This was going to be a pre-season post but it now seems appropriate with Kevin Frandsen having come up to take Ray Durham's spot while Durham is on the 15 day DL.
One thing I think Sabean was/is going for in 2006 is that, in addition, to having depth on the 25 man roster to cover when starters need a day of rest, but without having the level of offense or defense go down too much in the substitution, he also wanted to have more depth in the system, particularly in areas where injury is a strong possibility.
The Oldest Outfield in History of Baseball
That brings us to the older players and the positions that are hard on the body: the OF and up the middle defense. In the outfield, Todd Linden and Dan Ortmeier (since he's been playing CF a lot this season, apparently as preparation for a utility role; previously he was viewed only as a corner OF and some still view him as a viable corner OF starter eventually, he's only 25 still) will be the main callup guys for the corner OF during the season, though he might not get the call in 2006 because they have Finley and Ellison backing CF plus move into corner as well and Sweeney is suppose to be able to play the corner OF positions also. Adam Shabala is also an option, particularly if the Giants want to keep Linden in AAA to maximize his possibility of taking a starting spot in RF (or even LF) in 2007. They have signaled this by trying Shabala out at 3B recently. And Alou in today's game just hurt himself going after a foul ball, we'll see how that turns out, but they had to cart him off the field so that cannot be good, we might be seeing one of these guys soon and for a long while.
Eliniar Alfonzo is probably the main person who would be called up should a need arise for the catcher's position, though Justin Knoedler has been the most hyped out of the catching prospects. With Matheny at 34, though, you can't take any chances there. And as what happened to backup Todd Greene showed the other day, he's just one nasty collision away from going out. There was talk about Alfonzo taking the backup before Greene was signed, so he at least was viewed as being ready before the season, for a backup role.
In the farm system, Angel Chavez will be first runner up if they need a SS and Kevin Frandsen for 2B, which was confirmed by his call-up when Durham went on the DL. Other than that, the cupboard looks bare unless Marcus Sanders sudden hits like a demon and forces his way up the system, STAT, but Frandsen has been solid in replacing Durham so far and Vizquel does not appear to be hurting physically either, so the urgency is not as much here as other positions.
Injury Prone
Besides Durham and Alou, who have a history of getting injured during the season, there is Lance Niekro, who has always had the knack for getting injured in some way each year. Two years ago, he slipped in rain on foul warning track and missed the first part of the season. Last year, he fouled a ball off his leg and he wasn't the same for the rest of the season. In addition, this year, he unfortunately missed some games when his grandmother passed away, so the Giants brought up "I'm Too Sexy" himself, Travis Ishikawa, who went 1-2 in a very brief, but very sexy, call-up, as Lance was only out 3 days. But he was battling some leg problems anyway at that time, so it was good that he got some rest for it during that break. Plus he just missed a couple of games due to a cold so that also gave his foot a rest.
I don't see Ishikawa coming up if Niekro is out for an extended period. I think Travis was called up to give him a taste of major league life as a carrot to incent him to continue to do well and as a reward for doing well. I think the Giants are looking to put Frandsen at 3B and Feliz at 1B if the Niekro Experience is found to be lacking or if he is out again for an extended period. That is not as much a stretch as it may appear because Frandsen played 3B mainly when he was in college, he was moved to 2B when the Giants drafted him. In addition, Steve Finley has reportedly started practicing at 1B, which will give the Giants more options should Niekro falters.
The Happy Corner
For 3B, Kevin Frandsen has been taking some balls there during the season plus played there when he was in college, so he would probably be the main option there. In addition, I read in McCovey Chronicles that Adam Shabala, formerly a CF, has been seeing some play in the hot corner as well, so they appear to be preparing him for a utility role in the future, as I noted above.
Unfortunately, there are not any good 3B prospects close yet - Pablo Sandoval is probably the one with the highest potential to become the 3B starter, but he is only in low-A ball this season and he has not been doing that well to start the season. Brian Buscher was viewed as a good 3B prospect for a year or two, but has fallen out of favor with lackluster results. And Nate Schierholtz, who was starting at 3B, ended up moving to RF because his defense was questionable there, there was no consensus on whether he would eventually do well there on defense or if OF was better for him. The Giants bypassed all the questions by moving him to RF, which apparently was something he said he wanted to do anyway, in an interview.
The Pitching Staff
As we have already seen this season, the Giants have two able backups for the starting rotation in Brad Hennessey and Kevin Correia. They also have a unwritten agreement with Brian Cooper that enables him to pursue other lucrative jobs overseas but come back to help the team later in the season, and he has usually done OK in spot starts. In addition, Pat Misch has been doing well in Connecticut this season, after falling a notch or two down the prospect ladder last season with his poor performance in AAA, so he could make it up to the show at some point if he continues to do well.
In the bullpen, again, as we have seen, Brian Wilson and Jeremy Accardo were the first to get the call when the bullpen had problems. And Munter has been having problems that might force the Giants to call up another reliever. Taschner, who got demoted earlier this season, will probably be first runner up in AAA for now.
Also, Merkin Valdez as to be counted in, as they apparently are preparing him for a closer relief role for this season, after speculation in previous years, when he was a starter, that he might be better off as a reliever since he was not developing any other reliable pitches other than his blazing fastball. I would think that he would not be called up until the 2nd half of the season in order to give him some time in the closer role. And I would think that ideally, they are envisioning using him like the Angels' used K-Rod in 2002, bring him up in late August and use him in September and October to mow down the other teams hitters with his heat.
In addition, the Giants have surprisingly shifted the role from starter to reliever for one of their top pitching prospects, lefty Jonathan Sanchez. Many Giants fans have been outraged over this move, but as I noted in another post, it is not all that unusual either, it all depends on the needs of the big club and it does not preclude the team from putting him back into a starter's role when they need that as well.
Lots of Depth
So it looks like Sabean has taken to heart the fact that depth is a very important key to keeping a team competitive throughout the year when various factors - age, injury proneness, fact/luck - conspire to force the Giants to make due with another player. He appears to have prepared very well for this season not just with the players he has on his bench this season but also with the players that he has percolating in the minors should any major leaguers falter or are injured. This depth has already paid off - after injuries to Lowry, Durham and Alou, aching body for Bonds, missed time for Niekro, poor performances in the bullpen - and should continue to pay dividends throughout the season.
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