2012 San Francisco Giants Season thread

[KHenry14]

Post comments all season long in this thread...

I'll go first. :sun:

Looks like the team is going to play a LOT more smallball this season, and looking at the speed at the top of the lineup, that looks to be a very good idea. The question is, can Pagan, Cabrera, Blanco get on enough so the team can actually play smallball?

Fearless predictions

#1 By the ASG Blanco will be the starting CF. if not before

#2 Buster will be fine, but I don't expect him to hit like 2010 quite yet.

#3 Freddy Sanchez plays little if any, role on this team

#4 Belt will play 120 games, mostly in the OF. He will show flashes of greatness at the bat, but will struggle with consistency

#5 By the ASG, the team will buy out Zito's contract and DFA him

#6 MadBum has an outstanding season, winning at least 15 games if not 18-20

#7 Panda goes .320/25/100, makes the ASG and is the team MVP

#8 Gary Brown struggles in Richmond for a couple of months, then finds his swing and ends the year in Fresno. Joe Panik continues to hit well, but struggles on defense. Plays the whole year in SJ. Tommy Joseph kills the ball in Richmond and moves up to Fresno. Heath Hembree strikes out the league in Fresno and ends up replacing Romo on the Giants roster, after Romo's arm goes dead.

That's all the Tarot Cards told me....what say you?

[Honus Wagner Rules]

Post comments all season long in this thread...

I'll go first. :sun:

Looks like the team is going to play a LOT more smallball this season, and looking at the speed at the top of the lineup, that looks to be a very good idea. The question is, can Pagan, Cabrera, Blanco get on enough so the team can actually play smallball?

Fearless predictions

#1 By the ASG Blanco will be the starting CF. if not before

#2 Buster will be fine, but I don't expect him to hit like 2010 quite yet.

#3 Freddy Sanchez plays little if any, role on this team

#4 Belt will play 120 games, mostly in the OF. He will show flashes of greatness at the bat, but will struggle with consistency

#5 By the ASG, the team will buy out Zito's contract and DFA him

#6 MadBum has an outstanding season, winning at least 15 games if not 18-20

#7 Panda goes .320/25/100, makes the ASG and is the team MVP

#8 Gary Brown struggles in Richmond for a couple of months, then finds his swing and ends the year in Fresno. Joe Panik continues to hit well, but struggles on defense. Plays the whole year in SJ. Tommy Joseph kills the ball in Richmond and moves up to Fresno. Heath Hembree strikes out the league in Fresno and ends up replacing Romo on the Giants roster, after Romo's arm goes dead.

That's all the Tarot Cards told me....what say you?

No! Must I remind you what happened the last time you predicted a great season for the Panda back in 2010?!!!

[Rich the Giants fan]

I make few predictions other than to say that Brandon Belt will be the starting first baseman by season's end and one of the up-and-coming stars in the league, and that Madison Bumgarner will get more Cy Young votes than Timmy or Cain (and he'll win).

Here are the rest of my thoughts.

Oh, and World Series or Bust!!

[KHenry14]

No! Must I remind you what happened the last time you predicted a great season for the Panda back in 2010?!!!

Oh god Wags, you are exactly right. I've jinxed the whole season....AGAIN!

[CandlestickBum]

Oh god Wags, you are exactly right. I've jinxed the whole season....AGAIN!

We know by now you just do that to aggravate us.

Is it going to be Huff or Belt in LF?

Expect Posey will go .280 .360 .440

Don't have much to quibble about your jinxing otherwise.

[chris14]

I make few predictions other than to say that Brandon Belt will be the starting first baseman by season's end and one of the up-and-coming stars in the league, and that Madison Bumgarner will get more Cy Young votes than Timmy or Cain (and he'll win).

Here are the rest of my thoughts.

Oh, and World Series or Bust!!

I think he will be on 1B Opening Day with Huff in LF.
His Spring was too good IMO to send him to Fresno.

[Honus Wagner Rules]

Fearless predictions


#8 Gary Brown struggles in Richmond for a couple of months, then finds his swing and ends the year in Fresno. Joe Panik continues to hit well, but struggles on defense. Plays the whole year in SJ. Tommy Joseph kills the ball in Richmond and moves up to Fresno. Heath Hembree strikes out the league in Fresno and ends up replacing Romo on the Giants roster, after Romo's arm goes dead.

That's all the Tarot Cards told me....what say you?

Just curious, KH, why do you believe Brown will struggle at AA Richmond but Joseph will kill the ball?

I'm really, really curious to see how Andrew Susac does in his first year of pro ball.

[CandlestickBum]

Welcome aboard Hector Sanchez!
It was nice knowing you Stewart. Great arm and very good D, too bad you can't use the wood better.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2012/04/04/sports/s123004D00.DTL

Makes sense, Hector adds depth to the bench as well as serving as an able bodied back up for Buster. Whiteside has no trade value and we're getting *something* for Stewart.

[Honus Wagner Rules]

Sanchez has an upside and had a great spring training. Whiteside and Stewart were career minor leaguers miscast as major leaguers. Easy call for the Giants. I'm glad the kid made the team. Another kudos for the Giants player development system.

[KHenry14]

Just curious, KH, why do you believe Brown will struggle at AA Richmond but Joseph will kill the ball?
.

From reading a lot of stuff from the various writers that cover the team, looks like Gary will be working on some issues with his swing. Add in the usual struggles that AA pitching does to young hitters, and I think Brown will have problems...for a while. But he's too good to keep down all season.

I think Joseph just rakes the ball. His issues are likely behind the plate.

[west coast orange and black]

khenry14:
#1 By the ASG Blanco will be the starting CF. if not before
blanco has had stretches of flat-out hitting and has plenty of speed to cover mays field's center.
with pagan still trying to find himself at the plate, i would not be surprised at all if you are correct, ken.

#2 Buster will be fine, but I don't expect him to hit like 2010 quite yet.
posey to excel both behind the dish and in the box.

#3 Freddy Sanchez plays little if any, role on this team
maybe he arrives in late april. maybe late june. i hope that burriss hits more grounders than flyballs.

#4 Belt will play 120 games, mostly in the OF. He will show flashes of greatness at the bat, but will struggle with consistency
belt is at first against righties, and will hit enough to play 120, easy.

#5 By the ASG, the team will buy out Zito's contract and DFA him
um, when will vogelsong be ready?

#6 MadBum has an outstanding season, winning at least 15 games if not 18-20
what's not to love about this kid? bumgarner's an icewater-in-the-veins stud.

#7 Panda goes .320/25/100, makes the ASG and is the team MVP
i wish that sandoval would finally ditch his two-hop, two-step-two-slick thing and become the professional hitter that is lurking within.

[KHenry14]

LTNS WCOB!!!! Welcome back!

[west coast orange and black]

^
thanx, ken.
it's been a long time. too long!

32 minutes!

[Honus Wagner Rules]

Ugh. D-Backs score 2 runs in the bottom the first! Come on G-Men!!

[Honus Wagner Rules]

Timmy gives up a 2nd home run in the first inning! Ugh!! :dismay: