A Dream come true: World Series champion San Francisco Giants 2011 thread

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/02/16/SPM41HNI4L.DTL

The prodigal MVP is coming home.

Jeff Kent, one of the best hitters to wear a San Francisco uniform, will don it again Tuesday when he joins the Giants for two weeks as a spring training instructor. His most important task might be to help sculpt Buster Posey into a cleanup hitter, Kent's role for most of his career...

I guess now that hes not an every day player Kent can stop being a fucking asshole to the young guys

I thought he was a fucking asshole to everyone, period.

Let us remember Jeff Kent for his contributions to the Prop 8 campaign, the first political campaign to which he had ever given money.

I just hold a grudge against Kent for forming the old man triumvirate of Nomar, Luis Gonzalez and himself to hate on Kemp, Martin etc when they were coming up in LA.

But good on him for trying to actually teach now. He claims he only 'lead by example' when he was a player and didnt seem like a gave a shit about helping anyone..

the Giants are trying to get rid of Zito? i call bullshit:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/02/SPIM1I1II1.DTL

He's walking a very fine line within the organization.

A source close to the team indicated Tuesday that there is "exasperation" with Zito, that his status as the No. 5 starter is "definitely not safe," and that the team would even consider buying out his expensive contract before Opening Day if that's what it takes to say farewell.

Zito has the rest of spring to either resurrect his worth to the Giants or show an opposing team that he'd be valuable in a trade, according to others familiar with the situation. Meanwhile, the Giants will take a close look at 16-year veteran Jeff Suppan (three shutout innings against Milwaukee on Monday), Class AA left-hander Clayton Tanner and other options for the No. 5 slot.

Heading into spring training, it was widely believed that the Giants were more than willing to ride it out with Zito, given the overall excellence of their rotation. But there's a healthy sense of urgency in the world champions' camp. They didn't clinch a postseason berth until the final game of the 2010 season, and they realize that just a single loss - something that could be avoided - could cost them a chance to repeat.

There is concern that Zito hasn't been properly diligent in maintaining his physical conditioning, and that Monday's performance (five walks in 13 batters) was all too reminiscent of Oct. 2, when he walked home two runs in the first inning against San Diego and took the loss at AT&T Park.

Zito might not realize it, but after being left off last year's postseason roster, he could greatly benefit from a change of scenery. He has been a sub-.500 pitcher in each of his four seasons with San Francisco (40-57 total), the fan base has completely given up on him, and he wouldn't be anywhere near the Giants' roster this spring were it not for his contract: $18.5 million owed this season, $39 million more through 2013 and a $7 million buyout for 2014.

Bank on this: There's no way Zito will be wearing a Giants uniform in 2013. At some point, the team has to cut the cord. That time might come sooner than expected.

i would love to get rid of Zito and maybe even Rowland but with those contracts it's not going to happen. i don't want to pay Rowland's contract and have him play somewhere else, if we are paying these guys than swallow it and let them remain on the team.

Rowland Office?

haha, no L just Aaron Rowand

if we are paying these guys than swallow it and let them remain on the team.

― World Series champion San Francisco Giants (Bee OK), Wednesday, March 2, 2011 10:35 PM (24 minutes ago) Bookmark

this is sort of like saying "well i already have cancer, i might as well let it spread!"

i.e. if you're paying them, regardless of how much, and they're actively hurting the team on the field, then you pay them not to play -- plenty of teams have done that before

true but they are thinking of replacing him with a Jeff Suppan or someone named Clayton Tanner. Zito will be the most overpaid fifth starter in the league but he is worth hanging on to than replace him with lesser talent.

both those guys sound better than zito. Why? Because they're not zito

I would not want Suppan on my team because I find him politically repugnant!

But also, Zito is a totally decent 5th starter.

it probably makes sense to have a quick contingency plan for zito if he implodes this year because it's coming sooner rather than later

Zito will be the most overpaid fifth starter in the league but he is worth hanging on to than replace him with lesser talent.

― World Series champion San Francisco Giants (Bee OK), Wednesday, March 2, 2011 8:10 PM (58 minutes ago)

More than a bit of understatement here, Zito's contract is the #3 highest ever for a pitcher?

What happened to Dan Runzler? I thought he was the contingency fifth starter?

Even if you're just looking at his work with the Giants, Zito is a much better pitcher than Suppan, and younger.

I would not want Suppan on my team because I find him politically repugnant!

why? what's his deal?

Well, for example:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/26/sports/baseball/26suppan.html

Not too surprising coming from a baseball player, but fuck him.

i knew this didn't sound right:

Bochy affirms faith in Zito as fourth starter

Giants starter Barry Zito and manager Bruce Bochy held a closed-door meeting Wednesday afternoon in the wake of a San Francisco Chronicle story that cited a source close to the Giants as saying Zito's spot in the rotation was "definitely not safe" and that his contract could be bought out before Opening Day.

"I told him he's going to be our fourth starter," Bochy said. "You do stay open-minded with the competition that's going on, whether it's in the outfield, infield or with the pitching staff, starting and bullpen. We came up with a game plan, and that's Barry going the fourth game"...

Giants rotation for 2011:

(R)Tim Lincecum
(L)Jonathan Sanchez
(R)Matt Cain
(L)Barry Zito
(R)Madison Bumgarner

Bumgarner is only going last so they can rest his arm if they need to. the Giants are going to have a bunch of off days at the beginning of the season where they will only need a four man rotation.

Zito's politics aren't that hot, either, he's fairly GOP IIRC.

What happened to Dan Runzler? I thought he was the contingency fifth starter?

Didn't he get hurt trying to bunt during a game, and the injury turned out to be fairly serious? Or else I'm thinking of some other reliever.

Zito has the rest of spring to either resurrect his worth to the Giants or show an opposing team that he'd be valuable in a trade, according to others familiar with the situation. Meanwhile, the Giants will take a close look at 16-year veteran Jeff Suppan

Wait, this is real and not something from the Onion?

It is pretty funny. You could even tweak it a little:

Zito has the rest of spring to either resurrect his worth to the Giants or show an opposing team that he'd be valuable in a trade, according to others familiar with the situation. Meanwhile, the Giants will take a close look at the recently deceased Woodie Fryman.

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2011/03/06/ba-Giants07_spri_0503100221.jpg

1) They aren't going to release Zito.
2) They can't trade Zito (because no one wants that salary.)
3) Even though he's ridiculously overpaid Zito's still way better than most 4 or 5 starters are (certainly better than Jeff Suppan).
4) Zito's also ridiculously durable which even if he wasn't a league average starter would still have value (see Jeff Suppan haha).

I just noticed brian wilson looks like the insane cook from wet hot american summer

first national televised pre-season game by the Giants is finally playing tonight on MLB Network.

yeah baseball, it's almost back

also called DirecTV yesterday and they gave me $60 off for the season, now my final price for 2011 is around $145. less than $1 a game. yeah me.

yeah, it's the NBC broadcast so we get Jon Miller.

OMG ROWAND REACHED BASE THIS IS GOING TO BE AN AWESOME SEASON

Mat Latos is such a dweeb!

Latos has had a shitty spring so far..

Someone explain to me what the hell is up with whiteside's hair..

he's a Greatful Dead fan?

anyways, the reason why im was all over Latos is he autograph a ball and wrote "i hate SF" on it. it's for charity, which makes it worse. mature.

i remember why i hate pre-season games, no matter what sports.

team looked great at first then Timmy let the ball fall all over the place with some help from bad defense. the Panda looks great however!

Latos roolz

so tonight it's the Dodgers vs Giants in a game that was played earlier today.

so the Giants were down a run in the bottom of the ninth. one to tie and two to go home, they score two.

spring record now stands at 10-3.

this team is looking really, really good.

oh plz, spring training games.

"looking good":

http://sfist.com/assets_c/2011/03/timnymagcover-thumb-800x977-605712.jpg

oh plz, spring training games.

i know i was drinking the koolaid early, this last weekend was the first i was able to see them since last year. i was impressed with what i saw though it doesn't count.

i was wrong about their record however, it's 14-4 or now 5 as they lost today.

wow, an article from Peter Gammons that isn't about the AL East:

Giants a big hit in the desert

Brandon Belt's Spring Training line:

.318/.375/.568
4BB:9K
2 SB (6'5"/220#)
2 HR
5 2B

No doubt he'll start the year at Fresno, but seems like he will be called up very quickly like Posey last year.

How many ABs is that?

only 44 but he has almost 500 spanning 3 seasons in NCAA/MiLB carrying .352/.455/.620

yeah belt could be better than huff and burrell right now

Will be interesting to see if his power holds up. Alot of scouts projected him at less than 20 HR power, which for a 1B isnt amazing.

Then again my 1B is lucky to hit 10 so I should STFU.

ps I will be watching these damn Giants in Scottsdale on Monday. This is what I get for going to college in the bay area.

http://www.bizofbaseball.com/images/PINKGiants-Image.jpg

did lincecum fix his teeth? from that times style shot it looks like some of the snaggle canines are centered. hope they didnt photoshop.

nm, should have googled first:

* mays4ever
* Posts:319

You don't pitch with your teeth.

* colinsg
* Posts:8606

You know who has nice teeth? Roy Halladay. He also gave up two home runs to Cody Ross and has a loss in Game 1 of the series.

that team Colorado sent out there were rather weak

so there are nine games left with three remaining against Arizona. they are five games back in the West and are on an eight game winning streak. now the Wild Card has come into play as they are four games out, Atlanta has fallen apart and have to play the Phillies.

and the Braves lose, now only 3.5 games out for the Wild Card

never thought they would be here

In 17 starts since late June, Lincecum's ERA was 1.90.

The Giants were 8-11 in those games.

No repeat this year, sorry BOK.

As soon as I saw that huff was starting tonight's game I knew it was a loss.

Zito has quietly returned to the team as a mop up guy, and not a very good one at that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fe1EPpgw81k

calrissian I hope

Lincecum will finish the year with a losing record (13-14) carrying a 1.21 WHIP and a 2.74 ERA.

better luck next year fellas.

Carlos Beltan just got pulled after six inning and was given a standing ovation. i think that will be it for him in a Giants uniform.

correction he went out there for the fifth but was pulled before any batter came to the plate.

i think that will be it for him in a Giants uniform.

ehhh.... 2019?

this is a must read for Giants fans, year end summery by Andrew Baggarly:

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/extrabaggs/2011/09/29/postseason-notes-a-treatise-on-belief-the-habit-of-winning-and-finding-the-good-stuff/

It’s a very different feeling as I stare out at the vacant field now.

Where did the magic go? Why couldn’t the Giants capture the same spirit?

Well, I think it went something like this: Last year’s team was such a thrown-together group. The players saw the San Diego Padres melting back to the pack. They recognized late that they had a shot. Belief bloomed like jasmine, and suddenly, everyone’s nose was full of the sweet scent.

They weren’t All-Stars, but they knew they had the pitching to beat anyone on a given day. So they saw their opportunity for what it was: A happy accident.

Their mantra could be summarized in two words: “Why not?”

People didn’t expect them to win? No matter. The players weren’t caught up in external perceptions or pressures. They looked around the room, and darn it, they liked each other. They wanted to win for each other. So they played loose and easy, and if they lost, they simply fell back on their other two-word mantra: “Screw it.”

They became World Champs because they didn’t care about the outside world. They cared only about each other. And they nailed it, all right.

This year, the opposite was true. The motivations were external, not internal. The expectations weighed on them. The crown was heavier than they ever thought possible.

You don’t wonder if you’re a fluke. That’s what others do...

Now's as good as any time for recriminations; Bee OK, I fully blame you for the thread title and thus jinxing this season. Everyone knows that sublimated erotic desire ensures success (1/1 = 1.000).

yeah, i jinxed the Giants this season with this tread title. i'm not naming it next year so it's up to you Leee!

Timmy in that FIFA ad looks a little chubbed out. Not trolling, I just thought he was skinny dude. I guess he eats better than me either way.

Brian Wilson will be in new commercials for Taco Bell. I was hoping he would shave off that beard but apparently there is still a lot of money in it.

damn, can't find it on youtube yet

You know, it wouldn't suprise me in the slightest if Wilson kept money in his beard.

just saw the commercial for the first time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLsDZjIH7sE

so i just saw Brian Wilson in an NBA video game commercial, dress in green with short shorts. i think it has to do with the Celtics but unsure.

I think it has to do with Brian Wilson.

http://blog.sfgate.com/giants/2011/10/11/san-francisco-giants-catcher-buster-posey-passes-a-big-milestone-in-his-recovery/?tsp=1

Fingers crossed. Go Posey!

Definitely rooting for Posey. Love that kid.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=YVuF2eRHs5w

that didn't post...anyways that the long version of the Wilson NBA video game commercial.

for those of you interested in these kind of things:

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2011/10/arbitration-eligibles-san-francisco-giants.html#disqus_thread

Bee OK, give us your prediction for Zito next year. He finished the season doing mop-up as a long man, and not very well.

my thinking:

First time:
Pablo Sandoval (will be back)
Sergio Romo (will be back)
Nate Schierholtz (will be back)
Eli Whiteside (non-tendered, need to go in a different direction)
Emmanuel Burriss (non-tendered, no room on the big club)

Second time:
Andres Torres (non-tendered, time to say goodbye)
Santiago Casilla (not sure but hope he comes back)

Third time:
Tim Lincecum (one year deal, then deal with it next off-season when Zito is almost done)
Jonathan Sanchez (will be back, they need to stick with him for at least one more year)
Jeff Keppinger (this team needs a .300 hitter, even if its coming off the bench and F. Sanchez protection)
Ramon Ramirez (not sure hope they can keep him)
Mike Fontenot (non-tendered, keep Keppinger instead)
Ryan Vogelsong (two year deal)

they are stuck with Zito and will be a starter. he can't pitch, like you said, out of the pen. think he gets two months and will have J. Sanchez there just in case.

I don't think I can deal with another round of Zito/Sanchez musical chairs of suck.

Sanchez + mediocre prospects for LoMo

Chris Berman said on Sportscenter tonight during his two minute drill:

"oh, by the way, this is the San Francisco Giants World Series tie. Look, we waited our whole life-time to have them win the World Series. Only have a few days left to where this as defending champs so... 'We are going to take it to the limit One More Time."

I can't tell if this is real or not:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbdd_Fasz0k&feature=youtu.be

that is Ashkon ya?

yeah.

it's legit

here is MLB trade rumors site outlook for the Giants off-season:

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2011/10/offseason-outlook-san-francisco-giants.html

" Declining Affeldt's option or exercising it and trading the lefty could clear some payroll space, but Sabean expects the reliever back next year. Lopez may depart for greener pastures, but he's worthy of an arbitration offer, enabling the Giants to acquire a supplemental draft pick."

SFGate reported earlier that Lopez is a done deal fwiw.

Campaign ad made it to Sullivan's blog, but his intro text:

Take it from baseball's favorite beard

had me expecting Piazza.

rim shot!

very local news:

http://richliebermanreport.blogspot.com/2011/11/flash-urban-out-at-comcast-sportsnet.html

Mychael Urban is out as a Giants and MLB Insider at Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, according to a source familiar with the cable outlet.

Urban, a past writer for MLB and a contributor to KNBR, had been with Comcast since 2010...

UPDATE: Initial word from a source: Urban may be invited back to Comcast in a future date in some, as yet, undesignated capacity. His contract was simply "not renewed."

A former payroll manager for the San Francisco Giants faces up to three years in federal prison after pleading guilty Monday (11-14-11) to wire fraud for embezzling more than $2.2 million from team accounts.

Robin O'Connor, 41, of American Canyon stole the funds by making numerous electronic transfers from a bank account controlled by the Giants to her personal bank accounts, federal prosecutors said.

She was charged in July in U.S. District Court in San Francisco with stealing at least $1.5 million from June 2010 to June of this year. But federal prosecutors said in court records filed this month that she had embezzled an additional $700,000...

O'Connor has already returned $960,000 to the Giants and agreed to pay an additional $1.4 million in restitution, according to her plea agreement. Under the deal, federal prosecutors will ask for a sentence of no more than 33 months.

She must also surrender a 2011 BMW 335 and a 2011 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor, an off-road pickup truck, authorities said. She bought both with stolen money, prosecutors said.

As a payroll manager who earned a base salary of $80,000 a year, O'Connor processed direct deposits for salaries and expenses into the bank accounts of employees, including players, authorities said.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/11/14/BA181LV31O.DTL#ixzz1dkhZUfYP

she wasn't exactly subtile, was she?

paging Leee

will you start a new 2012 so i can start posting stuff thanks

i can't start the thread as i cursed them last year

you just got excited, we all did.

BOK, just up yr emotional age to 21 this year