Saturday, April 02, 2016

Your 2016 Giants: Big Six Top Giants Prospects

I sometimes post a Big Six Giants prospect list on my blog, but my answer to the Giants prospect chat will have to substitute for it this season.  I like to read through the books and discuss why I like the top guys, and build my arguments why I think they are the top 6, but that is going to take a lot of time, and I like to get it done before Opening Day, and I just don't have the time.  So this time, I'm just going to fan boy about the system.


ogc thoughts

Giants Low Farm Ranking

First off, I know a lot of rankings have the Giants low vs. the rest of the majors.  That's going to happen when you are competitive and getting back of the first round picks, but not picking up a lot of the top prospects via the international free agent route, which is the only other option for picking up options (besides trading for them, but the Giants don't do much of that either).

The Giants have talked a lot about the Asia market, but haven't really done much so far.  And they have not gone after any Cubans, plus even in the traditional Latin market, until Fox, they had not done much nor have the ones they invested in have paid off (AnVil, RafRod, and Gustavo being the major ones).

I'm actually OK with all that they have been doing.  Frankly, there have been a lot of busts in the international market, and if they are going to fail on 8+ figure contracts, I rather they fail on veteran free agents than unknowns like the Cubans.  Yeah, maybe they miss out, and sure, if some of our major league scouts really believe in the talent, maybe they could dip their toe into that market, but I like what they have been doing with our draftees since John Barr joined us.

And sure, we rank low, but look at what we got in the majors:  it's the argument I made when Buster and Bumgarner matriculated too.  Guys like Panik, Duffy, Crawford, and Belt made the majors at a relatively young age, particularly developmentally.  Players like them often sit in other team's system for 3-4 years, earning that team high ranks, but especially since only Belt was actually highly ranked, before the rankers could recognize that they MISSED on Panik, Duffy, and Crawford, they were already fixtures in the majors.  Same thing when Sandoval made the majors.

The Giants have regularly been getting penalized in these rankings because their guys are moved fast to the majors, relative to other teams, before the rankers could recognize that they were indeed good prospects.  But nobody goes back and say, you know what, the Giants actually should have ranked higher.  And the Giants actually rank higher than other teams just by homegrown WAR, but I would bet the Giants look even better if ranked by homegrown players who are still in their 20's, because only Cainer is older than 30 out of them.

Loaded Farm System

Another thing I would note is that, again, look at our major league team:  we have a great team right now, we don't need to have Top 30 ranked players in our system, we are already playing them in the majors.  What we need is to have players ready to come up and take the place of our oldest players.  Sure, they might not be the best prospects, but when you have Posey, Belt, Crawford, Panik, Duffy, Pence as your core players, you only need to supplement around them.  And from that viewpoint, I think we are loaded.

Prospects who can come up soon and contribute include Mac Williamson and Christian Arroyo.  And Ryder Jones, who has disappointed lately, had a great spring, so he's moving on up as well.  They probably can cover any of the corner position needs over the next couple of seasons.  Plus there's Jarrett Parker who looks good as a power bat off the bench who can play all three OF positions.  And I like what I've seen of Gorkys Hernandez, I can see him and/or Parker becoming Blanco's replacement in 2017, and complementing each other, as Parker is LHH and Gorkys is RHH, Parker has power, Gorkys has speed (and Parker has some speed), and both could play all three OF positions, though Gorkys is normally CF.

And Arroyo can cover any middle infield needs.  Plus we still have Adrianza, who I still have hopes for, and Hak-Ju Lee (apparently many Korean prospects grow up as Giants fans, so maybe we have another Crawford? :^) has looked pretty good this spring, perhaps he's over the injuries that had held him back previously, he was a top prospect once upon a time.  They can handle middle infield, as well as Duffy and Tomlinson, if it ever gets that far down the depth chart.

And the future looks shiny as well.  We got Fox and Miller, both up the middle guys, both very fast and good contact hitters.  Talk is that they could end up at SS (current position) or CF.  With their speed and bats, both are leadoff types, either way.  Hinojosa is going to surprise as well, I have a sneaky feeling he could be one of our next double digit round draftee to make noise in the majors for us (but first, Blackburn).

Other positions look too.  Garcia is fast developing as a catcher and hitter.  Shaw has been a very interesting  1B with lots of power.  Cole and Slater could be joining the guys in the above paragraph with looks in the majors.  And I like guys like Jonah Arenado, Johneshwy Fargas, Jose Vizcaino Jr, Steve Duggar, Ronnie Jebavy, Miguel Gomez, John Riley.   And I still have some hope for AnVil.  And have to mention Matt Winn and Rando Moreno since they were NRI who played some this spring (C and MI, respectively; and just found out that Winn was assigned to AA, quite a jump, even above Garcia, who was assigned to San Jose).

For SP, we got a lot as well.  Blackburn is first in line in the minors, while Heston is first in line in the majors.  Stratton has put himself back into the conversation with a nice spring, hopefully he can springboard off that into a good season.  Beede is also part of the near term conversation, he'll probably repeat AA since he didn't do so well there, but with a good first half performance, could be pushing Blackburn for his spot.

Also in the near but not immediate future, we have very interesting names.  Crick and Gregorio should still be in the running.  Crick had a horrible 2015, but I still think he has some good qualities that just needs to be honed, but we'll see.  But I haven't lost hope.  Mejia is also in the mix as well, and all being in AA last season, could catapult into the majors with a great first half and an opportunity, as they could also be used as relievers as well.

That brings up future names like Bickford.  He sounds like he got an electric arm, so I can see him getting moved fast to the majors like Dirty Sanchez was, first as reliever, then eventually as a starter, with a good start to his 2016 season, presumably in Augusta.  Other names to watch include:  Chase Johnson, Sam Coonrod, Jordan Johnson, Martin Agosta, Logan Webb, Mac Marshall, Andrew Suarez (another guy who might fly up the system fast).

And we got a ton of very interesting relievers coming up as well.  And good thing too, because the three remaining Core Four (funny how that nickname just became popular last season, which ended up being Affeldt's last season and the end of the four) are all well into their 30's and also all free agents after the season.  I think the odds are low that Romo and Lopez will be re-signed, Romo because his salary is now too high, Lopez because he's nearly 40 and we got Osich and Okert, with the caveat that neither O is established, so things could change.  Casilla probably stays, he just seems to appreciate the team and how they saved his career, plus he's still throwing mid-90's.  But his performance will be key, because we have a lot of relievers coming up.

Coming soon will be Derek Law and Steven Okert, and perhaps Mike Broadway.  And Jake Dunning has put his name back into the ring as well.  Plus, Ray Black could pop up anytime they think he's ready since he throws 3-digits and you don't want to waste that.

There are others pushing to come soon as well.  Joan Gregorio and Kyle Crick is close, in AA, but still have a lot to prove (health and performance, respectively).  Most of the San Jose bullpen could rise fast, though Ian Gardeck is now out for TJS and delayed a year:  Ian Gardeck, Dan Slania, Jake Smith, Tyler Rogers, Christian Jones, plus Ray Black, of course.  And Martin Agosta has been both starting and relieving, so I would include here.

Lower down, too far down to know yet their truer potential, but some names to follow.  Augusta:  Carlos Diaz seems the best bet, but there's also Rodolfo Martinez (high 90's stuff), Reyes Moronta.  Salem-Keizer:  Cory Taylor, drafted last season, was the most interesting one, then there's Caleb Smith, but he was very wild.   Rookie League, I would point out Domenic Mazza, 2015 draftee, did nicely but SSS, someone to watch as well.   Grant Watson caught my eye there as well, though he then was promoted to Salem-Keizer and he only started there.  And I just read about Tyler Cyr, another in their line of pitchers who came into baseball and/or pitching later in his amateur status (didn't start pitching until his freshman college year!), who is still learning but already up to mid-90's range.  Totally wild (almost 1:1 K:BB), but like I said, fanboying right now.

Big Six Lists

Off the top of my head, here's how I would go with my Big Six for 2016 (greatest impact in 2016 at MLB level) and Big Six for Potential (future role):

2016:
  1. Clayton Blackburn:  I discussed why I like Blackburn in the Giants prospect chat.  There are three dimensions that I try to weigh for this list.  Part of this is potential, part of this is opportunity, part of this is how close the prospect is.  Blackburn beats on all three, I think he can be a good #2-3 starter, few teams go through a whole season without some sort of injury or poor performance in the starting rotation, and after leading the PCL in ERA, Blackburn is ready.
  2. Jarrett Parker:  Here, he's going to get the opportunity, I expect him to become the backup OF after this early stretch with little off days which they used as the excuse to carry a 13-man pitching staff.   And I think he will do well enough, plus he's got power and some speed, so Bochy will use him often  
  3. Jake Dunning:  He's back to mid-90's velocity, and been called up frequently this past week to pitch, not any of the guys following.  Plus, I anticipate that we will lose Guerrin when the Giants need that spot for Parker, and option him (and the alternative is something happens to one of the guys in the bullpen, which means injury or poor performance;  unless the Giants stuns by trading Romo, who some felt that Guerrin could replace, plus there was rumbling that Osich has been off this spring, and he still has options0.  
  4. Derek Law:  Neither Law nor Okert distinguished themselves last season.  However, Law had incredible numbers before he was injured, appears to be back to his prior speeds, and was just getting back into the hang of things last season, so that helps explain his middling stats.  I think he gets the call after Dunning, should there be a need.  
  5. Steven Okert:  Okert had a disappointing season, as he did not dominate like he did before.  However, his ERA was still much better than the PCL's 4.37 ERA, and he was a 23 YO, nearly 4 years younger.  I think he'll eventually show us his good stuff again, but will need some time in 2016 to prove that he can, and hence he's behind the guys above.  
  6. Mac Williamson:  Well, the bullpen is covered above, and the infield is covered by Tomlinson and Adrianza, and Parker gets the nod because he's destined for the bench, while the Giants want Williamson to start and be ready to start in LF next season as Pagan is a free agent after the season.   Hopefully we don't need to bring him up, but Pagan has been regularly injured for one reason or another the past three years, and if he goes down, I expect Williamson to get the nod, at least initially, and not Blanco, because the Giants will want to see what Williamson got.
Potential:
  1. Tyler Beede:  top of rotation starter.  He's showing the 4-seam mid-90's heater this spring that the Giants had him not use last season, probably to have him work more extensively on other pitches.  Otherwise he would just rely on his plus fastball to get guys out, and not be challenged.  I think that's why he fell in the eyes of some rankers.  Not me.
  2. Phil Bickford:  top of rotation starter, electric stuff, high heat in the mid-90's, sometimes high 90's, some also see him as a closer, so I can see him come up first through the bullpen and then work his way into the rotation.
  3. Clayton Blackburn:  #2-3 starter (but more 2 than 3 in my eyes; still, many don't like his lack of stuff), nothing stands out to scouts but he has four pitches, knows how to mix them for a great ERA.
  4. Christian Arroyo:  above average hitter, but low walks, average gap to gap power, starts somewhere in IF or LF, OK defense, bats 2-3, maybe 5-6, has mental side down pat already.
  5. Lucius Fox:  starting SS/CF, lead-off run generator, plus plus speed, plus bat, very athletic, still very raw though.
  6. Jordan Johnson:  I was stuck here, frankly.  Most ranks had Chris Shaw (great power! no defense!), Aramis Garcia (good bat), or Sam Coonrod (mid-90's heat) in this range, and they are all good prospects  I also considered Jalen Miller, as I heard good stuff about him this spring training (I think the Giants are going to go with him at 2B and pair him with Fox at SS, as they go up the system, FYI) and Chase Johnson, who has mid-90's heat.  
But I kept on coming back to Jordan Johnson (for whom I did my usual research).  His plus fastball is regularly in the mid-90's (to be fair, much like others like Coonrod and Chase) and he has plus command, which I really like to see in prospects, especially against older competition.  BA noted that he scrapped his slider (Giants believe it to be the cause of his prior injuries), but quickly developed feel for his curve and changeup, and both are already average.  MLB Pipeline noted that his changeup was even plus at times.  I'm betting he'll continue to develop them further.
I like the domination and command he showed, even while younger than the league, and while Coonrod is typically ranked about 10 spots ahead of him, he was the one jumped to Advanced A San Jose, though a year younger than Coonrod.  Most ranks had him in teens or even out of the top 20 (one book I like didn't even include him, putting him in 30+ for that book, roughly).  
I'm not sure exactly why I like him above the others, though I've listed a lot of good reasons why he's good.  Comparing him to the above, it just seems like he has a good combination of skills tied up with performance and getting that jump from the Giants.  He's been assigned to San Jose (with Coonrod), so it'll be another interesting season in San Jose.   He should be at least a #3 starter, perhaps more.

1 comment:

  1. Good analysis of how the Giants are commonly regarded as having a lousy farm system at the same time as their success is commonly attributed to homegrown talent. People who don't follow the team--including 'experts'--accept both of these as gospel truth without even recognizing that there's a serious contradiction here.

    ReplyDelete

Labels

1984 Draft (1) 2007 Draft (15) 2007 Giants (52) 2008 Draft (22) 2008 Giants (53) 2008 season (6) 2009 Draft (18) 2009 Giants (87) 2009 season (24) 2010 Decade (12) 2010 Draft (11) 2010 Giants (137) 2010 NL ROY award (1) 2010 season (19) 2010's (3) 2011 Draft (9) 2011 Giants (84) 2011 season (8) 2012 Draft (11) 2012 Giants (93) 2012 season (11) 2013 Draft (3) 2013 Giants (39) 2013 season (5) 2014 (1) 2014 draft (5) 2014 Giants (79) 2014 season (16) 2015 Draft (4) 2015 Giants (50) 2015 season (10) 2016 Draft (1) 2016 Giants (45) 2016 season (6) 2017 Draft (3) 2017 Giants (27) 2018 Draft (8) 2018 Giants (50) 2018 Season (8) 2019 Draft (1) 2019 Giants (27) 2019 season (2) 2020 Decade (1) 2020 Giants (9) 20201 Draft (1) 2021 Giants (3) 2022 Giants (2) 2023 Giants (14) 2023 season (1) 2024 Giants (7) 25 man roster (10) 25th man fallacy (1) 3B (1) 40 Man Roster (10) 49ers (1) 5-day rotation (1) 51/49 decisions (1) 6-man rotation (5) 89 Quake (1) 89 World Series (1) A-Ball (1) A-Gon (1) A-Rod (3) A's (6) AA-Ball (1) Aaron Rowand (25) Abiatal Avelino (1) accomplishments (1) ace pitcher (2) ace starter (3) Adalberto Mejia (6) Adam Duvall (5) AFL (4) aggression (1) Albert Suarez (5) Alen Hanson (3) Alex Cobb (1) Alex Dickerson (2) Alex Hinshaw (3) Alex Pavlovic (1) Alexander Canario (2) All-Star Game (1) almost perfect game (1) Alonzo Powell (1) Amphetamine (3) analysis (24) Andre Torres (14) Andres Torres (2) Andrew Baiiley (1) Andrew Bailey (1) Andrew McCutchen (2) Andrew Suarez (5) Andrew Susac (11) Andy Baggerly (2) Andy Sisco (1) Andy Suarez (9) Angel Joseph (1) Angel Pagan (17) Angel Villalona (30) Anniversary (1) appendicitis (1) Aramis Garcia (2) Arbitration (19) Armando Benitez (5) Armando Gallaraga (1) art of failure (1) Asia-Pacific signing (1) assessment (1) Astros (3) At the Rate They Are Going (1) ATT Park (1) Aubrey Huff (20) Austin Jackson (2) Austin Slater (5) Award (4) BABIP (3) Bam Bam Meulens (1) Barry Bonds (30) Barry Zito (77) baseball (1) Baseball America (3) Baseball Prospectus (6) Baseball Prospectus Bias Against Giants (4) baseball strategy (9) Baseball Study (18) baserunning (2) batting peripherals (1) batting stance analysis (1) batting title champion (1) Beat LA (9) bench players (4) Bengie Molina (14) Benjamin Snyder (1) Bert Blyleven (1) best manager (2) best practices (2) Beyond the Box Score (1) Bias Against Giants (1) Big 6 (9) Big Picture (3) Bill Hall (1) Bill James (1) Bill James Handbook (2) Bill Mueller (1) Bill Neukom (21) Billy Beane (3) biography (1) Blake Riverra (1) blog news (3) Blog Philosophy (3) Bob Howry (2) Bob Mariano (1) Bobby Evans (4) Boston Red Sox (1) Brad Hennessey (5) Brad Penny (2) Brandon Bednar (1) Brandon Belt (50) Brandon Crawford (25) Brandon Hicks (1) Braves (5) breakout (2) Brett Bochy (4) Brett Pill (9) Brewers (1) Brian Anderson (1) Brian Bannister (3) Brian Bocock (2) Brian Cooper (1) Brian Horwitz (3) Brian Ragira (2) Brian Sabean (50) Brian Wilson (14) Bridegrooms (6) Bruce Bochy (36) Bucky Showalter (1) bulllpen (8) Bullpen (33) Business Plan (23) Buster Posey (102) Byran Reynolds (2) Byung-Hyun Kim (1) Cained (4) call-ups (3) Candlestick Park (1) Cards (13) Career Prospects (4) Carl Hubbell (1) Carlos Beltran (4) Carlos Gomez (1) Carney Lansford (2) Carson Whisenhunt (1) Carter Jurica (1) Casey Kelly (1) Casey McGeHee (3) catcher injury (5) catching (3) CBT penalty (1) CC Sabathia (1) censorship (2) CEO (2) Chad Gaudin (5) Charles Culberson (5) Charlie Culberson (3) Chase Johnson (3) cheating (1) Chillax (1) Chris Brown (1) Chris Gloor (1) Chris Heston (19) Chris Lincecum (1) Chris Marrero (1) Chris O'Leary (1) Chris Ray (4) Chris Shaw (4) Chris Stewart (4) Chris Stratton (30) Chris Strattton (1) Christian Arroyo (7) Christmas (1) Christopher Dominguez (4) Christy Mathewson (1) Chuckie Jones (2) Clay Hensley (3) Clayton Blackburn (10) Clayton Tanner (3) Closer (9) closer by committee (3) Coaches (4) coaching changes (1) Cody Hall (2) Cody Ross (8) Col (1) Comeback Award (1) Commissioner (1) comparison (3) competitive advantage (1) Competitive Balance Tax (2) Competitive Cycles (2) competitiveness (2) Conner Menez (1) Connor Joe (3) Connor Nurse (1) Conor Gillaspie (25) contender (1) contract extension (3) contract negotiations (2) contract signing (7) Coordinator (1) core competency (1) Core Rotation (1) Cory Gearrin (5) Cory Guerrin (1) Cory Hart (1) Craig Whitaker (2) Cubs (1) Curt Young (1) cuts (1) Cy Young Award (5) cyber-relief (1) D-backs (16) D-gers (36) D-Rocks (3) D-Rox (17) D.J. Snelten (3) Dallas McPherson (1) Dan Ortmeier (11) Dan Otero (2) Dan Runzler (6) Dan Slania (3) Dan Uggla (1) Daniel Carbonell (1) Daniel Slania (2) Dany Jimenez (1) Darren Ford (1) Dave Righetti (1) Dave Roberts (11) David Aardsma (1) David Bell (1) David Huff (2) David Loewenstein (1) Decade of the Giants (12) decline (1) Defense (11) Deferred Money (1) deleted comment (1) Denard Span (3) depth (1) Dereck Rodriquez (7) Derek Holland (18) Derek Law (11) Detroit Tigers (1) DFA (3) DH (2) Dick Tidrow (2) dictionary (1) direction (1) Dirty (1) DL (3) dodgers (15) Donald Snelten (1) Donovan Solano (1) Draft (11) Draft Analysis (27) Draft Bonus (7) draft list (3) draft philosophy (2) draft signing (3) Draft Strategy (12) Draft Study (9) Draft Success (4) drafting (5) Dres (16) Drew Pomeranz (1) DRS (1) Dynasty (3) Earl Weaver (1) Edgar Renteria (13) Eduardo Nunez (4) Edwin Escobar (5) Ehire Adrianza (26) Eli Whiteside (4) Elimination game (1) EME (2) Emmanuel Burriss (18) end of an era (1) epic season (6) era (1) Eric Byrnes (1) Eric Surkamp (6) Erik Cordier (1) Eugenio Velez (12) evaluation (3) Evan Longoria (3) Evan Longoriia (1) extension (7) fan outrage (10) fan rants (2) fanfest (1) FanGraphs (2) Farhan Zaidi (35) feature reliever (1) felony conviction (1) Fielding (5) Fielding Stats (4) finger injury (3) first post-season press conference (3) Francisco Peguero (4) Fred Lewis (3) Freddie Lewis (17) Freddie Sanchez (4) Freddy Sanchez (7) Free Agency (8) free agent misses (1) Free agent possibilities (28) Free agent signing (22) Free agent signings (21) front office (3) Gabe Kapler (1) Game Score (3) gamer-tude (1) Garrett Williams (1) Gary Brown (26) Geno Espinelli (1) George Kontos (10) Ghosts of Giants Drafts (2) Giants (10) Giants Announcer (1) Giants blogs (3) Giants Chat (4) Giants Classic Rotation (1) Giants Defense (4) Giants Draft (15) Giants Drafts (8) Giants Farm System (34) Giants Franchise record (2) Giants Future (66) Giants GM (12) Giants Greats (3) Giants hitting manual (1) Giants Leadership (1) Giants manager (1) Giants No-Hitter (5) Giants Offense (34) Giants Offseason (24) Giants Pitching (10) Giants President of Baseball Operations (3) Giants Strategy (44) GiDar (1) Gino Espinelli (1) glossary (1) Gold Glove Award (1) good players (4) good will (1) Gorkys Hernandez (2) Graphical Player (1) great players (4) Gregor Blanco (18) Gregor Moscoso (1) Gregory Santos (1) Guillermo Moscoso (2) Guillermo Mota (2) Guillermo Quiroz (1) Gustavo Cabrera (4) Hall of Fame (10) Hall of Shame (4) Hank Aaron (5) Happy Holidays (2) Hate mail (1) Hayden Birdsong (1) healthy (1) heart-warming (1) Heath Hembree (8) Heath Quinn (1) Hector Correa (1) Hector Sanchez (12) Heliot Ramos (11) Henry Sosa (8) HGH (1) Hidden Game (1) high expectations (1) high school focus in draft (1) high velocity hitters (1) high velocity pitchers (1) hiring (2) hiring process (1) Hitter's League (1) Hitting (19) Hitting Coach (1) hitting mechanics (3) hitting pitchers (2) hitting streak (1) Hitting; (1) Home Run Career Record (7) Home Run Hitting Contest (1) Hunter Bishop (4) Hunter Pence (25) Hunter Stickland (1) Hunter Strickland (9) Ian Gardeck (1) Idea (4) IFA (1) improvement (2) Indictment (1) Infield (1) injury (7) instant replay (2) instructor (1) Interesting Question (1) International Free Agent Pursuits (5) International Signings (5) interview (5) Investment (1) Ivan Ochoa (2) J.P. Martinez (1) J2 (1) Jack Taschner (4) Jackson Williams (3) Jacob Dunnington (1) Jacob Gonzalez (2) Jacob Junis (1) Jacob McCasland (1) Jae-gyun Hwang (1) Jake Dunning (2) Jake Peavy (39) Jake Smith (1) Jake Wong (1) Jalen Miller (1) Jandel Gustave (1) Japanese Starters (1) Jarrett Parker (10) Jason Heyward (1) Jason Maxwell (2) Jason Stoffel (1) Javier Lopez (5) JC Gutierrez (3) JD Davis (1) Jean Machi (6) Jeff Kent (1) Jeff Samardzija (28) Jeff Suppan (1) Jeremy Affeldt (12) Jeremy Shelley (2) Jerome Williams (1) Jesse English (2) Jesse Foppert (1) Jesus Guzman (4) Jimmy Rollins (1) Joaquin Arias (14) Joe Panik (18) Joe Torre (1) Joey Bart (5) Joey Martinez (2) Johan Santana (1) John Barr (1) John Bowker (22) John Thorn (1) Johneshwy Fargas (2) Johnny Bench (1) Johnny Cueto (31) Johnny Monell (1) Johnny Rucker (1) Jonah Arenado (1) Jonathan Mayo (1) Jonathan Sanchez (49) Jordan Hicks (1) Jordan Johnson (1) Jorge Soler (1) Jose Canseco (1) Jose Casilla (1) Jose Guillen (3) Jose Mijares (3) Jose Uribe (2) Josh Osich (9) JT Snow (1) Juan Perez (6) Juan Uribe (9) Juggling Monkey (1) Julian Fernandez (7) Julio Urias (1) Jung Hoo Lee (2) jury (1) Just Say No (1) Kelby Tomlinson (5) Kendry Flores (2) Keury Mella (2) Kevin Correia (2) Kevin Frandsen (22) Kevin Gausman (3) Kevin Pillar (2) Kevin Pucetas (10) KNBR (1) Kung Fu Panda (30) Kyle Crick (16) Kyle Harrison (5) laid off (1) Larry Baer (3) Larry Ellison (1) Lead-off (2) leadoff (1) left-handed (1) Lew Wolff (1) LHP (1) Lineup (17) lineup construction (4) Lineup position (1) links (1) Logan Webb (3) Lon Simmons (1) long relief (2) Long-Term Contract (22) long-term planning (3) losing streak (1) Lucius Fox (3) luck (2) Luis Angel Mateo (2) Luis Matos (2) Luis Toribio (1) lunatic fringe (1) Mac Marshall (1) Mac Williamson (12) Madison Bumgarner (185) Mailbox (1) Malcolm Gladwell (1) management change (3) management issues (5) managerial value (5) Manny (1) Marc Kroon (2) Marco Luciano (3) Marco Scutaro (12) Mark DeRosa (8) Mark Gardner (1) Mark Melancon (4) Marlon Byrd (1) Martin Agosta (7) Marvin Miller (1) Masahiro Tanaka (1) Mason Black (1) Mason McVay (1) Matsuzaka (1) Matt Cain (160) Matt Chapman (1) Matt Daniels (3) Matt Downs (2) Matt Duffy (8) Matt Graham (1) Matt Holliday (1) Matt Krook (2) Matt Moore (15) Matt Morris (2) Mauricio Dubon (2) Mechanics (4) Media (17) Media Bias (17) media hypocrisy (1) Media Trade Idea (3) Medical (1) Mediocy (11) Mediots (6) Melk-Gone (1) Melky Cabrera (14) Melvin Adon (1) memories (1) mental (1) Merkin Valdez (8) Message in a Bottle (1) methodology (2) MI (1) Michael Conforto (1) Michael Main (1) Michael Reed (1) Michael Trout (1) middle infield (2) Miguel Cabrera (2) Miguel Gomez (1) Miguel Tejada (5) Mike Fontenot (3) Mike Ivie (1) Mike Kickham (9) Mike Leake (11) Mike Matheny (1) Mike Morse (10) Mike Yazstremski (2) milestone (1) minor league (1) minor league contract (4) minors (11) mismanagement (1) misnomer (1) mistakes (2) MLB (2) MLB stupidity (2) MLB Success (7) MLB Trade Rumors (1) MLBAM (1) MLBTR (1) MLE (1) Mock Draft analysis (8) Modern Portfolio Theory (1) Modus Operandi (2) MPT (1) MVP (2) Natanael Javier (1) Nate Schierholtz (45) Nathanael Javier (1) Nationals (1) Naysayers (2) Negotiations (1) Neil Ramirez (1) NewPQS (8) Next Gen (1) Nick Hundley (2) Nick Noonan (27) Nick Pereira (1) Nick Vander Tuig (2) Nick Vincent (1) NL Champions (2) NL West (29) NL West Division Title (20) NL West Future (1) NLCS (22) NLCS MVP (2) NLDS (8) Noah Lowry (14) non-roster invitees (2) non-tenders (3) Nori Aoki (4) NPB (1) NRI (1) Oakland A's (4) OBP (1) oddities (1) Offense (4) offensive era (1) ogcPQS (6) Omar Vizquel (3) one-run games (3) Opener (1) openers (1) Opening Day (6) opening day pitcher (3) opening day roster (11) Optimism (1) Osiris Matos (2) Outfield (3) overturned (1) Ownership (7) Pablo Sandoval (97) Padres (1) Panda (6) Pandoval (1) passing (1) Pat Burrell (15) Pat Misch (5) Patrick Bailey (1) Payroll (11) PECOTA (1) Pedro Feliz (12) PEDS (10) Perfect Game (2) perjury trial (1) personal (2) Personal Reminiscence (2) Pessimism (1) Pete Palmer (1) Pete Putila (1) Pete Rose (3) Peter Magowan (2) Phil Bickford (3) Phillies (7) philosophy (1) Phoenix Theory of Rebuilding (1) Pierce Johnson (2) Pitch Count (3) pitch framing (1) pitch value (1) Pitcher hitting 8th (1) pitcher’s health (1) Pitchers League (1) Pitching (27) pitching analysis (4) pitching development (3) Pitching Rotation (89) pitching staff (6) pitching strategy (2) plate discipline (1) platoon players (2) Play Ball (1) player acquisition (1) player budget (2) player development (7) playoff (2) playoff analysis (2) playoff hopes (37) playoff roster (2) playoff rotation (6) Playoff Success (27) Playoff Win Effective (3) Playoff Win Efficient (2) Playoffs (44) postmortem (2) PQS (109) press conference (2) pressure (2) priorities (1) Projected Record (6) projection (2) projections (2) promotion (2) prospect (3) prospect analysis (7) prospect future (1) prospect handling (1) Prospect of Note (3) prospect promotion (1) prospect study (2) Prospects (46) quality starts (1) questions (1) radio great (1) Rafael Rodriquez (8) Rajai Davis (2) Ralph Barbieri (1) Ramon Ramirez (3) Randy Johnson (10) Randy Messenger (2) Randy Winn (14) Rangers (5) Ranking (4) rant (1) raspberry (1) rationalization (1) Ray Durham (5) re-sign (2) realist (1) Rebuilding (5) Rebuilding Myths series (1) rebuttal (1) Red Sox (1) Reds (5) rehab (1) reliever (3) relievers (1) Relocation Concession (2) Research (2) resource scarcity (1) rest for starters (1) Retired (3) Retirement (3) return (1) Reyes Moronta (3) RHP (1) Ricardo Genoves (1) Rich Aurilia (7) Rick Peterson (1) Rickie Weeks (1) Ricky Oropesa (3) right-handed (1) risk mitigation (2) risk profile (1) Roberto Gomez (1) Rockies (2) Rod Beck (1) Roger Kieschnick (13) Roger Metzger (1) Ron Shandler (2) Ron Wotus (1) Ronnie Jebavy (1) Ronnie Ray (1) rookie debut (1) Rookie of the Year (1) Roster (4) rosterbation (2) Rotation by Committee (1) Rotation Chaos (1) ROY (2) Royals (3) Rule 5 (2) Rule 5 Draft Pick (5) rumors (9) run differential (1) run prevention (1) run production (1) runs support (1) Russ Ortiz (11) Russell Carleton (1) Ryan Garko (2) Ryan Klesko (4) Ryan Rohlinger (2) Ryan Theriot (3) Ryan Vogelsong (93) Ryder Jones (2) Sabean Naysayers (7) Sabermetric Thoughts (6) sabermetrics (5) SABR (1) Salary speculation (3) SALLY (1) Sam Dyson (7) Sam Long (1) Sam Selman (1) Sam Wolff (1) San Jose Giants (1) San Jose Relocation (3) Sandro Fabian (2) Sandy Rosario (1) Santiago Casilla (9) scenarios (1) Scott Boras (1) Scott Harris (2) Scott McClain (2) Scott Shuman (1) Scouting (2) Sean Hjelle (5) season review (1) secret sauce (2) Sergio Romo (17) Seth Corry (6) SF Giants (2) Shilo McCall (1) Shohei Ohtani (3) Shohei Otani (2) Shooter (1) shutouts (1) Signature Song (1) signing (13) Silly-Ball (3) South Atlantic League (1) South Bay Rights (1) SP usage (1) spin rate (1) splits (2) Sports Illustrated (1) Spring Training (16) stabilized stats (1) standings (1) starting CF (1) starting lineup (19) starting pitching (96) starting rotation (4) Statcorner (1) State of the Giants (1) statistics (2) STATS (1) Steamer (1) Stephen Vogt (1) Steroids (7) Steve Edlefsen (4) Steve Johnson (3) Steve Okert (8) Steven Duggar (7) strikeout rate (2) Sue Burns (1) sunk costs (1) superstition (1) tactics (1) talent evaluation (4) Tax (1) team culture (1) Team of the 2010's (2) Team of the 2020's (1) Team of the Decade (4) Team Speed (1) Team Support (1) Thank You (2) The Evil Ones (tm) (1) The Giants Way (2) The Hardball Times (1) The Hey Series (19) The Hey Zaidi Series (4) Thomas Joseph (3) Thomas Neal (9) Tigers (4) Tim Alderson (17) Tim Hudson (39) Tim Lincecum (195) TINSTAAPP (1) Todd Linden (3) Todd Wellemeyer (6) Tommy Joseph (3) Tony Watson (4) Top 100 Prospects (1) Top 14 Roster (1) Top Draft Position (4) top Giants prospects (5) top player list (1) top prospect list (6) Trade (12) Trade Analysis (22) Trade Idea (9) Trade PTBNL (2) Trade Rumors (30) trading (1) training staff (2) Training Tool (1) Travis Blackley (1) Travis Ishikawa (47) Trevor Brown (5) Trevor Gott (1) tribute (1) Tristan Beck (2) turning point (1) Ty Blach (23) Tyler Austin (1) Tyler Beede (10) Tyler Cyr (1) Tyler Horan (1) Tyler McDonald (1) Tyler Rogers (2) Tyler Walker (2) umpire mistake (3) Umpires (3) USA Today (1) utility (1) Voros McCracken (1) Waiver Roulette (1) Waldis Joaquin (5) walks (1) Wall of Fame (1) WAR (4) Warrior Spirit (1) Wendell Fairley (10) What-If Scenario (3) wild card (1) wild card race (1) Will Bednar (1) Will Clark (1) Will Smith (7) Will Wilson (3) Williams Jerez (1) Willie Mac Award (1) Willie Mays (1) winning on the road (1) Winter League (1) winter meetings (3) World Series (28) World Series Champions (13) WS Ring Bling (1) xBABIP (1) xwOBA (1) Yankees (1) Yusmeiro Petit (40) Zack Cozart (2) Zack Wheeler (9) Zaidi MO (2) Zaidi Rotation (3) ZiPS (1) Zito Role (2)