Way Too Early Thoughts On the San Francisco Giants

Well it has happened again. I'm sucked into the baseball season and the San Francisco Giants. I'm thinking big like the Giants could actually win their division and go to the playoffs. Call me a sucker and maybe I am. These are the Giants and they've brought you nothing but heartache and disappointed your entire life. Well after the Red Sox and Phillies won World Series I know that there is hope for the Giants.

This year the Giants have started the season 3-0 with a sweep on the road against Houston. Yes I know the Astros suck. Yes I know the Big Puma Lance Berkman is injured. The Giants struggled last year on the road, so this was something of a surprise for the Giants. They're other reasons to be excited for the Giants season.

Starting Pitching: Everyone knows Lincecum is a stud, it was the other pitchers I worry about specifically Barry Zito. Well Barry gave me a reason to have faith in him this year. Zito in his first game gave up no runs and only one walk. It was refreshing to watch Zito pitch like his former Cy Young winning self. Zito is very important to the Giants because he's the number two pitcher. If Zito can pitch at a consistent level like he did last year, then the Giants should be even better.

Matt Cain is a horse, so I've never been worried about him. Now the 4th and 5th starters do have questions. While Jonathon Sanchez has thrown a no-hitter, he's never been consistent. I have no idea what to expect from the fifth starter Todd Wellemeyer. Wellemeyer pitched well enough in Spring Training and certainly earned the fifth starters spot. I expect the next Giants stud pitching prospect Madison Bumgardner to eventually replace Wellemeyer in the rotation sometime in the season. No matter how well Sanchez and Wellemeyer pitches, the Giants have three studs in the front of the rotation that can carry this team.

Depth: The Giants are surprisingly deep. They have utility players in Juan Uribe and Eugenio Velez who can play multiple positions. Mark DeRosa will primarily play left field, but he can also play at multiple positions. The Giants finally have depth and hitters who can pinch hit which they didn't have last year.

Hensley Meulens: Everyone knows how impatient the Giants were last year at the plate. So management decided to promote Hensley "Bam Bam" Meulens to the big leagues to be the hitting coach. His work has already paid off. Young hitters such as John Bowker and Travis Ishikawa have shown their patience at the plate so far this season and they have both been better hitters because of it. Bowker has been so good at the plate that he was named the starter in right field, despite being somewhat of a defensive liability compared to Nate Schierholtz.

Bowker went 3 for 9 in Houston with three RBIs and one home run. Bowker seems to be more comfortable at the plate than he was in the past. If he can give the Giants anywhere near 15-25 home runs and 70 RBIs that will be a vast improvement over that disastrous platoon the Giants had in right field last year. Bam Bam will be getting a lot of credit this year with the improvement of the hitters.

The Bullpen: It's hard to argue that the Giants don't have the best bullpen in the Majors. Brandon Medders is certainly a weakness, but he can be hidden. The Giants have the best arms in the majors sitting in their bullpen. Sergio Romo, Waldis Joaquin, Gueillermo Mota are great sixth and seventh inning relievers. Dan Runzler and Jeremy Affeldt are perfect for the eighth inning. Brian Wilson can be a high wire act but he will usually get out of the jam.

There just isn't a whole lot weaknesses in the Giants bullpen. While I have criticized the way manager Bruce Bochey likes to play veterans over prospects, the guy is one of the best at handling the bullpen. Bochey never leaves a reliever in the game for too long (unlike Dusty Baker) and always knows when to make a switch. The Giants bullpen might actually be the strongest part of this team even over the starting rotation.

Yes this is a complete overreaction to a great start for the Giants. They'll probably return back to Earth this weekend against the Braves. At least the Giants have given me hope that they won't be a complete train wreck this season.