Brian Sabean

San Francisco should be a very fun and interesting team to watch this season, and should be able to possibly win the NL WIld Card.

But don't expect for the Giants to be able to win the NL West, because they won't be able to beat the Rockies. The Rockies are just to good.

San Francisco's success will be based on their pitching again, which is still very strong, and possibly even better than last year's pitching. The Giants have some of the best young players in baseball with Tim Lincecum and Pablo Sandoval, along with other young studs on the team.

With spring training officially on its way, the offseason, for the most part, is officially done. Sure, there are some lingering free agents out there and perhaps some late-additions to the Giants roster could (but shouldn't) happen, but for the most part, the Giants seem pretty much set with their roster as they head into the 2010 season, which begins in less than a month.

That being said, the most widely asked question by Giants fans (other than how the Giants are going to do in 2010, of course) has to be this:

How did the Giants do this offseason?

When any self-proclaimed "die hard" Giants fans talk about their team for more than five minutes, the dismal managing duo of Bruce Bochy and Brian Sabean almost always comes up in the conversation.

And what is the biggest issue that makes this tandem of field manager and general manager so maligned by the fan base?

The biggest issue that irks the die-hards is San Francisco's inconsistency in giving young players a chance to pull out of an inevitable slump (for almost every young player not named Pablo Sandoval or Evan Longoria, slumps are bound to occur).

Just a few hours remain before San Francisco Giants pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The Giants enter 2010 with raised expectations after a 16-game improvement on their record. That was good enough to get GM Brian Sabean and manager Bruce Bochy sparkly two-year extensions.

Sabean stayed away from the big-name free agent hitters and instead decided to go with short-term solutions—something he has done time and time again in the past.

Speed kills, right? Well when it comes to MLB, that isn't always the case. In fact, six of the top 10 teams in base stealing in 2009 missed the playoffs.

And over the last few seasons, it is pretty much a coin flip on whether or not the top base stealing teams in baseball make the playoffs. But in particular, speed at the top of the order has proved more critical in the National League.

The NL had three of their four postseason participants from last season in the top 12 in the MLB in stolen bases.

The San Francisco Giants wound up making the mistake. But if they hadn't, someone else would have.

For some reason unbeknownst to me, baseball execs throughout MLB thought Mark DeRosa was worth several million dollars a year. DeRosa wound up getting six million dollars for two years: a two-year, $12 million deal.

This is the sort of move that, as an analyst, drives me up the wall.

Mark DeRosa doesn't do anything particularly well. He hit a mediocre .250/.319/.433 in 2009, a .752 OPS. Third basemen as a whole hit .265/.335/.421, a .757 OPS.

This just in, San Francisco Giants General Manager Brian Sabean is gun-shy. Over a year ago, the Giants GM signed shortstop Edgar Renteria to a two-year 18 million dollar deal before the free-agent market fully developed.

Numerous other quality free-agents were left unsigned deep into January and even February. Players like Bobby Abreu and Orlando Hudson had excellent seasons despite signing after the new year.

Unfortunately for Sabean and the Giants, Renteria performed at a rate where he didn't even deserve half of his contract. 

The 2009 Winter Meetings have concluded, and the San Francisco Giants came away looking like they did little, but probably did plant the seeds for a deal or two to take place.

Rumors continue to persist that the Giants are still talking with the Florida Marlins regarding Dan Uggla in exchange for TBD Giants' players. Also, reports that Giants have offers before Mark DeRosa and maybe Nick Johnson and LaRoche, as possible Giants' first baseman.

If you follow the San Francisco Giants, you're probably hoping that budding super-star Pablo Sandoval won't be the only threat in the Giants lineup next season.

However, if you're Giants GM Brian Sabean, you are currently shedding no ray of light on that happening. Actually, he is doing the exact opposite.

Intimidation can be utilized in any sport and when it comes to baseball, there is no player that brings the intimidation factor better than starting pitcher Brad Penny.

At 6' 4" and 230 pounds, "The Bull", as fans like to call him, is the guy who, when you pass him walking down the street, you'd expect him to be able to chuck a baseball 98 MPH.

His size and personality are fit for an NFL tight-end. (In fact, I would be surprised if he isn't already friends with colorful Jeremy Shockey of the New Orleans Saints.)