I recently wrote that the San Francisco Giants could possibly land Miguel Cabrera. You can read about it here.
There would be a few obstacles to such a deal. Cabrera’s contract runs through 2015, and due to past busts on long-term deals, the Giants might be unwilling to make such a long financial commitment.
Cabrera was moved from third base to first base due to defensive concerns in ’08, and the Giants already have options at first base. Even if the Giants do pursue Cabrera, they may still have a hole at third base.
San Francisco seems committed to starting the season with Pablo Sandoval at third base but is far from confident.
Here is the latest Brian Sabean quote:
"It's tough to evaluate Sandoval yet because we're not at the point where you're playing guys two or three days in a row. That's when you get a better read."
My response: Really? It’s tough to evaluate Sandoval? You've already evaluated everything else.
Here are a few evaluations that the Giants have already made this spring
1) Nate Schierholtz isn’t capable of playing first base or center field, so he is stuck as a backup at corner outfield.
Ugh. What does this guy have to do to get in the lineup?
2) Fred Lewis and Randy Winn will only play corner outfield.
I don’t really understand why Lewis doesn’t see more time in center field.
3) Eugenio Velez could share time with Aaron Rowand in center field.
My guess is that Velez will occasionally substitute against right-handed pitchers.
4) Emmanuel Burriss is the Giants' backup shortstop.
Last year, Burriss did a solid job defensively at shortstop. Edgar Renteria has been terrible against right-handed pitchers, so I think this could really add to Burriss’ at-bat totals. This is great news for Burriss’ fantasy value, and you can realistically expect at least 25 stolen bases from Burriss this season.
5) Kevin Frandsen will see a lot of time at second base.
I wouldn’t call Frandsen the starter because he is splitting time with Burriss and Velez. The fact that the Giants are finding other positions for those two means more playing time for Frandsen.
6) Travis Ishikawa is the Giants' first baseman.
Sabean’s quote about Ishikawa:
"Ishikawa has played enough now that you can see that he's going to be the first baseman, and it will remain to be seen how much latitude he'll be given against left-handed pitching...we've got time to find that out, too. He's very determined, and we're all impressed by how he's handled things."
My response: Sounds pretty definitive. Why is it so hard to evaluate Sandoval again? Oh right, you have, and it’s not looking very good.
My translation of Sabean’s comments on Sandoval: Sandoval is all we have at third base right now, and we need to stall until we get a real third baseman.
Third Basemen that the San Francisco Giants could be targeting
Garrett Atkins, Colorado Rockies
Details: Age 29; one year, $7.05 million remaining contract
Defense: Atkins is subpar defensively, but he probably isn’t bad enough to be called a liability.
Hitting: Over the last three years Atkins has hit 80 points higher at home than on the road (.346 BA at home, .266 BA on the road).
Availability: The Rockies traded Matt Holliday to Oakland, have serious problems with their pitching, and are dropping payroll. Atkins looks very available.
Interest: The Giants probably won’t be interested due to his stats away from Coors.
Adrian Beltre, Seattle Mariners
Details: Age 30 in April; one year, $12 million
Defense: Great defensively.
Hitting: Consistent 25 home run power, about a .270 hitter, contract year = production.
Availability: Seattle’s ’08 payroll ($117 million) was up $30 million from ’06 ($87 million). The Mariners can compete this year, but if they don’t, they will need to dump payroll, and Beltre seems like a great option to trade.
Interest: Beltre is a very attractive midseason addition.
Jorge Cantu, Florida Marlins
Details: Age 27; one year, $3.5 million
Defense: Cantu is similar to Atkins defensively—subpar but not terrible.
Hitting: .280 BA and 30 home runs is a very realistic projection.
Availability: The Marlins seem to be constantly rebuilding, and their ‘08 payroll was under $22 million. Why wouldn’t the Marlins trade Cantu for a couple of minor league players? He’s available.
Interest: Cantu’s solid offense outweighs his poor defense. He’s cheap and not old. There could be interest here.
Edwin Encarnacion, Cincinnati Reds
Details: Age 26; two years, $7.6 million
Defense: His defense is average (but better than Atkins or Cantu).
Hitting: Trades power for average, either 25 HR with a .260 BA or 18 HR with a .280 BA.
Availability: He’s cheap and signed for two years. He’s probably not very available, but I don’t see the Reds doing much damage this year. He could be dealt.
Interest: The Giants could be interested in Encarnacion.
Melvin Mora, Baltimore Orioles
Details: Age 37; one year, $9 million
Defense: He’s a defensive liability at third.
Hitting: 20+ home run power, .280 BA.
Availability: Sell, sell, sell. He’s available.
Interest: He’s probably worse than Sandoval at third. I see no interest, especially with that contract.
What will the Giants do with Sandoval if they do acquire a third baseman?
Both Ishikawa and Sandoval are better hitters against right-handed pitchers than they are against left-handed pitchers, so they can't be platooned in the traditional sense.
With Ishikawa’s defensive prowess, it’s possible that the Giants would start Ishikawa against lefties and then platoon the two against righties.
On the other hand, they may want to wait to see who better handles left-handed pitching at the start of the season. Sandoval is a switch hitter, and could be vastly superior against lefties compared to Ishikawa.
Even if the Giants do trade for a third baseman, Sandoval could still see time there.
I suppose it's possible that San Francisco trades Sandoval or benches him so that he can work on his defense, but his offensive contributions seem necessary at any expense right now.
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