The Good and Ugly of the 1st Half for the San Francisco Giants

(Note: We take a break from the regularly scheduled LeBron coverage to cover a sport that is actually being played at the moment. We'll return tonight at 6PM PT with an open thread for "The Decision")

The first half of the San Francisco Giants 2010 season can be described in only two ways: Good and Ugly. There really hasn't been a middle ground for the Giants season. They have either been good or they have been close your eyes, pray to God, ugly this season so far. Their hitting and pitching has been wildly inconsistent this year(I hate the word "streaky." That is a politically correct baseball term that broadcasters use because they don't want to hurt the players feelings). And yet the Giants are still in the running for a playoff spot. They're only 5 games out of first in the NL West and 2.5 games out of the Wild Card. Let's take a look and the good and ugly of the Giants first half.

The Good, Aubrey Huff- Before the season, Giants fans craved for Nick Johnson to sign with the Giants. Stat geeks over at McCovey Chronicles fell in love with Johnson's gaudy sabermetric stats. One thing they forgot about, Johnson spends more time on the DL than the active roster. And if the Giants signed Johnson and he landed on the DL(like he has this year with New York) I'm sure Giants fans would have been screaming Brian Sabean's name from the rooftop.

So this is the portion of this post where I give Brian Sabean credit, he signed Aubrey Huff to a one-year contract. Giants fans immediately didn't like the signing because Huff had a rough 2009 season. Huff was also expected not to produce much this season. So what has happened? Huff exceeded expectations by leading the Giants in every significant offensive category. On a team full of inconsistent hitters, Huff has been the most consistent. Add to the fact that he's played at first base, right field, and left field with surprisingly affective and Huff has been a steel. Plus you have to love a guy who loves Transformers and is goofy enough to inspire this poster.

The Ugly, Mark DeRosa- For every Aubrey Huff there is a Mark DeRosa. Brian Sabean made the mistake of giving the wrong guy the two-year contract. He gave DeRosa and his bad wrist the two-year deal and Huff the one-year deal. DeRosa has played in 26 games, hit one runs, drove in 10 runs before sitting out with a wrist injury for probably the rest of the season. This was a disaster of a signing at the beginning of the season, but has led to one key mid-season acquisition.


The Good, Pat Burrell- The DeRosa injury led to the Giants picking up Burrell from the Rays who by the way are still paying his contract. So the Giants picked up Burrell for nothing. Tremendous! Burrell is a disaster in left field, but his hitting has overshadowed that. In 29 games with the Giants, Burrell is hitting .305 with five home runs, 11 RBI, and an OBP .389. He's been a solid addition to the Giants lineup.

The Ugly, Pablo Sandoval- The Panda has struggled all season. He's only hit 6 home runs, 34 RBIs, while hitting .268. A lot has been made of his weight, but I have another theory he is in a sophomore slump. Sandoval busted onto the scene last year and gave notice to the league than another star is emerging. This year pitchers have figured out how to pitch Sandoval and have mostly shut him down. Hopefully he adjusts. (Please God hopefully Sandoval adjusts.)

The Good, Brian Wilson- Wilson has been the most consistent force in the Giants bullpen this year. Wilson has 22 saves in 24 opportunities. Wilson has come into multiple games for four and five out saves. If a Giants game goes to the bullpen I'm never comfortable with the other relievers until Wilson comes into the game. Wilson has earned his All-Star spot this season.

The Ugly, The Giants Bullpen- The Giants bullpen was dominating last season. Jeremy Affeldt, Sergio Romo, and Dan Runzler were consistent forces last year. This year, wildly inconsistent. You never know what you are going to get from the Giants bullpen. Every time a Giants reliever enters the game I'm on the edge of my seat because I know the situation will either end in destruction or success.

The Good/Ugly, Giants Starting Pitchers- The Giants starters have had their moments this season. They've either been good or flat out ugly. Even Tim Lincecum has had his moments. Lincecum has had a few ugly outings to go along with his great outings. The Giants starting pitchers along with the bullpen have been wildly inconsistent this year.

The Good/Great, Buster Posey/Giants Trading Bengie Molina- The Giants somehow unloaded the rotting corpse of Bengie Molina last week, clearing the way for Buster Posey to start everyday at catcher. In 34 games Posey has hit .331 with 5 home runs and 19 RBIs. In 61 games with the Giants, Molina hit .231 with 3 home runs and 17 RBIs. I'd say it's a damn miracle the Giants were able to trade Molina.

At the end of the season though, I still don't see the Giants making the playoffs. The lineup and pitchers have been inconsistent all season long and I don't see that changing. Add to the fact the Giants stink against division opponents (9-20) and the Giants will once again be on the outside looking in at the playoffs. They'll manage to stay in the race all year, but come up just short again unless something major happens before the trading deadline.