Jesus Guzman Your Time Is Now

Inter-league play is about to begin and the San Francisco Giants are in need of a DH. Who else but to bring up but slugger Jesus Guzman?

Any Giant fan who knows our farm system, or has been reading the San Francisco Chronicle, knows who and what kind of player Guzman can become.

Not only is Guzman hitting over .354 with 31 RBI, six HRs, and a .954 OPS as of right now in AAA Fresno, but he has been hitting over .300 in all Minor League levels.

Sound familiar Pablo Sandoval fans?

Now it's true we have had convented first baseman like this before, Lance Niekro, Daniel Ortmeier, and now Travis Ishikawa, but none of those players has had or will have the serious impact Guzman can accomplish.

I was never fully confident nor a fan of Ishikawa to begin with. The only thing I saw going for him was his spectacular defense.

But Steven Philips had a great quote yesterday regarding Ishikawa and the Giants: "Defense can only get you so far, you need to start swinging the bat and produce."

While Guzman's defense has always been a question amongst scouts, I do not think his defense is as bad as advertised.

But think of it this way. Even if his defense is as terrible as they say, how many more runs do you think he can drive in to redeem himself?

It's a terrible train of thought, I know, but as anemic as the Giants have been on offense this season I'll take my chances on the latter.

If the Giant's are so worried about defense, stick Ishikawa and Rich Aurilia late in games to protect the lead.

The only thing I know is I've had enough with white knuckle games and infield singles. The "ground attack" is not going to last forever.

Guzman has the chance to become a catalyst for our offense, and with Pablo Sandoval and Bengie Molina to compliment him, the sky's the limit.

Don't get me wrong, Guzman can indeed be a flop like the three that have come before him, but with his potential I'd like the Giants to take a chance on what could be the minor league call up of the year.