Backe to the Minors

Despite the Giants best efforts to win all of their games on infield singles collected in the ninth inning, they managed to make Brandon Backe look like Cy Young as they fell to the Disastros Monday.

Squeaking out only four hits against Backe (he of eleven earned over 3.1 innings in his last outing), the Giants' offense turned the suck knob to overdrive and left their bats on the team's charter flight.

The Giants did show early life when Ivan Ochoa's third inning double set him up to score on a Fred Lewis single. Grandpa Richie Aurilia, who ended the game 2 for 3 with two doubles, added a liner in the fifth for the only subsequent Giants hit of the night.

Although Jonathan Sanchez got through five innings of hitless ball, former hippopotamus Humberto Quintero knocked a broken-bat blooper over Ochoa's outstretched glove in short left-center to lead off the sixth inning, effectively ending the young lefty's shot at Nolandom. He would score with Backe trailing close behind him on a Ty Wigginton single to give the 'Stros the only two runs they would need to seal the Giants' fate.

Not all is lost, however. We still have guys that are hitting less-than-ready pitching and dominating teeball hitters in the minors. So there's that. On Extra Baggs today, Baggarly sits down with Dick Tidrow and Bobby Evans to discuss some of the more interesting young 'uns who could potentially make a big-league an impact sometime in the next five years.Particularly encouraging is this bit on catching and first-base prospect Pablo Sandoval:

He’s ready for the big leagues now. Crushing balls from both sides of the plate, though he’s obviously getting more at-bats from the left side. Energizing that whole Double-A club since his midseason promotion from San Jose. No longer taking ground balls at third base; that experiment is over. Very competent at first base, though, and has some skills behind the plate. A very strong arm, too. (There’s an anecdote about his ambidextrous throwing ability that you’ll see in tomorrow’s Giants notebook.)

A guy who can throw with both hands? Awesome! Once they start letting the Giants throw the ball from home plate in place of their ABs, this guy can be daunting to pitchers of either handedness.

Buster Posey, watch out, 'cause Pablo "Escobar" Sandoval will stomp you faster than a pit full of gasoline and coca leaves. Also mentioned in that piece are the likes of Timmy 2.0 Alderson, Madison Bumgardner, and even Travis "I didn't know I was still playing baseball either" Ishikawa. Nick Noonan is also getting some praise and could skip high-A ball next year.

To me, it sounds like there's a whole load of pitching prospects that Sabean will likely dangle in trade talks in the offseason in the hopes of bringing back anything relevant in terms of hitting.

If we keep getting killed by the likes of Brandon Backe, I can't say that I blame him.

Walk-Off Weekend

It was only fitting that on a weekend where Barry Bonds made what was, sincerely, a touching return to the House That Bonds Built, the Giants won a series against their hated rivals for their performance-enhanced Gipper.

Of course, they had to use a decidedly different means to the common ends (winning) that mostly defined the Bonds Era, using small ball, the mistakes of the opposition, and blinding speed(!) to eke out walk-off victories on Saturday and Sunday.

As a wise fictional San Franciscan once said, the bad times fade away, and the good ones adhere themselves to your memory. For Saturday at least, I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly when it comes to the (really) big guy, particularly when he closed his speech with this gem:

"It's weird for me not to be in uniform with the Dodgers right there. You heard me Torre, I beat you before and I can beat you again. I haven't retired. Thank you."

Comment! In what capacity, if any, should Bonds be recognized by the Giants once he officially retires?

Bravos, Bums, Buster and Bonds

The good? A nice series win on the shoulder of The Franchise on Wednesday.

The bad? The return of Bad Zito, who, among other things, continues this cast's frustrating inability to put away the most has of has-beens, giving up a three run shot to 34 year old catcher Danny Ardoin, a guy who hasn't hit a home run in three years.

The ugly? Six days out, Buster Posey, the supposed future of the Giants, still hasn't signed, joining third rounder Roger Kieschnick and fourth rounder Brandon Crawford in the calling-Sabean's-bluff crowd. Things could get ugly around these parts if the front office pisses away any goodwill it garnered with it's first position player oriented draft in eons.

Before you throw yourself out the nearest window, check out this interview Eric SanInocencio conducted over at Baseball Digest Daily Live with Jim Callis at Baseball America on the issue of the signing deadline and the situation with Posey.

Callis thinks Posey, as well as Pirates pick Pedro Alvarez, who went #2 overall, will sign in the last hour, and throws out a few reasons (think green and presidential) why it makes a lot of sense for them to do so.

(Callis draft discussion starts at about 20:00, Posey discussion at 27:45.)

Also, Boch thinks Barry Bonds could be back at Pac Bell tonight.

Romo DFA'd (Yeah, I Know - That DOESN'T Make Any Sense!)

And this time, it wasn't even a knee-jerk response by the notoriously vindictive Brian Sabean.

He DFA'd a controllable young arm with nice upside because of that other thing he's known for: gross incompetence!

From Baggs:

The Giants probably put him on revocable waivers because a potential trade partner was interested in him. Or they wanted t ogauge the general the level of interest. No matter the reason, you cannot option someone when they are on revocable waivers. (I’m up on most roster rules, but that’s a new one for me.)

Anyway, and this is the important part, the Giants insist the oversight will not result in losing Romo to another club. When you designate a player, you take them off your 40-man roster and have 10 days to waive, release or outright him. Before those 10 days are up, the Giants will revoke Romo off waivers be able to option him at that point. He’ll remain on the 40-man roster. Romo said he expects to join Fresno in Salt Lake on Friday.

You know, the front office's insistence that nothing is wrong reminds me of a teenager insisting his dad's bottle of Black Label was always almost gone: I just don't buy it.

Oh, in case you were upset, the impetus for the botched Romo move (as well as swapping out Osiris Matos for Billy Sadler)?

Activating 39 year old never-will-be Keiichi Yabu.

Okay, now you can go punch yourself in the neck.

Romonic

Last night's game reminded me of any M. Night Shyamalan movie besides The Sixth Sense: mildly intriguing most of the way through before giving way to an underwhelming over the top twist that erases any positives one could have taken away before.

Although he didn't officially get the loss (a somewhat improved Dirty did), Sergio Romo did officially get his first rookie beatdown. Even in his loss to the Mets a couple of weeks back, a couple of bad pitches were more his undoing than a complete and utter moundfart.

Oh, and you had to know that since Mike Hampton was starting, the Giants would do their best to welcome him back. Just ask Jason Johnson.

On the plus side, The Franchise goes for the series win today.

Amazin' Aurilia? Richie could find a home on a contender, provided he passed through waivers, according to the official site:

It's likely Rich Aurilia was one of the first players San Francisco submitted -- clubs can place a maximum of seven players on waivers every day. A free agent after this season, Aurilia is owed an affordable $1.5 million for the remainder of the year and currently is batting .281 with eight home runs.

A source said the Mets, losers of four straight entering Tuesday night, were interested in acquiring the veteran infielder to use as a right-handed batter off the bench.

Merkin a Comeback? The on-again, off-again rehab of Merkin Valdez appears to be on again. Although Valdez looked downright nasty in March and April, the centerpiece of the Russ Ortiz can't shake consistent arm troubles.

I'd say shut him down, but I am genuinely interested to see if this guy can stay healthy while pitching for stretch. If he can't rehab an injury that, by all accounts, is not major, in this length of time, I'm not sure this kid will ever be able to withstand the rigors of relieving. His injury history certainly does nothing to refute that.

Comment! Out of left field, so to speak, but, on the heels of his recent drop into the third spot, do you think Fred Lewis can become a legitimate middle of the order hitter?

Youth Got Served!

Another day, another victory for these baby Giants.

In a shocking twist, they did so at home.

For Matt Cain.

This ain't July's Giants, that's for sure.

One of my favorite developments: the double play combo of Ivan Ochoa and Manny Burriss, both of whom are putting on a defensive display as well as swinging nice bats.

The triumphant return of Steve Holm certainly ranks up there as well.

My least favorite development? The continued presence of Jose Castillo in my life in any meaningful capacity. Thus, understanding the so-shallow-you'll break-your-neck-if-you-dive depth of the position, it filled me with great hope and pleasure to hear KSN (Wichita) report that the Giants have come to terms with 2008 sandwich round pick (and third baseman) Conor Gillaspie, fomerly of the wonderfully named Wichita State Shockers:

The 37th pick overall will receive slot money for that pick, which is around $975,000 along with other un-disclosed incentives. That was the deal-maker enticing the Shocker All-American to sign.

Gillaspie will begin his pro career in rookie ball for the first few weeks. The Giants plan to give him work at both second and third base before the season comes to an end.

Gillaspie was perceived by many to be a first round pick and was mostly regarded as a great value pick where the Giants picked him up. We wrote this on draft day:

Conor Gillaspie, 3B, Wichita St., at #37. MLB.com compares him to...

Bill Mueller.

That being said, he's the defending Thurman Munson Award winner in 2007 Cape League play, an honor that's gone to the likes of Berkman and Jeter (and [Justin] Smoak in 2006).

Good news, indeed. But with deadline to sign draftees now just ten days out, snippets like these make me a bit queasy regarding the remaining three of our top four picks:

Buster Posey, the Giants' first pick and the fifth overall selection, is one of seven top-10 picks who've yet to sign. Of the 16 players in the supplemental round, though, Gillaspie, the 37th pick, is one of only two who haven't come to terms.

[Snip]

Among third-round selections, Roger Kieschnick, the Giants' third pick and the 82nd overall choice, is one of only three unsigned players. Brandon Crawford, the Giants' fourth pick, is one of just six unsigned players in the fourth round.

"I know [Director of Player Personnel] Bobby [Evans] has been having a lot of discussions with all of those guys," [Giants' Special Assistant John] Barr said. "We're working on finalizing all those guys."

Gulp. If this blog ceases to be updated August 15th, can one of you find a sub-letter for me and take care of Fido?

In other news: remember Barry Lamar Bonds? It has seemed this year like maybe the Giants don't.

But in an interesting development, he has been invited to return to Pac Bell this Saturday as part of a tribute to the great outfielders of the Giants' fifty years in San Francisco. No word yet regarding his attendance.

Should shape up to be a fun week for a Bonds-starved media corps.

Armchair Managers Rejoice as Young Guys Prove Less Crappy Than Old Guys

Bloggers, fantasy baseball enthusiasts, and terrible athletes compensating for their lack of motor skills with an encyclopedic knowledge of their favorite teams were vindicated this weekend as it turned out that the San Francisco Giants are indeed a less bad team when younger players who have yet to forge a track record of ineptitude start over veterans who have proved it over many decades.

And a special shoutout to Barry Zito, who turned in his best start in nearly half a decade on Saturday.

In a tribute to management's keen sense of causation, Zito will now throw batting practice to both teams every day for the rest of the season.

When it comes to yesterday's loss, I'll say only this: Father Time's ownership of the Giants transcends personnel, situation, and possibly the time-space continuum. Just mark his starts against the Giants as an 'L' and move on. Every time.

Snippets from the weekend:

Our Manny Ain't So Bad Amid the anointing of Team Voldemort as the NL West Champs following their trade for Lazy Predator, another, hugely more likeable, Manny has others salivating. From Extra Baggs:

But [Emmanuel] Burriss made a positive impact with the glove. A day after Giants officials said that Burriss could become one of the best defensive second basemen in the game, the rookie made them look smart by snagging Tadahito Iguchi’s line drive in the first inning.

It was a breathtaking play. A longtime San Diego baseball observer turned to me and said, “The Padres haven’t had an infielder who could make that play in many, many years. Maybe Khalil Greene, but I’m not sure of that.”

In other words, athleticism is good. Padres bad.

Burriss was at it again in the third. Tad Iguchi hit a double-play grounder that shortstop Ivan Ochoa bobbled. Burriss made a barehand catch of Ochoa’s late feed, and with the linebacker-sized Hairston bearing down on him, he sidearmed a strong throw in time to turn two.

Oh, Burriss also had a big hit in the ninth inning to pad the Giants’ lead.

So Now That You Feel Optimistic...Check out this (horrific) nugget Bleacher Report throws out:

While there may be hopes amongst the hierarchy that they could still contend for the division crown, mainly because of some of the best young pitching in the league, those thoughts should be thrown out immediately.

An interesting stat recently said that, including AA and AAA, the Giants have the fourth-fewest amount of home runs in the majors.

So a team that has no power and has scored the third fewest runs in the majors thinks they can contend? Bud Selig should immediately administer a piss test.

Well played, Bleacher Report. Well played.

Comment! Which one of the young 'uns are you most excited to see play for the remainder of this season?