Thursday, December 23, 2004

 

Brian Sabean Is My Hero

Wow, was it only two days ago that I guessed the Giants were done making major moves? Um, forget I said that.

Moises Alou, welcome to the club.

The screaming about this move is already underway on Baseball Primer and other assorted parts of the Internet. According to what I've been reading, Brian Sabean is a very stupid man, and deserves to be shot, and the Giants are doomed to suck from this season forward, just as they have for the last few years.

Okay, enough is enough. Brian Sabean is not an idiot. The San Francisco Giants with Barry Bonds have not been anything like the Texas Rangers with Alex Rodriguez were. The Giants have been highly successful for five years in a row, and you can argue that the success goes back another three years to the 1997 season. The price Brian Sabean is paying for this success is that the expectations are now completely off the charts. Like with the Yankees, for the Giants it's either a World Series victory or bust. Nothing else is acceptable anymore.

Well, that's not true. When you listen to the kvetching about the Giants signing old guys instead of young ones, paying too much for people, giving up draft picks, and not developing position players in the farm system, you get the feeling that the standard is a World Series ring and the Organization of the Year award from whoever gives that out. (Never mind that Sabean has won Executive of the Year already.)

Oh, and we need to win while Barry Bonds is still playing, because if he retires without a ring, he'll be very sad.

All I know is that this gives me a headache (though not as much as it probably gives Sabean a headache), and that if Alou stays durable, he will most likely be an upgrade in right field over the Hammonds/Tucker/Mohr platoon from 2004. If Alou matches his numbers from 2004, unlikely as that will be, then he'll be a major upgrade.

The major downside of this winter's moves is not money. Screw the money. I'm sick of hearing about how much money baseball players make. It's the injury risk. A roster filled with older guys is more likely to suffer injuries. The Giants have shown a talent in selecting old guys who are durable, and keeping them on the field. If this trend continues, then the Giants will have improved their offense at shortstop and right field, and weakened it at catcher. Their bullpen and starting rotation will both be better.

Sounds to me like Sabean is doing a good job of assembling a major league roster for 2005. As long as Bonds is here, folks, it's going to be like this. One year at a time, win one for the Gipper, blah blah. You want a team filled with promising young guys with upside for the future? Wait until Bonds retires. Only after that will the Giants change their approach.

If this offends your sabermetric or aesthetic sensibilities, just remember there's more than one way to skin a cat. Then look across the bay and see if the A's fans are really happy to have a team filled with promising young guys for 2005.

Jefferson 10:48 AM

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