San Francisco Giants Updates

By Kalen Patrick

Things are pretty good for the Giants right about now. 16 games above .500, 3 games ahead in the division, pitching is as good as ever (well Zito stinks as usual) oh and the Giants just added Carlos Beltran. Beltran will immediately become the leader in HR's and RBI's and is 3rd in Average (behind Pablo Sandoval and Jeff Keppinger). Here is the Giants offensive philosophy: timely hitting, score just enough to win, not flashy, just get the job done.

The Giants are a Major League leading 28-13 in 1 run games. The Giants know how to win these games, they are used to it. Now runs should become a little easier to come by with the addition of Beltran. Lets forget about what the Giants gave up to get him, Wheeler may become a legit starter, or we may never hear from him again (Alderson ring a bell?). The Giants now have a pretty solid middle of the order in their lineup. The leadoff position mostly manned by Andres Torres is still shaky, but he really is due by now to get somewhat hot. After that you have, 2 guys hitting around .300 with Keppinger and Sandoval. Now you add in a guy like Beltran, who hits for average and power, well suddenly the Giants lineup isn't so much of a walk in the park.

CARLOS BELTRAN IS A BAT THE GIANTS NEEDED

Furthermore, adding Beltran essentially pushes every one else down a spot in the lineup and thus taking pressure off of, well, everyone. I think we can expect to see the best of Beltran and here's why. He is in a contract year, he is now going to be putting his talents on display in a pennant race and hopefully in the playoffs, not only this but rather than playing for a mediocre at best Mets team, he is now on a World Series Contending team. Plus beside for not having any HR's in AT&T, he has excellent numbers there and is gonna be a double machine.

Why I love the trade even more is that, unless you are the Red Sox, Yankees or Phillies who almost have limitless money to spend, the window for winning a World Series is always going to be relatively small. The Giants have all the pitching you need to win a World Series and then some. Honestly, I would expect the Giants to try and acquire a catcher too. Whiteside and Stewart just isn't going to get it done. The whole trade has been summed up perfectly by Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News:

"It's the kind of move -- if it's done at the right moment, for the right player -- that fans should embrace, if chasing greatness is the goal here. And it should be. It's a bit of an epochal shift for the Giants: They're no middle-muddle franchise anymore, just happy to win the N.L. West. They're in control of the West, and they're trying to become a mega-team, a multi-title team; and they're willing to risk large piles of chips to try to do it. I think the Beltran Bet is a strong move -- one of the strongest and boldest the Giants have made in a while. To win big, you have to risk big, too"

FIRST THINGS FIRST, THE GIANTS WILL LOOK TO REPEAT AS NL WEST CHAMPS

There are just under 60 games left and the Giants have basically just added a guy who will be the best offensive player to a team that desperately needed it. I like the Giants chances, especially if Jonathan Sanchez can get back on track and take Zito's spot in the starting rotation. Fun times ahead folks.