I believe it's Rule #78 in the International Baseball Bloggers Rule Book that states "Baseball team bloggers shall write an assessment of their team at the annual All Star Game break". Failure to do so could mean a costly and drawn out official hearing at the Baseball Bloggers Alliance headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland.

The penalty for a first time offending blogger is two weeks all expenses paid in Cleveland; a second offense makes it a mandatory three week stay.

If you're found guilty a third time, you are sealed in small room with a 7.1 surround sound loop of Tim McCarver discussing the pros and cons of the double switch.

So let's talk San Francisco Giants at the 2012 Break. There's 1) some bad news; and, 2) some potentially troubling news.

So what's first? Tom Hagen said it best in "The Godfather": "Mr. Corleone is a man who insists on hearing bad news immediately."

Scoring Runs Redux
Although the Giants are plating runs like they haven't done in 10 years, they need to score more. Their runs per game has slipped to 3.93 and the team has dropped from 18th to 24th of 30 MLB team in runs scored (338). It's an old and tired story, but an increase in run production is critical to this team's success in the remaining 76 games.

Those who made it happen at the plate in the first 86 games include Melky Cabrera (44 RBI/55 RS), Buster Posey (43 RBI/35 RS), and Angel Pagan (33 RBI/38 RS). But two things have negatively impacted run production for the Giants in 2012.

First, Pablo Sandoval's hand injury limited him to only 51 games of the first 86 played. It may not seem important, but if Sandoval (30 RBI/30 RS) plays in the 35 games he missed it projects out to an additional 21 RBI and 21 runs scored-- minus the 9 RBI and 9 runs Sandoval's replacements produced during the 35 missed games (Arias, Gillaspie, Burriss and Pill hit a dismal combined .189 trying to replace Sandoval).

Minus whatever home runs he may have hit, that means a healthy Sandoval adds 12 RBI and 12 runs-- 24 additional runs to the season total. Enough to drive the runs per game up to 4.21 and no doubt good for several additional wins, which easily puts San Francisco in 1st place in the NL West at the break.

The second problem is fixable: more playing time for Brandon Belt. Another ongoing story, but an important one. At the plate Belt has at times looked as good as Will Clark; other times as lost as Lewis and Clark. But he is tied for the team lead with 32 walks and has an OBP of .358.

The Giants are unlikely to find a viable infield bat at the trade deadline who would be nearly as promising as Belt has been. To get better and be able to contribute more, Belt needs to start every day at first base the rest of the season.

The Pitching is Actually Pretty Good
The good news is the pitching. I know, I know-- Tim Lincecum! (Let's all run around in a tight circle waving our arms in the air.)

That's all fine, but while you're biting your nails over Lincecum's problems how many other MLB teams have three starters like Matt Cain (9-3/0.96 WHIP), Madison Bumgarner (10-5/1.10), and Ryan Vogelsong (7-4/1.12)? Maybe the Nationals or Texas.

And by the way, Barry Zito's 7-6/4.01 projects to 13 wins by the end of September as the Giants' fifth starter. Damn few teams get that from the fourth starter in their rotations.

Lincecum and his $18m 2012 salary (and $22m 2013 salary) aren't going anywhere. He is capable of straightening out his mechanics and his mindset. Let's just hope he does it sometime before September 1st.

Overall Giants' pitching comes in at 7th among 30 MLB teams with a staff ERA of 3.63. The real critical issue here is the bullpen.

San Francisco relievers are putting up a 3.59 ERA, dropping them to 7th among National League bullpens and 16th overall in the Majors. Over the past three seasons if you wanted to check out the Giants' bullpen stats you'd find them somewhere in the top three of all 30 MLB teams.

And this is where the 2012 season will make or break for the Giants.

By not replacing closer Brian Wilson, and putting Santiago Casilla in the closer role, the bullpen was permanently weakened on two levels: Casilla has yet to prove he has the grit to be the full time closer for a whole season, and Casilla's critical former role in the bullpen has not been successfully filled.

If the Giants are going to make any kind of move between the All Star Break and the the July 31st 1PM PST trade deadline it should be to bolster their bullpen. Nothing the team does will better help them make the 2012 post season.

The Giant's Cove is looking forward to a great All Star game from the boys, and a great start to the second half of the season. There. The International Baseball Bloggers can call off the dogs.

As the annual criticism of Major League Baseball's All Star Game player selection swings into full gear approaching the 2012 game, it's interesting to look back on the sometimes sullied history of player selection for the Mid-Summer Classic.

For instance, I discovered that current Baseball Commissioner Allan "Bud" Selig was linked to at least one ballot-stuffing scheme prior to the 1975 All Star Game, played that year in Milwaukee's County Stadium.

At the time, Selig was President of the American League Milwaukee Brewers and the Brewers' front office was actively seeking to get Brewer players, specifically first baseman George Scott and shortstop Robin Yount, into the starting line-up.

That year a man named David Jaeckels also made it his primary mission in life to complete as many All Star ballots as possible with Scott and Yount chosen at their respective positions. "They really deserve it," Jaeckles insisted. "With the game in Milwaukee it would be a shame if we don't get our players in the game."

The June 20, 1975 edition of the Milwaukee Sentinel featured a story about David Jaeckels, who was an employee at Allen-Bradley, a local manufacturing company.

Jaeckels was tracked down by Milwaukee Sentinel reporter Ken Bunch and he gave Bunch a detailed and lengthy account about how the Brewers front office was assisting him by providing "at least" 30,000 All Star ballots for him to mass puncture with a power drill. "I've got a small hand drill and I can go through them pretty fast," enthused Jaeckels.

In 1975 All Star ballots came in the form of cards that allowed fans to vote by punching a perforated hole next to a player's name. Preferably with a finger or pencil. But, as Jaeckels discovered, if you carefully lined stacks of cards up it was possible to power drill through dozens at a time. The cards could then be dropped off at  the Brewers' County Stadium and counted as official fan votes.

"I've already punched about 7,000 ballots at work," Jaeckels admitted in what may have been a surprise to his employer. "If I only punch out the Brewers, I figure I can drill 4,000 an hour and do them all (30,000) in a week."

And just how did David Jaeckels get 30,000 All Star ballots? He actually asked the Brewers front office for 50,000 ballots, but Brewers front office employee Marcia Selig (sister-in-law of team President Bud Selig) told Jaeckels she would only give him 30,000 ballots. Jaeckels told reporter Bunch that Marcia Selig "arranged for him [Jaeckels] to pick up the ballots Saturday morning" at the Brewers office in the stadium.

"I wanted to make sure she could do it so I called her back to confirm it and she said 'yes'," stated Jaeckels.

Jaeckels was not about to give up on getting the other 20,000 ballots he originally asked for. "When I bring them back [to the Brewer front office] and show them I'm serious I'm sure they'll give me some more."

Unless he was an incompetent President, it's logical that Bud Selig would had to have known about the ballot-stuffing scheme. But add one more element.

Milwaukee Brewers Ticket Manager Richard Hackett was completely aware of Richard Jaeckels' request for 50,000 All Star ballots. "The message I got was the impression he wanted them for Allen-Bradley employees." There are, as reporter Bunch succinctly wrote, approximately 7,400 employees at Allen-Bradley.

Hackett said he knew of no laws against All Star game ballot-stuffing, but stated the Brewers "would not be a part of it". "That would probably destroy the concept of fan voting," he added.

When told what David Jaeckels intended to do with the ballots Ticket Manager Hackett told Bunch, "I'm only aware he's getting them for Allen-Bradley employees."

Ironically, no Milwaukee Brewer was elected to start in the 1975 All Star game. First baseman George Scott was chosen as a reserve player as was slugger Hank Aaron.
 
To summarize, Bud Selig's sister-in-law made all the arrangements for David Jaeckels to pick up 30,000 All Star ballots at the Brewer's office. Jaeckels was confident he could get 20,000 more from the Brewers, and described to the Milwaukee Sentinel how he used a hand drill to create thousands of false ballots. Selig's Ticket Manager was made aware of the scheme by the Sentinel and essentially said he would be shocked, shocked if such ballot stuffing were to occur.

The 2012 All Star game provides an excellent forum for Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig to answer questions about his integrity as the past owner of an MLB franchise. Is it against the law to stuff All Star ballots? No. Just like the use of performance enhancing drugs by players was not technically against the law in the 1990s.

But it's all about the essential integrity of the game. Right?

History was made at AT&T Park today as the San Francisco Giants shut out the Los Angeles Dodgers for the third consecutive game in a row to move into a tie for first place in the NL West.

Giants starter Tim Lincecum (3-8/5.60) , whose rocky 2012 season has been a concern for the team, was in total command this afternoon as he threw seven scoreless innings, giving up 4 hits with 1 BB, and 8 SO in 108 pitches.

The 123 year history of the Giants-Dodgers rivalry officially began in 1890, when the Brooklyn Bridegrooms (they became the "Dodgers" in 1911) left the American League and joined the rival New York Giants in the National League. In that entire time the Giants have never taken a series from the Dodgers in a three game shutout sweep until today.

On Monday, starter Barry Zito (6-5/1.37WHIP) threw seven shutout innings as the Giants won 8-0, and on Tuesday Ryan Vogelsong (7-3/1.15WHIP) was scoreless through seven as San Francisco topped LA 2-0.

Lincecum made the most dramatic play of the game in the third inning when Dodger pitcher Chad Billingsley tried to score from third base on a wild pitch.

Giants' catcher Hector Sanchez pounced on the ball when it bounced off the backstop and side-armed a throw to Lincecum who was covering home. Billingsley, a large hurler, slammed into Lincecum who was blocking the plate with his right leg. Lincecum caught Sanchez's throw but Billingsley knocked the glove off his left hand.

Lincecum held onto the glove and showed it to umpire Fieldin Culbreth who made the out call.   

San Francisco completed the sweep without using either of their two top starters this season, Matt Cain (9-2/2.27/0.90WHIP ) and Madison Bumgarner 9-4/3.10/1.12WHIP).  The Dodgers and Giants are both at 43-33 as co-leaders in the National League West, tied with the third best record in the Majors (after the 46-29 Rangers, and the 46-28 Yankees).

The Dodgers had held first place in the NL West since April 11th, but are 2-8 in their last ten games. The surging Giants added a hitting attack in the off-season with the additions of Melky Cabrera, Angel Pagan, Gregor Blanco, and back-up catcher Hector Sanchez to compliment the Majors' most dominant starting and bullpen pitching.

Like I would know what Tim Lincecum has to do to turn his 2012 season around and straighten out his delivery mechanics. Get real. Same goes for speculation from anyone else who has an opinion but doesn't have a desk in Dave Righetti's office.

Dozens of apparently out of work MLB pitching coaches have been contacting San Francisco sportstalk radio shows nonstop to tell the Giants what they need to do to fix Lincecum's pitching problems. I'm sure they're trying to help, but their comments make it clear to me why they are no longer employed as pitching coaches. 

Listening to sportstalk radio call-in shows is like being one of those guys who has to go into a damaged nuclear reactor. I can only do it for a few minutes at a time before my brain waves begin to flat-line. Suggestions I heard more than once included, trade Lincecum to the LA Angels for Albert Pujols because the Giants need more hitting, and send him to single A San Jose so he can dominate hitters again.

And the 2012 Albert Einstein Baseball Award goes to...

A large number of callers with hindsight derived from their hindquarters stated they knew Lincecum was going to be a bum two years ago. Hell, anyone could see that.
            
But back on point, Lincecum's first 14 starts of this season have been disappointing. To put it mildly.

As usual, the actual numbers cut though the mounds of bovine excretion that can be currently found on the subject of Lincecum, Tim throughout the clouded infosphere:

> a 2-8 record;
> a 1.57 WHIP;
> a 6.19 ERA;
> the Giants are 2-12 in his 14 starts;
> if San Francisco's record was a mere 7-7 in Lincecum's starts (a difference of just 5 games), they would now be 42-25, tied for 1st place in the NL West and tied for the best record in baseball.

So, yes, this is big. And uncomfortable. And really annoying.

But here's what I think everyone needs to do: stop waving your arms wildly, shouting "oh my god-- Timmy, Timmy, Timmy", and come in from the 89th floor ledge of the Giant fans headquarters building. Then sit down, have a bracing shot of Walgreen's brand tequila and eat some oreos. If you don't feel better, at least you'll have something else to distract you.

All the arrows point to Lincecum's pitching issues being worked out in time. Tim Lincecum is a world class pitcher in a world class organization that has been particularly adept at developing and retooling starting pitching. The chances are good that the Giants' coaching staff will help move his game forward. Eventually.

For Lincecum's part, he is feisty and combative about staying in the starting rotation and working out of his slump on his own terms. "I want to pitch every 5th day. I want that ball..." was Lincecum's statement after Saturday's loss to the Seattle Mariners, as quoted by SF Chronicle sports writer Henry Schulman.

Giants Manager Bruce Bochy has announced that Lincecum would make his next scheduled start against the Oakland A's on Friday June 22nd.

Now consider two things.

First, a glint of sunshine from the litterbox: Lincecum has struck out 83 batters in 77 innings pitched this season. And the Giants are in 2nd place in the NL West and have the 8th best record in the Majors. Starting in 2012, ten MLB teams will make the playoffs.

Second, Tim Lincecum just turned 28 years old and has done a few things in his career that give him huge cachet to work through this tough period. Period.

Career stats to date:
Record: 71-49
WHIP: 1.214
ERA: 3.20
Strikeouts per 9 innings: 9.9
Post season record: 4-1
Post season WHIP: .919
Post season strikeouts per 9 innings: 10.5
World Series won: 1 (so far).

In a stunning performance San Francisco Giants starter Matt Cain tossed the first perfect game in franchise history tonight, winning 10-0 against the Houston Astros at AT&T Park.

Cain threw 125 pitches, 86 of which were strikes, to record the 22nd perfect game in Major League Baseball history. It was the first perfect game pitched for the Giants since the team was founded in 1883.

Matt Cain also went one for three with a single at the plate and scored a run in the Giants win. His 2012 record is now 8-2 with a .85 WHIP and a 2.18 ERA. MLB hitters are batting .192 against Cain this year, and he has 96 SO and 16 BB in 95 IP.

Cain's 14 strikeouts tied LA Dodger pitcher Sandy Koufax for most Ks in a perfect game in MLB history. Koufax beat the Chicago Cubs 1-0 on September 9, 1965 at Dodgers Stadium.

Cain had absolute command of his fast ball and made several critical outs with change-ups as he faced and set down 27 Houston Astro hitters in a row. Giant hitters blasted three two-run home runs in the game-- left fielder Melky Cabrera in the bottom of the 1st inning, first baseman Brandon Belt in the 2nd inning, and right fielder Gregor Blanco in the 5th inning.  

A critical defensive play was made in the 7th inning by right fielder Blanco. Astro's center fielder Jordan Schafer led off the 7th with a rocket shot to deep right center that looked like it would fall in for a sure hit. Gregor Blanco ran full tilt to track the ball down, lunging at the last moment to make a diving catch to save the no-hitter and perfect game. Cain later said he was stunned that Blanco managed to get that far over to center field to make such an impossible catch.

A sellout crowd of 42,298 watched Matt Cain make San Francisco Giants history on a pleasantly cool night along McCovey Cove. The Giants are currently 21-13, 3.5 games behind the LA Dodgers in the National League West. Their 21-13 home record this year is second best in all of baseball.

The San Francisco Giants are not just leading Major League Baseball in errors on the field in 2012. The team's errant attempt to fix their deteriorating and prospect-light minor league system in last week's First Year Player Draft will likely put the organization even deeper in the hole.

Currently the Giants' minor league organizational standing is considered mediocre-- rated 25th of 30 MLB teams by Baseball Prospectus and 26th by Minor League Ball. And there is little doubt that, after the dust settles on the 2012 draft, San Francisco's prospects' rating will drop even lower.       

First, several broad perspectives on the Giants' approach to the draft (see all 40 drafted players at the SF Giants official site):

> the Giants selected 21 pitchers (53% of the total draft) and 7 infielders (18%);
> chose only one position player (outfielder Mac Williamson) in the first eight rounds of the draft;
> picked up one third baseman (Round #20 - Delfino Mitchell, UC Berkeley);
> used 25% of their picks to select six center fielders and four catchers-- currently the two strongest positions in their minor league system.

Several years ago, the Giants farm system seemed to be rich in pitching but was dramatically lacking in quality position players. Now, San Francisco has also lost its edge in quality pitching prospects-- there's little of value in the minors now other than bullpen flamethrower Heath Hembree.

We saw the team's stark lack of upcoming infield talent exposed when third baseman Pablo Sandoval went down last month with a broken hand, and with second baseman Freddy Sanchez still going through various rehabs. Triple A Fresno third bagger Conor Gillaspie and second baseman Charlie Culberson were called up but couldn't get the job done at the plate or on the field.

(Luckily, the Giants picked up ex-Rangers/Mets infielder Joaquin Arias in the off-season, and his great glove and timely hitting stopped the bleeding at third base.)

Giants GM Brian Sabean's core philosophy during his 20 year tenure is that you can never have enough pitching. And that's hard to argue with both in theory and in practice (see Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Madison Bumgarner, Brian Wilson, etc.).

But... this is a team that has has now suffered through chronic offensive shortages for years. The Giants 2012 batting line-up is their best in almost ten years, but as good as Sandoval, Buster Posey, Melky Cabrera, and Angel Pagan have been there is no consistent power threat from anyone in that group. Which brings us back to the 2012 Draft.

San Francisco picked Mississippi State right hander Chris Stratton with their first pick in round #1-- the 20th overall pick. Converted from reliever to starter, Stratton has 115 SO and 19 BB in 92 innings pitched this year, and throws a fastball in the early 90s. Definitely a very good selection.

But five picks later Tampa Bay used their first pick to snag Clemson third baseman Richie Shaffer, a junior who scouts have described as having "massive power", and one of the top infielders in the draft.

Shaffer started in all of Clemson's 63 games in 2012 and his numbers were great: .336 BA, .480 OBP, 46 RBI, 49 R, 63 BB, 21 2B, and 10 HR; he has the look of a future offensive star for Tampa.

Shaffer would have been a dynamic first pick for the run-starved Giants, who still would have had plenty of time to restock their pitching.

And there were any number of quality infield picks available when it was the Giants' turn to draft their first eight players. Instead the front office not only ignored the team's offensive holes at first and third base, they used 25% of their remaining picks to draft players at the organization's only two strong positions throughout the Minor Leagues-- catcher and center field.

There are those who believe teams should choose the best player available at any given point in the draft-- but that still involves a large amount of subjective evaluation. Smart baseball people, sometimes in the same organization, often disagree about who the best available player is at any point in the draft.

In the current era, MLB franchises make huge investments of money and time in draft picks; the idea that you can simply trade those players later for the ones you really need is hardly a reliable strategy. 

But in this case, let's hope that strategy pays off.

--Read more about the Giants' top picks in the 2012 First Year Player Draft in The Giants Cove "Prospects" section in the right column--

The Chicago Cubs of the National League Central Division recently let it be known that they've had enough. They're through with Major League Baseball for at least the next two or three years and they just want to be left alone.

Apparently the club has let various Major League Baseball media know that every player on the current roster except shortstop Starlin Castro is for sale at any price.

To begin their, what, 18th rebuilding project in the last 14 years the Cubs are conducting what is traditionally called a "fire sale" to celebrate their 18-36 record-- second worst in Major League Baseball. "Fire sale" implies something terrible happened (see the team's current 25 man roster) and formally valuable property may now be purchased at bargain rate prices by one and all.

If you're smart you'll want to be the first one in line with the Cubs sales coupon from last Sunday's Chicago Tribune. Present your coupon to team President Theo Epstein to receive your valuable Cub player discounts.

Otherwise you might miss out on:

1) Alfonso Soriano who no longer bothers to even pay attention during actual games since signing an 8 year $136 million contract in 2007. He routinely dogs plays in the outfield; at the plate Soriano favors swinging at inside pitches in the dirt. And that's the good news.

The bad news is that the Cubs owe Soriano $18 million this year, $18 million in 2013, and $18 million in 2014.

The Chicago front office has been trying for the last three years to dump Soriano, offering to pay virtually all of his remaining salary to any team willing to take him. But there are currently no teams in the market for a sulking, overpaid slacker who also brings a radioactive presence to the clubhouse.

That means Alfonso Soriano's unselfish commitment and pure joy for the game will be on display in Wrigley Field for years to come. How sweet is that?     

2) Carlos Marmol who was the closer for a while, then lost the job, then got it back, then lost it again. He needs to GPS that puppy. Marmol will get $7 million in closer money this season as he attempts to knock down that 0-2 record, 5.40 ERA, and 2.00 WHIP.

3) This one kind of doesn't count, because the Chicago Cubs aren't able to trade the following three players to whom they still owe about $26 million dollars. Because these players are no longer actual members of the team:

-- Carlos Zambrano will get $16.45 million from the Cubs this year even though he is now with the Miami Marlins. Zambrano was an angry, disruptive horse's ass who was so disrespectful to his teammates, the fans, and the Cub organization that the team decided it was better to pay him sixteen and a half million dollars than have him in a Cub's uniform even one more day.

-- Marlon Byrd will receive checks amounting to $6,500,000 from the Cub's bank account in 2012, to be mailed to his new address with the Boston Red Sox. The Cubs cut Byrd loose in April after 13 games in which he hit .070 with a .219 OPS. Prior to that he had achieved tremendous success as a marginal player.

-- Retired pitcher Kerry Wood will still be busy in 2012, deciding how to spend the $3 million the Chicago Cubs will be paying him not to pitch. After an 0-3 8.31 ERA start to the 2012 season Wood retired. To be fair, Kerry Wood is actually a real gamer who had tremendous promise when he came up with the Cubs in 1998. But Tommy John surgery and a host of other medical issues plagued him throughout his career.

4) Starting pitcher Ryan Dempster who has shown value at times in his fifteen year career, winning 17 games once, and 15 games twice. But he is making $14 million in 2012 from the Cubs and has an 0-3 record to start the season.

Most amazingly, Dempster could have an additional $4.55 million coming to him if he meets a series of incentives, like the $200,000 extra he'll make if he finishes 3rd in Cy Young Award voting.

If he finishes 4th in Cy Young balloting Dempster gets a set of steak knives. If he finishes 5th, he's fired. (Thank you David Mamet.)

The rest of the Cubs roster is chock full of guys making $500,000-$1m in salary. Which means they're either new or not so hot. Which is why the Cubs are about to announce a "buy two you get one free"-sale, followed by a "please just take them off our hands"-sale.

This kind of MLB team fire sale opportunity comes along maybe once every ten or twenty years. That is unless you're the Chicago Cubs baseball club of the National League Central Division.

Tuesday May 29th marks game number 50 for the San Francisco Giants in the 2012 campaign. It is also a critical jumping off point for the rest of the season.

San Francisco's current 26-23 (.531) record is a long, hot and dusty bus ride to an 86-76 final stop at the end of September. In the close work world of MLB win/loss numbers, a mere three game swing in those numbers (to 29-20, .592) puts los Gigantes on a 96 win arch and a likely lock on an October playoff spot.     

At this point in any season I always recall Giants' President and CEO Larry Baer's smart season-long perspective on team evaluation and management: the first 50 games are to assess the team you've got; the second 50 games are to make the necessary adjustments; and the final 62 games are all about wins.
 
So where are we as we reach the first 50 games of the 2012 season? Actually, not so bad. No massive overhauls required, but several critical personnel moves and a couple of other adjustments are needed to move forward. To do what needs to be done, the front office will need to be proactive and willing to make several tough decisions.

Offense: B+
After years of anemic run scoring and weak line-ups that presented few problems to National League pitching, the 2012 Giants' everyday offense is proving to be the best run-producing unit San Francisco has seen in ten years. To date the team is hitting .260, 8th out of 30 MLB teams and 4th in the National League.

San Francisco has scored 200 runs, ranking 19th in MLB and 10th in the National League in that category; and they are scoring an average of 4.08 runs per game. So the hitting is finally beginning to provide real support to their outstanding pitching. And that's big news.

The Giants' hitting attack will start moving up in all offensive categories by mid-June when Pablo Sandoval comes off the DL and is back in the everyday line-up. Sandoval's return can't be overestimated in the impact he will have on run scoring and strengthening an already good offensive attack.
 
The astounding performance of current 3rd place hitter Melky Caberea prompted SF Chronicle sports writer Henry Schulman to discuss the Giants batting order once Sandoval returns. There is no question that Cabrera should continue to hit 3rd in the order, with Sandoval moving from 3rd to 4th, and Buster Posey dropping back to 5th.

Add Gregor Blanco leading off and Angel Pagan batting second, and the Giants will have a potentially serious offensive machine capable of producing enough runs to drive the runs-per-game average to 4.5+ during the last four and a half months of the season:

1. Gregor Blanco RF  (.403 OBP, 21 BB, 22 RS)
2. Angel Pagan CF  (.309 BA/.353 OBP/.821 OPS)
3. Melky Cabrera LF  (.368 BA/.414 OBP/.966 OPS)
4. Pablo Sandoval 3B  (.316 BA/.375 OBP/.912 OPS)
5. Buster Posey C  (.295 BA/.358 OBP/.826 OPS)

Joaquin Arias should move seamlessly from third to second base when Sandoval returns. That leaves Brandon Belt (1B), Brandon Crawford (SS), and Arias (2B) to provide defense and whatever additional offense they can add to the mix.

Pitching: A
The trials and tribulations of Tim Lincecum have overshadowed what has otherwise been a very good year for Giants starters and the bullpen. San Francisco is 5th overall in MLB with a 3.44 team ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. They are 4th in NL team ERA and tied for first in the National League with 4 shutouts. The bullpen comes in at 4th in the NL with a 3.08 ERA.

Sure, Lincecum getting back on track would certainly help, but his 2-5 record is not what's holding this team up. Besides, Barry Zito's excellent start (4-2 with a 3.41 ERA) has offset Lincecum's issues; and when Lincecum reboots, the starting rotation could be unstoppable.      

Defense: D- (I hate giving "F"s)
With 51 errors so far the Giants lead the world in errors. But it's not the errors that are killing them, it's the unearned runs that result from those errors. That is what has really dragged this team down in 2012.

The Giants lead the Majors with 29 unearned runs allowed in their their first 49 games-- an average of .59 unearned runs per game. That brings additional pressure and tensions that undercut the pitching and the offense at every turn.

Here are the top 10 teams in unearned runs to date:
San Francisco - 29
Baltimore - 27
Tampa Bay - 26
Colorado - 26
Houston - 26
San Diego - 24
Milwaukee - 22
Detroit - 21
Texas - 21
Cincinnati - 20

The problem is the infield where 43 of the 51 errors have been made. Second base has been a defensive/offensive hole all year but that should be addressed when Sandoval comes back and Arias moves to second.

Shortstop Brandon Crawford (10 errors) is a rookie player with immense talent; his first full year is a learning curve that is well worth going through. With Crawford's incredible range and strong arm, soon enough he will be a defensive star at short-- something San Francisco hasn't had in like twenty years.

If there is an expectation for the rest of the season regarding errors it is that they will stop piling up at the current rate. But so far the errors have absolutely ground this team down and those 29 unearned runs more than accounted for the three game swing mentioned above.

Personnel Issues
There are two player issues the 2012 San Francisco Giants need to address.

First, what to do with Hector Sanchez. Pegged as the back-up catcher to Buster Posey, Sanchez has proven to be an RBI producer. He has a nice .284 BA, a poor .286 OBP, but in 74 at-bats Sanchez has plated 17 RBI. He brings power to an offense that doesn't hit many home runs (the Giants are 29th of 30 MLB teams with 31 home runs).

When Posey plays first base, Sanchez catches-- maybe once or twice a week. The idea has been floated to either, a) move Posey to first base and have Sanchez catch full time; or, b) play Hector Sanchez at first and bring up Eli Whiteside from Triple A Fresno to back up Posey behind the plate.

Giant fans around the galaxy need to understand one important point: Buster Posey is the catcher, he has no desire to move to any other position, and he is having a tremendous offensive start to the season. So a) is out.

Sanchez has worked out a little at first base and the Giants could try him out there. But the team is committed to Brandon Belt, and the idea has been to get more playing time at first for Belt. As it stands right now, Belt has more power and RBI potential than Sanchez, and Belt has an outstanding glove at first base (which goes back to the critical defense/errors issue).

So the Giants should relax when it comes to Hector Sanchez; let him catch Barry Zito, come off the bench late in games, and spot start as needed. It's not terrible to have a bat like his in the dugout-- winning teams have that.

The second personnel issue is about clearing the roster of players who have simply not produced and bring little to the party. Emmanuel Burriss (.212 BA/.499 OPS), Nate Schierholtz (.250 BA/.297 OBP), Brett Pill (.209 BA/.652 OPS), and Aubrey Huff (.167 BA/.588 OPS) are taking up roster spots and not consistently producing.

There are legitimate rationales to keep Pill and Schierholtz (righty and lefty bats off the bench, occasional power, Schierholtz's glove), and Huff (the Giants are paying him $11m this season and that's a lot to kiss off). But with an experienced infielder like Ryan Theriot in place Burriss seems likely to be non-tendered when Sandoval comes back.

Look for possible sidebar trades involving Schierholtz and/or Pill by July. The Giants will certainly not get much in return, likely a young minor league arm or two. But it opens up the roster to a potential bigger trade or possibly bringing up one of their talented minor leaguers with some pop in his bat.

June 2012 will be a critically important month for the Giants: they need to get their defense and infield in order, jumpstart the overall momentum, and make up some ground on the Los Angeles Dodgers. It will be fun to watch.

On May 16th San Francisco Giants Manager Bruce Bochy batted starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner 8th in the batting order, and he almost issued a written apology over it. In interviews before and after the game, Bochy grumbled, looked down and seemed embarrassed as he told reporters he's trying to score more runs but "this probably won't happen again".

Bruce Bochy attended the baseball school that was in place before the old school was built, so he isn't going to be putting something new or innovative in place on a baseball diamond any time soon. The fact that he started his pitcher in the 8th spot in the batting order twice since taking over as Giants' manager in 2007 is itself an astounding development.

The other time? On May 20, 2010 Bochy batted Tim Lincecum in the eighth slot against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Which makes it 2 games out of 851 so far.

Although Bruce Bochy is more comfortable matching righty-lefty line-ups, it is always relevent to note that he won the 2010 World Series and is known as a masterful bullpen tactician.

The concept of batting the pitcher 8th has seen two great proponents in the past fourteen years: former St. Louis Cards Manager Tony La Russa and former Pirates Manager John Russell.

Tony La Russa was one of the greatest managers in the history of the game-- 3rd all time in wins (2,728), second all time in games (5.097), and 3rd all time in number of playoff appearances (14). He had the credentials to do just about anything he wanted.
  
In 1998, La Russa's third year as Cards' manager, what he wanted was to increase the team's run scoring potential with a "second lead-off man" batting 9th-- especially with #3 batter Mark McGwire hitting home runs. So on July 9, 1998 he began batting his pitcher 8th in the line-up and did that through the remaining 76 games of the season.

Throughout the rest of his tenure in St. Louis, La Russa had a streaky attachment to batting his pitcher 8th: for eight seasons following 1998 he didn't do it once. Then on August 5, 2007 La Russa inexplicably went back to the second lead-off man concept for the remaining 56 games of that season.

In 2008 La Russa batted his pitcher 8th in 153 games; in 2009, 54 games; in 2010, 77 games; and in 2011, 13 games. No doubt a lot depended on La Russa having an actual "second lead-off" batter who would have the OBP to qualify fitting into the #9 spot in the order.

John Russell managed the Pittsburgh Pirates from 2008 through 2010. In the 2008 season Russell experimented by hitting his starter 8th in the order in 27 games. In 2009 he didn't do it once. In 2010 Russell announced he was going to use a second lead-off man in the Pirates' batting order the entire year. It lasted only the first 24 games of the season before ownership essentially shut it down.

Two statements about Major League Baseball's establishment are true in the extreme: 1) strategic innovations (like batting the pitcher 8th or recognizing the value of player OBP) are looked upon with suspicion and disdain; 2) revenue increasing innovations (like interleague play, and expanded playoffs) are welcomed with open arms. And the game's traditions and integrity? Well that all depends.

While hitting the pitcher 8th in the batting order is a huge step in the direction of increasing long term run production, it still falls short of the perfect batting line-up. The Mobius Strip Theory, conceived by this writer in 2010, presents the best possible mathematically designed run scoring attack.

I will re-present the Mobius Strip Theory using the current San Francisco Giants roster in an upcoming blog. It has been described (primarily by me) as a stunning and historic innovation in MLB run generation. I only hope the first team to experimentally use the Mobius Strip Theory is not the Pittsburgh Pirates.

When Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval went down two weeks ago with a broken bone in his left hand two things happened: San Francisco lost the heart of their offense, and the organization's lack of infield depth at the Major and upper Minor League levels was almost immediately exposed.

To replace Sandoval the front office called up Conor Gillaspie, their number one third base prospect at Triple A Fresno.

Not only was Gillaspie unable to get his bat going (6 games, 20 ABs, .150AVG), it became clear he did not have a Major League-caliber arm. Several of Gillaspie's routine plays were much closer than they should have been, and he simply didn't appear to have the afterburner arm needed to get outs when throwing off-balance or charging bunts.

Eventually extra infielder Joaquin Arias was tabbed to take over at third base until Sandoval returns. Arias has filled in very well defensively and on this team his .250 BA makes him an offensive god in the batting order.  

At second base it appears that Freddy Sanchez may be rehabbing through the rest of his contract. Ryan Theriot (.217) and Emmanuel Burriss (.221) have shown little either defensively or offensively.

So to fix second base, the Giants brought up Charlie Culberson from Triple A Fresno, who in a very small sample size is hitting .091 in 3 games, with 11 ABs and 4 SOs. But Culberson is not the long range solution at second base for San Francisco-- a guy named Joe Panik will likely fill that role.

Minor League hitting machine Joe Panik is playing shortstop at Single A Salem-Keizer and is putting up serious numbers: .346AVG/.401OBP/.868OPS. Panik is several years away from the Majors and a college injury will likely mean he joins the big team as a second baseman.

It's true that minor league shortstops Nick Noonan, 23, at Fresno (.314/.369/.768), and Ehire Adrianza, 22, at AA Richmond, have at times shown promise either at the plate (Noonan) or with the glove (Adrianza). And Chris Dominguez at Richmond has great potential as a third baseman with power.

But here's the 400 pound reality check in the room: there are simply no immediate upgrades available to Bruce Bochy at those three critical infield positions.

Management started the 2012 season giving shortstop Brandon Crawford a reluctant pass on his hitting in order to bring his outstanding glove to the Giants' infield. Crawford has fulfilled the hitting part of the bargain (.225 BA, .275 OBP) but hasn't found a consistent defensive groove.

Crawford clanked 8 errors in the first month and a half of the season, but my guess is he settles down and that glove starts to get consistent and routinely spectacular real soon.

[There's seems to be an epidemic of shortstop errors in the National League-- the Cubs' Starlin Castro has 8 errors, LA's Dee Gordon has 9 errors, and the otherwise incredible Troy Tulowitzki has 7 errors. Go figure.]

What the Giants' minor league system is producing is a lot of really promising outfielders (Gary Brown, Francisco Peguero, Roger Kieschnick) and catchers (Hector Sanchez, Tommy Joseph, Andrew Susac).

If the long range plan is to put Buster Posey at first base, you can start to see in the direction San Francisco will need to go to upgrade the infield: trading some number of Major League prospects, like Brandon Belt, Hector Sanchez, or maybe Brett Pill, as well as some number of the above named minor league outfielders and catchers. 
 
For now, San Francisco is a team desperately treading water. In the twelve games played since Sandoval was put on the DL San Francisco hitters have managed only a .248 BA and scored an average of 3.33 runs per game-- usually a recipe for 4-8 record. The Minnesota Twins are averaging 3.31 runs per game which has earned them 10 wins and 26 losses so far this season-- the worst record in baseball.

But the Giants are 6-6 in those twelve games, yet another example of how dominant pitching can help compensate for a batting line-up that cannot score runs. With the Panda out for another four weeks, this is a team waiting for a winning streak and trying to stay relevant in the NL West.