Buster Posey is an MVP Candidate again

As the Giants try to defend their championship for the third time in the last five years, the face of their franchise is quietly having his second MVP worthy season of his career. The 2012 Most Valuable Player already has more home runs and runs batted in this season than he did in all of 2013. He has only struck out 33 times this season while hitting a slashline of .327/.386/.507. His .893 OPS is the second highest of his career since his MVP campaign of 2012 of .957.

His defense this season is even better than three years ago. That is what set him apart in 2012. His ability to catch a top pitching staff is what led most voters to choose Posey for the award over Ryan Braun and others.

Posey has an impressive trophy case already in his young career, with three world series rings, an MVP, a Comeback Player of the Year award, All-Star appearances and Silver Sluggers. Winning a second MVP, however, would put him a step closer to a path that few catchers have been to. Posey has often been compared to Hall of Famers like Johnny Bench and Yogi Berra, and winning multiple MVP awards is something Posey must do for that conversation to continue. Bench and Berra not only own many World Series rings like Posey does, but they also won multiple MVP's which Posey has yet to do.

This season, the other candidates include Bryce Harper, Paul Goldschmidt, and pitchers like Zach Greinke and Max Scherzer. Last year when Clayton Kershaw won the award, there weren't any legitimate hitters to compete with his historic season. This year, Harper, Goldschmidt and Posey are all deserving of the award.

Based on Wins Above Replacement, Harper (6.9) is the choice over Greinke (6.7) with a slim lead. Goldschmidt, who plays for a below .500 team has a WAR of 6.1, while Posey is at 5.3.  Harper could end up winning in a landslide because his Nationals are competing for the playoffs and his numbers suggest he has far and away the best hitter. But a lot can happen in August and September, and voters in years past would suggest that those months mean more in their final tally. If Harper continues to produce, Posey could be on the outside looking in come awards season. However, if Posey continues to perform the way he has since the All-Star break, we may be seeing a second MVP for the defending champs best player.

Giants are winning again...what odd year curse?

The San Francisco Giants are in third place. That may not seem impressive, but just 12 games ago, they were 4-10 and in last place. Giants fans were already convinced that the "Odd Year Curse" was real and that they would have to spend the summer and fall waiting for the 2016 championship run. Oh how things have changed. Suddenly, the Giants have won 9 of their last 12 and are already back to .500 at 13-13. While they are still looking up in the standings to the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers, they are just a half game back of the Padres and only 3.5 games out of 1st place in the National League West. For a team that was doomed, that sounds pretty great.

When the Giants were sitting at 4-10, Buster Posey, was hitting .229 with two extra base hits, Casey McGehee, was hitting .194 with two extra base hits, and Brandon Belt, who was suppose to be having his breakout season, was hitting .152, with zero extra base hits.  Madison Bumgarner had a 5.29 earned run average and had given up 10 earned runs over 17 innings. In other words, 4 more runs than he gave up in the entire 2014 post season over 52 and 2/3 innings.

In the 12 games since then, Posey's batting average has risen to .274 and has a .421 slugging percentage. McGehee has actually been worse as his .194 average has dropped to .181 with only 2 doubles to add to his extra base hit total. Belt's average has bumped up to .234, which still looks terrible, but is a far cry from the .152 he was hitting just two weeks ago.  The biggest difference has been Bumgarner, who has been dominant, including a retribution game last night vs the Padres that saw him take a no hitter into the 7th inning.

Bumgarner's last two starts against Dodgers and Padres: 15 1/3 innings, 7 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 15 strikeouts.

— Alex Pavlovic (@AlexPavlovic) May 5, 2015

Hunter Pence, the life blood of the team, is still on the disabled list and has yet to play an inning in 2015. Matt Cain and Jake Peavy are both still on the DL as well, with no set timetable for their returns.

That's what makes this 9-3 run even more impressive is that not that much has changed. While Posey and Belt have been better, they haven't been great yet. And McGehee is been worse. The one big turnaround has been the pitching, led by Bumgarner, with some tremendous contributions from rookie Chris Heston and the Timmys, Tim Hudson and Tim Lincecum.

#SFGiants' 7-game home win streak: Rotation: 1.55 ERA Bullpen: 1.13 ERA

— San Francisco Giants (@SFGiantsFans) May 5, 2015

There is such a long season ahead as we are barely into the month of May. Teams who are going to be contenders may very well be under .500 right now and teams who may sell at the trade deadline might not make those decisions for at least two months. Many things can happen in the next few weeks as we head into to the summer that will give us a better idea if the 2015 Giants will be more 4-10 or 9-3. With the injuries they have, there can be optimism that health could lean them into the 9-3 direction.


However, we still live in a day and age where people voice their opinions 140 characters at a time and prefer to shorten their attention span only to what is trending. So for all the fans who said the Giants were awful at 4-10, there are just as many voices out there now who are saying the Giants are great at 9-3. Such is fandom and baseball. No team wins 140 games and no team loses 140. Outside of extreme seasons like the 43 win Detroit Tigers of 2003 and the 1962 Mets who went 40-120, nearly every team finds a way to win at least 50-70 games no matter how awful they are. That's the beauty of baseball. Take the Milwaukee Brewers game last night vs the Los Angeles Dodgers. Clayton Kershaw pitching for the Dodgers. He's facing the Brewers, who have the worst record in baseball and just fired their manager. They've replaced him with Craig Counsell, who has never coached at any level. So, of course, the Brewers win the game.

The Giants are still going to be in a lot of trouble if Matt Cain and Jake Peavy end up sidelined for an extended length of time this season. It was magnified by the fact that every team in the National League West was off to a better start and that is primarily because of the head to head games vs the Giants. The hole the Giants have dug for themselves is not due to a tougher schedule. It is due to losing to the teams they will be competing with for a division title. Now that the NL West has come back to earth, the Giants have crawled back up. It is clear that the Dodgers are not going away, and no matter how much the Padres, Diamondbacks or Rockies struggle to pitch, they will still pose dangerous lineups for the Giants staff. That has always been the key for the Giants success. If they can outpitch their opponent, the potent lineups will be minimized and the Giants can take control of their own playoff destiny.

San Francisco Giants Organizational Depth Chart (4/21/15 Edition)

2015 San Francisco Giants Organizational Depth Chart
Put together by @CandlestickWill & @CoveChatter

C Buster Posey (MLB)
C Hector Sanchez (MLB)
C Andrew Susac (MLB)
C Guillermo Quiroz (Triple-A)
C Trevor Brown  (Triple-A)
C Jeff Arnold (Double-A)
C Jackson Williams (Double-A)
C Eliezer Zambrano (Double-A)
C Ben Turner (Single-A)
C Matt Pare (Single-A)
C Ty Ross (Single-A)
C Geno Escalante (Single-A)
C Brad Moss (Low-A)
C Aramis Garcia (Low-A)
C Jared Deacon (Low-A)
C John Riley (Low-A)

1B Brandon Belt (MLB)
1B Travis Ishikawa (MLB)
1B John Bowker (Triple-A)
1B Ricky Oropesa (Double-A)
1B Angel Villalona (Double-A)
1B Brian Ragira (Single-A)
1B Skyler Ewing (Low-A)

2B Joe Panik (MLB)
2B Matt Duffy (MLB)
2B Ehire Adrianza (Triple-A)
2B Brandon Hicks (Triple-A)
2B Ronny Cedeno (Triple-A)
2B Blake Miller (Double-A)
2B Kelby Tomlinson (Double-A)
2B Austin Slater (Single-A)
2B John Polonius (Single-A)
2B Jeremy Sy (Low-A)

SS Brandon Crawford (MLB)
SS Carlos Triunfel (Triple-A)
SS Juan Ciriaco (Triple-A)
SS Randy Moreno (Double-A)
SS Christian Arroyo (Single-A) 
SS Ydwin Villegas (Single-A)
SS Travious Relaford (Low-A)

3B Casey McGehee (MLB)
3B Joaquin Arias (MLB)
3B Adam Duvall (40 Man/Triple-A)
3B Mitch Delfino (Double-A)
3B Ryder Jones (Single-A)
3B Brandon Bednar (Single-A)
3B Jonah Arenado (Low-A)
3B Will Callaway (Low-A)

LF Nori Aoki (MLB)
LF Gregor Blanco (MLB)
LF Juan Perez (Triple-A)
LF Darren Ford (Triple-A)
LF Elliott Blair (Double-A)
LF Devin Harris (Double-A)
LF Ryan Lollis (Single-A)
LF Rafael Rodriguez (Single-A)
LF Brennan Metzger (Single-A)
LF Shawn Payne (Single-A)
LF Cristian Paulino (Low-A)

CF Angel Pagan (MLB)
CF Brett Jackson (Triple-A)
CF Daniel Carbonell (40 Man/Double-A)
CF Jesus Galindo (Single-A)
CF Randy Ortiz (Low-A)
CF Johneshwy Fargas (Low-A)

RF Hunter Pence (MLB)
RF Justin Maxwell (MLB)
RF Jarrett Parker (40 Man/Triple-A)
RF Javier Herrera (Double-A)
RF Mac Williamson (Double-A)

RF Tyler Horan (Single-A)
RF Chuckie Jones (Single-A) *Suspended
RF Hunter Cole (Low-A) 
RF Andrew Cain (Low-A)
RF Gustavo Cabrera (INJ)

SP Madison Bumgarner (MLB)
SP Matt Cain (MLB)
SP Jake Peavy (MLB)
SP Tim Hudson (MLB)
SP Tim Lincecum (MLB)
SP Chris Heston (MLB)
SP Ryan Vogelsong (MLB)
SP Yusmeiro Petit (MLB)
SP Ty Blach (Triple-A) 
SP Jake Dunning (Triple-A)
SP Austin Fleet (Triple-A)
SP Robert Coello (Triple-A)
SP Braulio Lara (Triple-A)
SP Nik Turley (Triple-A)
SP Kevin Correia (Triple-A)
SP Kyle Crick (Double-A)
SP Clayton Blackburn (Double-A)
SP Chris Stratton (Double-A)
SP Adalberto Mejia (Double-A) * Restricted List
SP Matt Lujan (Double-A)
SP Joe Biagini (Double-A)
SP Jack Snodgrass (Double-A)
SP Tyler Beede (Single-A)
SP Keury Mella (Single-A)
SP Luis Ysla (Single-A)
SP Nick Vander Tuig (Single-A)
SP Martin Agosta (Single-A)SP D.J. Snelten (Single-A)
SP Chase Johnson (Single-A)
SP Matt Gage (Low-A)
SP Mark Reyes (Low-A)
SP Samuel Coonrod (Low-A)
SP Nathanial Santiago (Low-A)
SP Jose Reyes (Low-A)
SP Nicholas Gonzalez (Low-A)
SP Michael Santos (Low-A)

RP Santiago Casilla (MLB)
RP Sergio Romo (MLB)
RP Jeremy Affeldt (MLB)
RP Javy Lopez (MLB)
RP Jean Machi (MLB)
RP George Kontos (MLB)
RP Hunter Strickland (40 Man/Triple-A)
RP Erik Cordier (40 Man)
RP Cody Hall (40 Man/Triple-A) 
RP Steven Okert (Triple-A)
RP Brett Bochy (Triple-A)
RP Juan Gutierrez (Triple-A)
RP Curtis Partch (Triple-A)
RP Mike Broadway (Triple-A)
RP Clay Rapada (Triple-A)
RP Derek Law (40 Man)
RP Ray Black (40 Man)
RP Joan Gregorio (40 Man/Double-A)
RP Josh Osich (Double-A)
RP Kelvin Marte (Double-A)
RP Jose Casilla (Double-A)
RP Pedro Rodriguez (Double-A)
RP Stephen Johnson (Double-A)
RP Phil McCormick (Double-A)
RP Tyler Rogers (Double-A)
RP Christian Jones (Single-A)
RP Ian Gardeck (Single-A)
RP Jeff Soptic (Single-A)
RP Mason McVay (Single-A)
RP Daniel Slania (Single-A)
RP Connor Kaden (Low-A)
RP Raymundo Montero (Low-A)
RP E.J. Encinosa (Low-A)
RP Carlos Diaz (Low-A)
RP Rodolfo Martinez (Low-A)
RP Reyes Moronta (Low-A)
RP Ramon Del Orbe (Low-A)

Giants are 4-10, Let's Keep Calm and Panik

The San Francisco Giants are in last place. Only two teams in baseball, the Miami Marlins and Milwaukee Brewers have a worse record than the Giants 4-10 mark. The Giants are next to last to only the Boston Red Sox in hard hit ball percentage.

Buster Posey, the team's cleanup hitter and former league MVP, is currently hitting .229 with two extra base hits. Casey McGehee, who has been the Giants replacement for Pablo Sandoval, is hitting .194 with two extra base hits. And Brandon Belt, who was suppose to be having his breakout season, is hitting .152, with zero extra base hits.  Madison Bumgarner, the Sports Illustrated Sportsmen of the Year, NLCS and World Series MVP and Silver Slugger winner last season, has a 5.29 earned run average and has given up 10 earned runs over 17 innings. In other words, 4 more runs than he gave up in the entire 2014 post season over 52 and 2/3 innings.

Hunter Pence, the life blood of the team, has been on the disabled list and has yet to play an inning in 2015. Matt Cain and Jake Peavy are both currently on the DL as well, with no set timetable for their returns.

The famous World War II poster, Keep Calm and Carry On, has been reshaped and renamed many times over in recent times and the current 2015 Giants new motto has become "Keep Calm and Panik."

This isn't coming from management or from the public relations staff and it has not yet come from the team's official store. Bruce Bochy isn't preaching it to his players either. It's coming from the fanbase. An awkward mix of die hards who have gone through the five decades of struggles and the new generation that believe in odd year curses and demand titles every season.


Fans have raised expectations of this franchise to a level that few organizations have ever felt in the history of baseball. The New York Yankees, arguably the greatest franchise in sports for their unparalleled success, are one of the only franchises to make a run like the Giants have in recent history. The Boston Red Sox have also won three World Series over a ten year span, as well as the Oakland A's and Cincinnati Reds who both had runs in the 1970's. Besides those four franchises, you have to go to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1940's or the Yankees again to find a team with the type of success the Giants have had since 2010.

This brief history lesson is to remind all of the new "die hards" that this type of thing we have seen with the Giants is rare in Major League Baseball and that the expectations, ultimately, are unrealistic, from a historical point of view.

However, we live in a day and age where people voice their opinions 140 characters at a time and prefer to shorten their attention span only to what is trending.

The Giants are going to be in a lot of trouble in Matt Cain and Jake Peavy end up sidelined for an extended length of time this season. It is magnified by the fact that every team in the National League West is off to a better start and that is primarily because of them already winning series against the Giants head to head. The hole the Giants have dug for themselves is not due to a tougher schedule. It is due to losing to the teams they will be competing with for a division title.

Ultimately, the Giants will either need to get healthy quickly, or look to make a trade or two to upgrade the starting staff or the middle of their order.  Fans today don't want to wait until July when the trade deadline approaches, so expect more complaints from a fanbase that has watched their favorite team build a dynasty.

Giants Re-Shape their Front Office to remain the best Front Office in Baseball

Today's official announcement of extensions to Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy may fall under the radar today considering this is one of several extensions the two have signed with the San Francisco Giants during their tenure together. Even the tweet from the Giants was boring.

#SFGiants extend the contracts of Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy through the 2019 season.
— World Champs (@SFGiants) April 3, 2015

However, there were some moves made today to continue the trend set by the organization years ago about how to handle their baseball talent. Just like with the talent on the field, the Giants have been surprisingly loyal to their talent off the field. Brian Sabean was hired in 1996, and has been with the organization ever since as the longest tenured general manager in the game. Now he has been promoted to Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations to make room in the general manager's chair for Bobby Evans, who has been with the team for 22 years and was the assistant GM under Sabean.



A portion of the official release:
Sabean has been promoted to executive vice president of baseball operations. He is responsible for managing all aspects of the Giants’ baseball department, including the immediate and long-term development of the major and minor league systems and the team’s growing scouting and international operations.

Giants Vice President and Assistant GM Bobby Evans has been named senior vice president and general manager and will manage the day to day operations of the baseball department. Entering his 22nd season with the Giants, Evans assists Sabean in all Major League and amateur contract negotiations, player acquisitions via trade or free agency and all areas of major and minor league operations.

The promotion of Evans is a smart one on two fronts. First, it allows the Giants to keep one of the best assistant general managers in the game and allows Sabean to continue to work with Evans on all baseball matters. It also does something far more important to the overall health of the franchise. It allows Evans and every other executive and employee to see that promotions from within are standard practice.

Big day for Bochy, Sabean and Evans, obviously, but also for Jeremy Shelley. Gets bumped up to assistant GM.
— Alex Pavlovic (@AlexPavlovic) April 3, 2015

The Giants promoted Sabean to a new role, and gave Evans Sabean's old job and Jeremy Shelley Evans' former role.

When the Giants won the World Series in 2010, there were many baseball experts and even Giants fans who did not approve of the re-signings of many of the players from that team. Players like Aubrey Huff, Freddy Sanchez, Cody Ross, Andres Torres and Pat Burrell were not as good in 2011 as they were in 2010 and the money spent to retain all of these players were looked at bad investments.  The Giants even tried to compete with the offers given to Juan Uribe and Edgar Renteria to stay. For any criticism the team received for these moves, there was something starting in the locker room and in the front office that off-season that has continued through 2015. The team made a commitment to the players and the people behind the scenes who were leading this organization.

For the 1st time in 52 seasons, the Giants had won the World Series, and the feeling in the organization was to continue to try to win with the group that got them there. What this has done has given everyone in the building a feeling of ownership in the success of the team and a feeling of family that is rare in the business world of sports.

It's not just re-signing Huff, Ross or Torres in 2010, but also keeping Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Marco Scutaro, Angel Pagan, Jeremy Affeldt, Javier Lopez, Hunter Pence, Jake Peavy, Sergio Romo and Ryan Vogelsong.  The Giants tried to keep Pablo Sandoval too.  What this does is send a clear message to future free agents such as Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford and Joe Panik that the Giants will continue to believe in them the same way they believed in so many before them.

Now, Giants fans and baseball are seeing the same thing in the coaching staff and the front office. When Tim Flannery, the team's beloved third base coach, announced his retirement, the Giants organization made a decision strikingly similar to the ones they've made with their players. They promoted Roberto Kelly to be their new third base coach and promoted Bill Hayes to be their 1st base coach. Other people outside the organization could have been brought in to do the job, and maybe even done the job well, but it sends a better message to all the coaches in Sacramento, Richmond, San Jose and Augusta as well as with the major league club, that promotions are not only possible, but expected.

#SFGiants name Jeremy Shelley to vice president and assistant GM, pro scouting and player evaluation. Now in 22nd year with club.
— Carl Steward (@stewardsfolly) April 3, 2015

The promotions of Sabean,Evans and Shelley has become the norm for the San Francisco Giants. The Giants three World Series trophies are a direct correlation to the team's commitment to their players, their coaches and their front office.