bench.
Sabean does admit there's a different feel approaching the meetings than in past years. After the Giants won their first title since 1954, there's no serious discussion about trading a starting pitcher for a hitter. Or signing a big-money free agent with pop.
"There's less pressure to do heavy lifting," Sabean said, "but you're still going to want to tweak the roster."
The rotation doesn't change. Neither, for the most part, does the bullpen. The only free-agent pitchers are Guillermo Mota and Chris Ray. With Aubrey Huff re-signed and Tejada aboard, the only positions in question are third base and either left field or right field.
Pablo Sandoval, training in Arizona, already lost 15 pounds and is the front-runner at third, according to the Giants, though any hint that he looks or plays like it's 2010 instead of 2009 changes everything. If Pat Burrell gets most of the time in left, joining Andres Torres and Cody Ross in the outfield, the lefty swingers would be Huff and switch-hitters Torres and Sandoval (if he plays).
Plus, Nate Schierholtz, Travis Ishikawa and Mike Fontenot off the bench.
Not that the bench is set. To get his wish and become more left-handed and athletic, Sabean could trade a reserve or two or sign a free agent.
Or, there's an electrifying in-house option: 6-foot-5 first baseman Brandon Belt, who swung with authority from the left side in his first minor-league season (.352, 23 homers, 112 RBIs in 136 games at three levels) and the Arizona Fall League (.372-1-16, 22 games).
Belt has limited experience in the outfield: 11 games in right, three in left. He eventually could bump Huff to the outfield.
"We'd love to introduce Belt into the mix," Sabean said.
Aaron Rowand and Mark DeRosa still are around, and Sabean said there's a "mutual interest" for Edgar Renteria to return as a backup. Not exactly younger and more athletic, but plenty of time remains to configure a 25-man roster.
Trading Rowand, who has two years and $24 million left on his contract, would be tough, but Sabean once dealt Edgardo Alfonso for Steve Finley (bad contract for bad contract), though that was simpler because both had just one year remaining.
"Aaron will get a fresh start. Boch is going to sit down with him," Sabean said. "Even though we're bringing most of the team back, you can't kill incentive or map everything out right now. That's why we have spring training."
A's focused on Adrian Beltre, boosting offense.
Big picture look at the winter meetings. B4
E-mail John Shea at [email protected].
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/12/05/SPJ71GLMNK.DTL
You don't clean house and start from scratch, and it's silly to break up the team, especially when most of the guys responsible for the trophy remain under contract.
So what will the Giants' brass, after a busy stretch of re-signing players and replacing Juan Uribe with Miguel Tejada, do at the winter meetings?
"We're going to play cards," general manager Brian Sabean joked. "Boch is going to challenge the writers to an all-night card game."
While wise ol' Bruce Bochy wouldn't mind leaving Lake Buena Vista, Fla. - site of this year's meetings - with a few extra coins in his pocket, the roster work isn't done. Sabean still has a wish list.
He wants more of a left-handed presence at the plate, more athleticism and a more defined bench.
Sabean does admit there's a different feel approaching the meetings than in past years. After the Giants won their first title since 1954, there's no serious discussion about trading a starting pitcher for a hitter. Or signing a big-money free agent with pop.
"There's less pressure to do heavy lifting," Sabean said, "but you're still going to want to tweak the roster."
The rotation doesn't change. Neither, for the most part, does the bullpen. The only free-agent pitchers are Guillermo Mota and Chris Ray. With Aubrey Huff re-signed and Tejada aboard, the only positions in question are third base and either left field or right field.
Pablo Sandoval, training in Arizona, already lost 15 pounds and is the front-runner at third, according to the Giants, though any hint that he looks or plays like it's 2010 instead of 2009 changes everything. If Pat Burrell gets most of the time in left, joining Andres Torres and Cody Ross in the outfield, the lefty swingers would be Huff and switch-hitters Torres and Sandoval (if he plays).
Plus, Nate Schierholtz, Travis Ishikawa and Mike Fontenot off the bench.
Not that the bench is set. To get his wish and become more left-handed and athletic, Sabean could trade a reserve or two or sign a free agent.
Or, there's an electrifying in-house option: 6-foot-5 first baseman Brandon Belt, who swung with authority from the left side in his first minor-league season (.352, 23 homers, 112 RBIs in 136 games at three levels) and the Arizona Fall League (.372-1-16, 22 games).
Belt has limited experience in the outfield: 11 games in right, three in left. He eventually could bump Huff to the outfield.
"We'd love to introduce Belt into the mix," Sabean said.
Aaron Rowand and Mark DeRosa still are around, and Sabean said there's a "mutual interest" for Edgar Renteria to return as a backup. Not exactly younger and more athletic, but plenty of time remains to configure a 25-man roster.
Trading Rowand, who has two years and $24 million left on his contract, would be tough, but Sabean once dealt Edgardo Alfonso for Steve Finley (bad contract for bad contract), though that was simpler because both had just one year remaining.
"Aaron will get a fresh start. Boch is going to sit down with him," Sabean said. "Even though we're bringing most of the team back, you can't kill incentive or map everything out right now. That's why we have spring training."
A's focused on Adrian Beltre, boosting offense.
Big picture look at the winter meetings. B4
E-mail John Shea at [email protected].
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/12/05/SPJ71GLMNK.DTL
Mutual Interest Between Giants, Renteria
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [December 3, 2010 at 12:13pm CST]
Giants GM Brian Sabean told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that there's "mutual interest" between the team and Edgar Renteria, even after signing Miguel Tejada and tendering Mike Fontenot a contract (Twitter link). Renteria says he's open to playing second base, which provides the team with some flexibility.
Still, it's hard to imagine a great fit for Renteria on a roster that includes Freddy Sanchez, Pablo Sandoval, Fontenot, Tejada and Mark DeRosa. The Giants don't appear to have a clearly defined role to offer their World Series MVP in 2011.
Renteria batted .276/.332/.374 in 267 plate appearances, missing time with elbow, groin, hamstring and shoulder injuries before returning to form and winning the World Series MVP. Renteria has also expressed interest in re-joining the Cardinals or Marlins.
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [December 3, 2010 at 12:13pm CST]
Giants GM Brian Sabean told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that there's "mutual interest" between the team and Edgar Renteria, even after signing Miguel Tejada and tendering Mike Fontenot a contract (Twitter link). Renteria says he's open to playing second base, which provides the team with some flexibility.
Still, it's hard to imagine a great fit for Renteria on a roster that includes Freddy Sanchez, Pablo Sandoval, Fontenot, Tejada and Mark DeRosa. The Giants don't appear to have a clearly defined role to offer their World Series MVP in 2011.
Renteria batted .276/.332/.374 in 267 plate appearances, missing time with elbow, groin, hamstring and shoulder injuries before returning to form and winning the World Series MVP. Renteria has also expressed interest in re-joining the Cardinals or Marlins.
Sanchez had Surgery, Fontenot Signing Actually Made Sense!
Freddy Sanchez underwent another left shoulder surgery today, and the Giants said he'll need eight weeks of rehab and should be ready for the 2011 season opener.
After the arthroscopic procedure in Scottsdale, trainer Dave Groeschner said Sanchez will be behind schedule in spring training but should play exhibition games in March. Sanchez dived all over the place late in the season and actually played with a strained right shoulder.
Dr. Gary Waslewski, the Giants' Arizona-based orthopedist, performed the surgery, called a tenotomy -- removal of the biceps tendon -- that lasted 30 minutes.
GM Brian Sabean was confident with the prognosis and said he doesn't plan to find another second baseman. Mike Fontenot and Mark DeRosa are insurance policies.
"He plays very hard and has had some mileage because he's been out there a lot," Sabean said. "Sometimes you take a punch just because of how many games you played and how many innings you've been out there. He's balls out. He's very active during a game, obviously.
"That's how he plays. We appreciate and understand that's part of who he is. You have to give people that freedom. It's the other way that drives you nuts. You can't find a way to light a fire, and they can't light their own fire. He doesn't need anybody to get him up for a game. Anyone who's seen him get there as early as he does and go through his routine, he's hell-bent on treating every game like his last. It takes a lot of energy. I'm sure it's taxing."
Sanchez had a more complex left shoulder operation on Dec. 23 -- the Giants didn't reveal it until a month later -- while recovering from knee surgery. That shoulder surgery (performed by Dr. Ken Akizuki of the Giants' staff) was to repair a torn labrum and clean up an arthritic AC joint.
At the time of the surgery, Groeschner said Sanchez's goal was to be ready for the 2010 opener, though Groeschner had warned that he could miss the early part of the season.
In fact, Sanchez didn't play his first game until May 19, five months after going under the knife.
"There's always a concern when you have to do surgery for a second time in the same body part, but (Waslewski) was pleased with the result," Groeschner said. "It was pretty much what we thought going in."
The Giants acquired Sanchez from Pittsburgh on July 29, 2009, and he went on the DL Aug. 25 with a left shoulder strain.
He signed a two-year, $12 million extension on Oct. 30, 2009 -- one month after his knee surgery.
Follow on Twitter @JohnSheaHey
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/giants/detail?entry_id=78606#ixzz17Udwox5T
Freddy Sanchez underwent another left shoulder surgery today, and the Giants said he'll need eight weeks of rehab and should be ready for the 2011 season opener.
After the arthroscopic procedure in Scottsdale, trainer Dave Groeschner said Sanchez will be behind schedule in spring training but should play exhibition games in March. Sanchez dived all over the place late in the season and actually played with a strained right shoulder.
Dr. Gary Waslewski, the Giants' Arizona-based orthopedist, performed the surgery, called a tenotomy -- removal of the biceps tendon -- that lasted 30 minutes.
GM Brian Sabean was confident with the prognosis and said he doesn't plan to find another second baseman. Mike Fontenot and Mark DeRosa are insurance policies.
"He plays very hard and has had some mileage because he's been out there a lot," Sabean said. "Sometimes you take a punch just because of how many games you played and how many innings you've been out there. He's balls out. He's very active during a game, obviously.
"That's how he plays. We appreciate and understand that's part of who he is. You have to give people that freedom. It's the other way that drives you nuts. You can't find a way to light a fire, and they can't light their own fire. He doesn't need anybody to get him up for a game. Anyone who's seen him get there as early as he does and go through his routine, he's hell-bent on treating every game like his last. It takes a lot of energy. I'm sure it's taxing."
Sanchez had a more complex left shoulder operation on Dec. 23 -- the Giants didn't reveal it until a month later -- while recovering from knee surgery. That shoulder surgery (performed by Dr. Ken Akizuki of the Giants' staff) was to repair a torn labrum and clean up an arthritic AC joint.
At the time of the surgery, Groeschner said Sanchez's goal was to be ready for the 2010 opener, though Groeschner had warned that he could miss the early part of the season.
In fact, Sanchez didn't play his first game until May 19, five months after going under the knife.
"There's always a concern when you have to do surgery for a second time in the same body part, but (Waslewski) was pleased with the result," Groeschner said. "It was pretty much what we thought going in."
The Giants acquired Sanchez from Pittsburgh on July 29, 2009, and he went on the DL Aug. 25 with a left shoulder strain.
He signed a two-year, $12 million extension on Oct. 30, 2009 -- one month after his knee surgery.
Follow on Twitter @JohnSheaHey
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/giants/detail?entry_id=78606#ixzz17Udwox5T
