A few days ago, I wrote about a scenario for the 2012 Giants’ where they would go young for next season. The other side of that coin and a different scenario would be one where the Giants’ sign a few key free agents. The most important and pressing need, as Brian Sabean has said, is signing all the arbitration eligible and free agent pitchers. This is the number one priority. Of course, the team is still stuck with the big Barry Zito contract and there is no reasonable expectation that this money can go away. So, I expect Zito to try to compete with Jonathan Sanchez for the fifth starter spot in the rotation. The first four spots in the rotation are set in stone: Lincecum, Cain, Bumgarner and Vogelsong. With that in mind, here is my pictching staff and my best guesses on what will have to be spent to keep this staff together:
Lincecum – $15 million
Cain – $15 m
Bumgarner – $.5 m
Vogelsong – $2 m
Zito – $19 m
Sanchez – $4 m
Wilson – $8.5 m
Affeldt – $5 m
Lopez – $4 m
Romo – $2 m
Casilla – $2 m
Ramirez – $2 m
Mota – $1 m
Total – $88 million
Once the pitching staff is taken care of, it is time to turn our attention the the everyday lineup. I still believe that the most important addition will be a leadoff hitter and center fielder. With that in mind, I want to sign Coco Crisp to a 2 year deal for $7 million a year. It appears that Andres Torres is reverting to his past and will be a late inning defensive replacement. I do not want to rush Gary Brown; I believe he is still probably 2 years away. So, signing Crisp is a no brainer. In this scenario, having both a healthy Buster Posey and Freddy Sanchez is crucial. Then, I think the Giants’ need to sign one key productive hitting outfielder. My first choice is Carlos Beltran. With his injury history, I think he can be re-signed for 2 years at $17 million per year. If he can be signed for this amount then the second thing the Giants’ need to do is convince him to play LF. He would be the best left fielder in the National League by far and Nate Schierholtz is a much stronger right fielder right now. That would give the Giants’ basically 3 center fielders to roam the outfield. If Beltran’s agent, Scott Boras, insists on a much longer contract then the Giants’ need to look elsewhere. My second choice for left field is Michael Cuddyer. He made $8 million this year and is still young enough to be signed for approximately $10 million a year for 3 years. So, with all that in mind, here is my most optimistic everyday lineup:
Crisp CF- $7 million
Sanchez 2B – $5 m
Beltran LF – $17 m
Posey C – $1 m
Sandoval 3B – $1 m
Huff 1B – $11 m
Schierholtz RF – $.75 m
Crawford SS – $.5 m
Total – $44.25 million
Here are my backups:
Stewart C – $.5 m
Torres OF – $2 m
Keppinger IF – $2.5 m
Pill 1B – $.5 m
Burriss IF/OF – $.5 m
Total – $6 million
Total Payroll – $138,750,000 million
I think this team is a good mix of veterans and young players. In both of my scenarios, I have Brandon Crawford as my shortstop and eighth place hitter. I just think he is too valuable defensively to not play everyday. He has potential as a hitter and I think even if he only hits .200, he will win games with his glove.
Whichever way the Giants’ go next year, the pitching staff will still be the key. After watching the first couple of rounds of the playoff and then the World Series, I am convinced the Giants’ pitching is still the best in all of baseball. Without the season ending injuries that we suffered, I believe that we would still be playing. Remember, we were only 4 games worse this year than last year!
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