2011 san francisco giants preview

(via seamheads.com)

San Francisco Giants
(2010 record: 92-70)

Notable additions:
SS Miguel Tejada

Notable subtractions:
SS Edgar Renteria, INF Juan Uribe

The offense:
Catcher: Buster Posey

Infield: Aubrey Huff (1B), Freddie Sanchez (2B), Miguel Tejada (SS) and Pablo Sandoval (3B)

Outfield: Mark DeRosa (LF), Andres Torres (CF), Cody Ross (RF)

This is not a lineup that is going to score an over-abundance of runs. The good thing for the Giants and their fans is that it won’t have to, thanks to a pitching staff that posted the best ERA in the NL last year (3.36) and is likely to compete for the designation as the league’s top staff again this season. That said, it is an offense that should be similar to, or slightly better than, the 2010 edition – which was 9th in the league in runs scored with 697 (just under the league average of 701 runs scored).

The organization signed Miguel Tejada to play shortstop this season in place of the now-departed Juan Uribe. The team will come up a little short on that exchange as Uribe hit 24 HR and drove in 85 runs whereas Tejada hit 15 HR and had 71 ribbies. But the loss will be more than offset by having catcher Buster Posey for a full season (the reigning NL Rookie of the Year hit .305, with 18 HR and 67 RBI in just 406 at-bats last year).

The team appears set to overhaul its outfield. According to reports, it will turn to LF Mark DeRosa (.194/1/10 in an injury-shortened season), CF Andres Torres (.268/16/63) and RF Cody Ross (.269/14/65) to take over for last year’s triad of Pat Burrell (.266/18/51), Aaron Rowand (.230/11/34) and Nate Shierholtz (.242/3/17). The net impact of these changes will be beneficial, especially if DeRosa can stay healthy.

1B Aubrey Huff (.290/26/86) returns to anchor the Giants offense. Aside from a full season from Posey, he would be most helped by a return to form by 3B Pablo Sandoval, who hit just .268, with 13 HR and 63 RBI in 2010.

The pitching staff:

Starting Rotation:
Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner and Barry Zito

Bullpen:
Closer Brian Wilson, Jeremy Affeldt, Santiago Casilla, Javier Lopez, Ramon Ramirez and Sergio Romo

Pitching and defense win championships, and the Giants seem to have the pitching portion of the equation covered. Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain are as good as any 1-2 punch in the game of baseball, so the key to the upcoming season will be whether Jonathan Sanchez and Madison Bumgarner prove to be consistent performers in the rotation. If they struggle, or take a small step backward, they could be in a catfight for the division.

Sanchez has taken a huge step forward in the last two years, finally living up to the potential most scouts assigned to him several years ago. Of particular concern is Bumgarner, who saw his workload increase by 73 IP last season – the kind of increase from year-to-year (for any pitcher under 25 years of age) is problematic and can be a harbinger of exhaustion or injury in the following season.

Of the pitchers in the bullpen listed herein, only Affeldt had what could be considered a sub-par year in 2010. While some of these guys are unlikely to repeat their success of last year, they should be good enough to keep the Giants in position to claim their 2nd consecutive division title.