Kuzul

The San Francisco Giants’ decision to trade Bengie Molina creates an opening in the everyday lineup, primarily at first base.

The club surely isn’t interested in returning Aubrey Huff to first base, with Buster Posey the everyday catcher.

Huff giving up his spot in the starting outfield creates a spot that could only be filled by returning Aaron Rowand to his role as the starting center fielder, with Pat Burrell, Andres Torres, and Nate Schierholtz sharing the other two starting jobs.

(Burrell’s listed as an outfielder-first baseman, but it’s hard to imagine the club moving him and creating even more chaos in that outfield.)

Torres hasn’t torn it up in the lead-off spot lately. Schierholtz, clearly, isn’t in the Giants’ long-term plan.

Burrell, arguably, merits the everyday left field job, even though the club can’t be certain he will return to the form he showed in his heyday with the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Molina deal does bring a credible relief pitcher in Chris Ray. The Texas Rangers reliever was, at one point, the Baltimore Orioles’ closer of the future.

That didn’t pan out, but relief pitchers given a second and third chance are exactly the guys who catch lightning in a bottle and become lights-out set-up men. And, boy, do the Giants need a lights-out set-up guy.

The Molina trade wasn’t made to go back to the outfield merry-go-round, even though it does give Posey the full-time gig he deserves behind the plate.

The Giants have had slick-fielding Travis Ishikawa on the bench all year. The first baseman’s presence is inexplicable, save that he’s done well as a pinch-hitter.

Ishikawa’s chance to follow John Bowker, Nate Schierholtz, Eugenio Velez and others into oblivion, or to prove he can be a big-league contributor, has arrived. He’s hit well enough off of the bench to fill part of the hole left at first base.

He’s still young and he’s flashed power. Barring an accompanying trade for a first baseman, which is unlikely, Ishikawa will be in the lineup now.

The Giants aren’t prepared to send Ishikawa out there against left-hand pitchers, though. That means they’re likely ready to call on slugging, right-hand hitting first baseman Brett Pill.

He has 10 home runs, 50 RBIs and a .298 batting average at Triple-A Fresno. And, remember, the Giants were anxious to give Pill a shot at winning a big league job this spring before other holes in the roster became more pressing.

Pill is 25 years old and he’s hit for more power the last few years in the Giants organization. He’s a good enough defensive first baseman to platoon with Ishikawa.

The front office likes Pill and, at 25, they can’t wait forever to give him a shot.

Look for Ishikawa and Pill to become the everyday first baseman with Burrell, Torres, Huff and Rowand sharing the outfield slot.

No, Pablo Sandoval isn’t the answer in a platoon with Ishikawa. Sandoval’s lost his stroke completely from the right side of the plate.

Finally, an Ishikawa-Pill platoon for now gives the Giants a bit of a youth movement when one considers that Posey will also be taking over behind the plate.

If Ishikawa and Pill don’t do the job in the coming weeks, there would still be time to see where the club stands and deal for another outfielder to free Huff to play first base.

Posey, Ishikawa and Pill. Giants fans are about to find out that they gotta love those kids, because they will be in the lineup.

—

Ted Sillanpaa is a Northern California sports writer and columnist. Contact Ted at tsillanpaa1956@gmail.com.

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The Giants sent catcher Bengie Molina to Texas today for RHP reliever Chris Ray and a player to be named later in a deal that developed very quickly. Giants management is extremely good at keeping trade negotiations secret until a deal is announced.

In terms of the players involved, I think the Rangers got the better end of the deal. While the OPS of Rangers catchers so far in 2010 is pretty close to Bengie’s for the Giants, the Ballpark at Arlington is a much better place to hit than AT&T Park in San Francisco, not to mention Bengie has played in the AL before.

Ray has a solid 3.41 ERA, but with a line of 31.2IP, 24 hits, four HRs, and 16 walks allowed and only 16 Ks, I’m not particularly impressed. Who knows, though, he might be another former American Leaguer who has a jump in performance coming to San Francisco. As mentioned, SF is a better place to pitch than Arlington.

The Giants’ move is obviously intended as addition by subtraction. There had been rumblings that the Giants intended to get Buster Posey more starts behind the plate, and now, he clearly will.

Bengie also has about $2.4 million left on his 2010, one-year contract.

If the Rangers have agreed to assume all of the remaining $2.4 million, and there’s a good chance they did, given what the Giants received in return, then the Giants will have some money to assume salary if, and when they trade for an outfielder who can hit.

I’m a little sad to see Bengie go, as he was a good Giant. However, you can’t be too sentimental if you want to see your team win.

It will be interesting to see how Posey does as the starting catcher. After a torrid start, he’s only hit .146 (7-for-48) since June 12.

Posey has the talent, and I’m convinced he’ll be a major league star if he stays healthy. However, it remains to be seen how quickly he adjusts to the adjustments the NL’s pitchers made after his first couple of weeks in the league.

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Update: (9:27pm CDT) The deal is official according to both Scott Boeck of USA Today and Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports.

Bengie Molina will head to the Rangers for Chris Ray and a player to be named later.

The Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants are apparently close to a deal that would send catcher Bengie Molina to the Rangers.

According to Fox Sports’ Jon Paul Morosi, via Twitter , the players coming back from Texas will not involve Chris Davis or Jarrod Saltalamacchia, but it does not say which players could be sent to San Francisco.

The Rangers are in need of a catcher especially with the struggles of the aforementioned Saltalamacchia, as well as Taylor Teagarden, both of which are in the minor leagues.

Molina would definitely bring a much needed veteran presence for a mostly young pitching staff.

Stay tuned, we’ll keep this post updated as the deal is expected to be done within the next 24 hours.

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Even after absorbing Tuesday’s loss to the visiting Baltimore Orioles, the San Francisco Giants are humming along now that May is but a memory.

Since the calendar flipped to June, the Gents (quick note—I don’t care that the New York nickname was Gints and neither does anyone else in the Bay Area) are 9-5. If you include the last five games of a mediocre preceding month, San Francisco is 13-6.

So things are good for the baseball-conscious in the City.

Nevertheless, there are three glaring and potentially enduring problems with the club.

Forget about the recent rockiness from the bullpen and the struggles out of the No. 5 slot in the rotation. Neither is serious.

The ‘pen has too many talented arms for this stretch to be anything more than the periodic lull that even the best units suffer. Dirt merchants like Sergio Romo, lefty Dan Runzler, lefty Jeremy Affeldt and newcomer Santiago Casilla all have top-shelf arsenals plus each fireman has shown signs of snapping back to form in their latest outings.

More importantly, closer Brian Wilson hasn’t been perfect, but he’s been consistently dandy. There’s little sense in hitting the panic button when the most critical arm isn’t inducing ulcers.

As for the final spot in the rotation, it admittedly hasn’t been pretty.

But that can be said of virtually every team in Major League Baseball and Todd Wellemeyer has actually been splendid at home—2.97 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, .209 BAA, .606 OPSA and 1.71 K:BB in 36 1/3 IP.

Granted, Wellemeyer’s been the batting practice pitcher every group wants to face on the road, but he’s currently hurt i.e. he’s moot for a while.

Joe Martinez is now manning the position and, though the results weren’t what fans wanted to see in his first start on Tuesday, there is ample reason to be optimistic.

Martinez was erratic as a starter in 2009 but remember he was coming back from that fractured skull courtesy of a Mike Cameron line drive. Those episodes tend to rattle a hurler so it’s not unreasonable to overlook the initial returns.

In 2010, the 27-year-old was tossing it nicely at Triple-A in the Pacific Coast League. His line of a 3.06 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 2.36 K:BB in 67 1/3 IP in 11 GS is quite fine considering the PCL is apparently like playing in an entire league full of pre-humidor Coors Fields.

Furthermore, Martinez twirled it better than his final line (6 1/3 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K and 1 HR) looked. His sinker was working; the grounders just found too many holes. That could be attributed to a range-challenged defense, but it seemed more like bad luck.

Regardless, the Orange and Black pitching is rarely cause for concern.

Nah, the three biggest bugaboos facing the squad now and potentially for the foreseeable future are catcher Bengie Molina, shortstop Edgar Renteria and center fielder Aaron Rowand.

Let’s work from the easiest solved up.

Molina is simple—the pitching staff loves him enough to justify his presence even when not hitting and his lumber is showing signs of life after an atrocious May. Giant fans also need to remember that backstops are rarely a source of offensive production and that’s OK because they contribute in so many other ways.

Bengie doesn’t do everything well in the Tools of Ignorance, but he does enough to win the praise of some very good pitchers. If Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain are happy, so am I.

And he’s only on a one-year contract so if Big Money goes Big Arctic again, Buster Posey’s here to stay.

Renteria’s imminent return isn’t too tough a situation to deal with, either. It actually could prove to be a positive moving forward if handled correctly by all involved.

Once the veteran finishes his rehab assignment (from a hamstring strain), he’ll expect and receive playing time. Fine, except it can’t come at the expense of arguably the Giants’ best hitter to date and the man who’s been patrolling the hole in Edgar’s absence.

Juan Uribe leads the team with 41 runs batted in and is tied with Aubrey Huff for the lead in home runs with 10.

His 41 ribbies are also a high for all MLB shortstops. His tater total is good for second in that regard, his .843 OPS ranks third and his .289 average is tied for fourth. If you’re hip to those sexy sabermetrics, his wins above replacement (WAR) is 1.8, which trails only Troy Tulowitzki’s 2.1, Derek Jeter’s 2.0 and Hanley Ramirez’s 1.9.

In other words, Uribe must play as much as possible.

The keys, however, are health and versatility.

Los Gigantes have two crucial bats that demand playing time, but would benefit from rest due to injury issues.

Uribe, who is dealing with a balky hammy of his own, is one and the other is Freddy Sanchez, who has been raking since finally recovering from off-season surgeries to knee and shoulder. Both have been invaluable so they haven’t seen much down time, but a blow here and there would probably be beneficial come August and September.

So Renteria, whose bat was blazing prior to the hamstring snag, shouldn’t disrupt the mix too much or dilute the suddenly respectable offense.

He can be used at short to directly spell Uribe. Additionally, he can be used to rest Sanchez, third baseman Pablo Sandoval, or first baseman Posey thanks to jack-of-all-infield-trades Uribe (and a touch of the Kung Fu Panda).

As San Francisco fans have seen, Uribe can play second base or the hot corner with excellent ease. Since Pablo can also play a quality first sack, manager Bruce Bochy essentially has a game of musical chairs on his hands.

If you want to get really creative, the 34-year-old Renteria could even be used to give fellow sore spot Molina a break. Uribe would move to third, Sandoval to first, and Posey behind the dish.

Finally, Renteria’s contract is also up at the end of ’10.

If he hits, SF gets the best of both worlds—it eases off some valuable assets without losing production. If he doesn’t hit, there’s less artificial incentive to play him.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about Rowand. The center fielder is a large and sincerely troublesome thorn in the franchise’s side.

A-Row’s been swinging a flaccid noodle since mid-May (sub-.200 BA, sub-.300 OBP). It’s gotten so bad that he’s begun to lose reps because (A) he’s shown no hints of pulling out of the massive slump; and (B) the Giants have Andres Torres, Aubrey Huff and Pat Burrell smoking the ball while flashing adequate-to-insane leather.

Further complicating matters are the atrophying five tools of Nate Schierholtz on the bench.

Usually, the answer is easy—bench Rowand until someone cools off or he gets hot. The rub is that the Giants must deal with an unusual kick to the groin—Aaron’s bloated contract for five years and $60 million, running through 2012.

That money is a sunk cost , but try convincing baseball executives and managers. The average member of that group will tell you it’s not sunk because Rowand could still be productive again and they’ll waste at-bats or innings in tribute to the idea.

To a degree, the logic is sound.

Aaron Rowand is notoriously streaky and that means a hot one might be just a matter of time—the gamble could pay out. But the San Fran lineup isn’t all that prolific even when cruising along; it can’t afford 0-fers when there’s a more attractive option available.

Right now, the fellas have four such players.

Uh oh.

Aaron Rowand doesn’t seem the type to become a distraction nor does he seem like the sort who would be thrilled about cooling his cleats. Yet it’s almost impossible to justify his presence on the field as anything but a defensive replacement at the moment.

Something’s gotta/will give.

Which means the San Francisco Giants could find themselves in a particularly awkward spot. For two more years.

**www.pva.org**

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As the Giants prepared to finish their three-game series in Pittsburgh yesterday, 54 games were in the book. Their record was 29-25, and at the one-third point of the season, it’s easy to do the math. If they continue to play at this pace, they can expect to be 12 games over .500, or 87-75.

Much like last year.

Which is to say good … but not good enough.

In an NL West now characterized by the surprising Padres, the resilient Dodgers, and the Ubaldo-led Rockies, 87 wins will fall short of first and will probably not lead to a wild card spot.

Still, there are reasons to be encouraged.

Five Surprises

1. Aubrey Huff . It’s easy to denigrate Sabean signings. The second-tier free agents tend to be a bit too old, a bit too hobbled. In the case of Huff, we were all warned about his glove, specifically how it does not close around a baseball.

Reality has been that Huff has been a pretty decent defender who, without complaint, has moved from first to left and even in a pinch to right field. He may not be a Lastings Milledge in terms of producing Web Gem highlights, but he is an intelligent fielder who takes care of the fundamentals. Not flashy, just solid.

Offensively, he is on pace to hit 20-plus HRs, pick up close to 80 RBI, and earn nearly 90 walks. That last stat may be most significant on this generally impatient team.

From a fan perspective, it may be difficult to assess, but this seems like a guy who is well liked and well respected in the dugout. (And when you produce on the field, why not?)

Early favorite for the Willie Mac Award?

2. Andre Torres . He still doesn’t have the patience we would like to see in a leadoff hitter: too many strikeouts and not enough walks. (It seems the Giants just never get players like David Eckstein!) Still, Torres produces in so many ways.

He is one of those fireplugs: small but strong, incredibly fast, and dedicated to his craft. He is not young, by MLB standards, but he is anything but hobbled. He is a smart player who is getting better.

The Giants in recent years have been plagued by players who are just the opposite: They make foolish decisions, and they don’t seem to learn from them. Eugenio Velez, now appropriately in the minor leagues, is the best of several examples. Torres is a refreshing player who rarely makes a mental mistake or the same mistake twice.

He went from no guarantee to make the team to catapulting over John Bowker and Nate Schierholtz in securing a starting spot.

He deserves to stay there.

3. Guillermo Mota . Under the radar, perhaps? Well, Mota not only has done everything asked and more, but he has stepped in to provide stability to a bullpen that has endured injuries (Jeremy Affeldt and Brandon Medders) and sub-par performances (Sergio Romo).

Giant fans can be confident with Mota as a set-up man. With an ERA of 1.33 and a WHIP of 0.89, he provides the bridge to a solid closer in Brian Wilson.

4. Freddy Sanchez . The sample size may be small, but suffice to say, Freddy has made many friends in his short stay on the 2010 active roster.

Before a player gets on the field, especially when he is hampered by lingering injuries, it is tedious to hear about the “intangibles” that he brings to a team. We now know that Sanchez brings both intangibles and tangibles. In the latter category, most significantly, belong his clutch hitting and his defensive intelligence.

Freddy played in 17 of the first 54 games, and yet he is well represented in this year’s best moments offensively and defensively.

5. Barry Zito . Much has been written this year about Zito’s resurgence, but suffice to say, he is someone fans now look forward to seeing on the mound. Fans even expect a win (assuming the A’s aren’t hitting against him).

Flaws are still there, and he is rarely the team’s top starter (Lincecum was at first, now it’s Matt Cain), but still, Zito seems to have found the mental focus needed to succeed.

He is averaging close to seven innings per start. His WHIP is 1.18, exactly the same as Lincecum’s. His ERA of 2.78 is better than Lincecum’s.

Detractors will bring up his salary, and that is unfortunate. He will never be worth that money. But he is looking like a number two starter on a strong team, and that is all fans should care about.

Four Concerns

1. Pablo Sandoval . Yes, the Panda is lovable. But it is no fun when the rituals before the at-bat are longer than the at-bat itself. Sadly, that’s no exaggeration.

Put simply: Too many at bats end after one pitch. Too many ground balls right at an infielder. Too many rally-killing double plays.

Bruce Bochy apparently called him into his office. Good. 

It’s time for Sandoval to get the take signal on the first pitch. And if it’s a ball, then maybe get another. Make the pitcher earn it.

He could be great, yes. He’s not great yet.

2. Hensley Meulens . The batting coach was supposed to be a savior, and in some ways the hitting is better than last year. However, two of the best hitters (Huff and Sanchez, cited above) came from other organizations with skills already intact.

Last year, we heard about the Velez offensive turnaround and all the great hitting in the minor leagues, all of which was credited to “Bam Bam” Meulens. This year we continue to see poor decision-making and impatience in the batter’s box.

Fans may have been happy to see the departure of Carney Lansford, last year’s batting coach, but they should be justifiably skeptical of his replacement.

3. The fifth spot in the rotation . Todd Wellemeyer has been enough of a tease in home games, but considering his performance on the road, he will be lucky to remain on the team at all. Rabid fans can start recommending names right and left (Bumgarner! Joe Martinez! and so on). But the reality is, the Giants need someone steady in the fifth spot.

That somebody cannot be Wellemeyer.

4. Bruce Bochy . It is tempting to put Bochy in the first list because I think he is doing a commendable job managing, considering the constant maneuvering he has to do. It is also tempting (and expected) to put Molina, Rowand, and Renteria on the “concerns” list. In fact, it is the manager who is most important.

When it comes to Molina, how will Bochy handle a catcher whose offensive skills are dwindling so rapidly that there are two backups on the team who are better? Yes, Posey will be the starter beginning next year; and yes, Molina will not be on the team at that time. But we’re talking about a two-time Willie Mac Award winner, someone popular and respected. How to transition him into more of a part-time player is in Bochy’s hands.

Rowand’s situation is more frustrating. Fans can say it’s better to play Schierholtz, and maybe in some ways it is. But Rowand has more than half of his five-year contract remaining. That means more than $30 million. It also means he’ll be on this team even if he is not the power producer the team had hoped to get.

As impossible as it seems to be to find a place for Rowand in the lineup, Bochy needs to figure out how to deal with him. He needs to sit him more — a statement of the obvious, I know — but there is no denying that he has an aggressive style of play and will to win that is evident whenever the camera scans the dugout. Fans may tire of hearing that a player is a “gamer,” but I suspect that the same tired fans hate to see a prima donna vet fail to run out a ground ball or give up on a play defensively.

Bochy is having more meetings with players, and the look on his face during games seems to reveal occasional disgust. He may have an “aw shucks” demeanor in his radio pregame show, but he needs to be forceful in other forums, namely the closed-door meetings and the constant lineup shuffling.

***

There are positives. And the concerns are known by all. The first game of the second third of the season showed bright spots, including a patient Panda, five stolen bases without being caught (including two by Huff!), and an emergency save by Santiago Casilla. 

Now: Can the team do that against teams that aren’t from Pittsburgh or Houston?

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So far in 2010, we’re beginning to see why the San Francisco Giants have earned their new tag line. In case you haven’t heard Giants announcer Duane Kuiper say it, he sums up the season in the following sentence.

Giants baseball. It’s torture. 

And it has been.

During the first month of the season, the Giants were seemingly the real deal. They led the National League in batting average in April (.280), and went 13-9 to grab a firm hold on second place behind the upstart Padres.

The pitching was also stellar, posting a 2.75 ERA and allowing a paltry .214 opposing batting average. If you take out Todd Wellemeyer and his rocky start, San Francisco starters were 10-2 with a 1.98 ERA in the first month of the season. 

Yet May proved to be just as bad as April was good, especially on offense. This included two major slumps by two major figures on the roster (and payroll).

Aaron Rowand was seen as the position player version of the Barry Zito contract. Great baseball guy with a lot of respect, but not worth the money that the Giants paid him, which is around $12M/year for five years. 

Rowand simply hasn’t hit any sort of offensive stride since putting on a Giants uniform. He’s had his streakiness, but for some reason his productivity has, almost without fail, been followed by an extended period of absolutely nothing in terms of offensive force. 

Take this year for example. Rowand hit .429 in spring training, and carried it over into the first month of the season, hitting a solid .304 in ten games. And then he got nailed in the face by a fastball.

After a stint on the DL, Rowand stormed back into the box score, notching 11 hits on a seven-game hitting streak, recording at least two RBI in five of those games, and at one point hitting a season high-batting average of .333 on May 7. 

And since then . . . nothing.

No hits in his next 16 at-bats over four games, and 5-for-34 over eight games. Only one RBI in his next 16 games. If you take out the week after his trip to the disabled list, he had a .132 batting average in May, notching only three RBI and amassing 22 strikeouts in only 80 at-bats. 

Bengie Molina also created a little hullabaloo this off season, demanding over $6M/year from New York before settling for $4.5M to stay with the Giants. Granted, Molina doesn’t make as much as Mark DeRosa does this year, but he was re-signed with the expectation of staying on par with his production the past couple years.

In April, he still looked like the 2009 Big Money Molina. In fact, he looked even better than before. Molina mashed his way to a .344 average in the first month, knocking in eight RBI and, to the surprise of everyone, taking five walks.

Remember, Molina has never walked more than 27 times in a season. He’s still on pace to blast that record out of the water (projected 35 walks). 

But in May, Big Money went broke. 

Like Rowand, he started the month on a hot streak, having a hit in ten straight games from April 23 to May 4, hitting .349 over that span. 

But overall in the month, his batting average was an underwhelming .184 in 24 games. He hit one home run, had 14 hits, and only had three RBI. For a middle of the order hitter who has made his living hitting cleanup the last two years, those stats won’t work. 

To put that in perspective, in his first three games as a Giant in 2010, Buster Posey had six hits and four RBI. And, over the course of the season so far, backup catcher Eli Whiteside, who has played in 23 games to Molina’s 44, has more home runs (3 to 2) and almost as many RBI (8 to 11). 

That isn’t very impressive, especially from Molina, who has to know that the writing is on the wall for him with Posey already taking time in the majors. 

But sometimes all you need is one game to regain the faith in a player. In the case of Wednesday’s game, it was redemption day for two. 

It started out just like any day in May. Bengie Molina lined out sharply in his first at-bat. After Buster Posey singled (again), Rowand promptly hit into a double-play. 

In the fifth inning, Molina struck out. With two down in the inning, Huff and Posey singled, bringing up Rowand.

It was another RBI situation, and the fact that Francis chose to pitch to Rowand, even with a base open and the pitcher on deck, is indicative of the kind of slump he’s in. But Rowand blasted a high fastball over the center fielder for a go-ahead double.

It was Rowand’s only hit of the night, but after the San Francisco offense got shut down by Ubaldo Jimenez on Monday and then shut down again in an extra-inning loss on Tuesday, that double was huge, and gave fans a rare chance to cheer for their center fielder.

Molina only had to wait one inning to get his ovation from the crowd. After Pablo Sandoval golfed a ball to the left-center field gap for a double, and then took third on a sac fly by Juan Uribe, Molina had his chance.

Given the month that Molina had, with two strikes and two outs, many fans may have chosen the time to run to the bathroom or start dinner. But on a 1-2 curve ball from Rockies starter Jeff Francis, Molina lined a single back up the middle to score Sandoval and the Giants went up 4-1. 

Again, lots of cheering for someone who has had a humble amount of RBI for a fifth-place, sixth-place, or even the cleanup hitter. 

The month of May was not kind to Rowand. It was equally unkind to Molina.

And while one hit certainly does not break a slump, it can certainly do wonders for a player’s confidence. The temperature’s heating up in June, and hopefully Rowand and Molina heat up with it.

But as for last night, against a division rival and in the sweep-breaking game, I was proud of my guys, and I think a lot of Giants fans were, too. 

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The Giants have recalled Buster Posey and signed Pat Burrell to a minor league deal, leaving some to question where all the pieces will fit if things go as the club would like.

Posey started with a bang on Saturday night, playing first base. Let’s imagine that he is in the big leagues to stay. And, let’s pretend that the veteran outfielder Burrell uses his time in the minor leagues to prove he belongs in the big leagues.

What would happen to Aubrey Huff? He’s a first baseman and wouldn’t take Posey’s job. He’s a left fielder, but couldn’t handle AT&T’s expansive right field if Burrell were to return to his 2008 form.

Nate Schierholtz is the best defensive right fielder on the club, but the Giants would have to decide if they wanted a Burrell, who proves himself productive in a pinch-hitting role given that he hit 33 homers in his last full year in the National League. What about Schierholtz?

Andres Torres is proving he belongs in the big leagues. He gives the Giants their best defense in center field and can play right field well. Plus, he’s got the skills a true leadoff hitter needs, so the club needs him in the order when he’s hitting. Does Torres become a right fielder if Burrell becomes the left fielder?

This is putting the cart way ahead of the horse. Burrell has a lot to prove. There haven’t been this many folks insisting that a guy who switched leagues was a career-ending tailspin, since Giants fans were insisting that Barry Zito should be released after his first two abysmal seasons.

But what if Burrell does pull a Zito and returns to somewhere near the form that made him a 30 homer-90 RBI guy two years ago?

It could be that the Giants have a bigger move in mind if Posey pans out and Burrell returns to slug like he once did.

The club might be considering trading catcher Bengie Molina to a contender looking for a veteran backstop. He can call a game, sure, but he’s called the games lately where Tim Lincecum got rocked. The pitchers still make the pitches.

Molina has driven in just two runs since April 18. Fans love him and consider him the heart of the team. But, he clogs up the bases and if the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox are interested in Molina to hit seventh or eighth and provide stability behind the plate—the Giants would be in position to move him if Posey and Burrell perform.

Another possibility could be that the Giants could ship center fielder Aaron Rowand to a contender where he could return to the supporting role he handled so well for the Phillies and White Sox. That opens center field for Torres and, perhaps, even Schierholtz. (It also clears payroll off the books.)

If the Giants were willing to package Molina in a trade, they could solve the lineup riddle by trying to deal him to Boston for right fielder J.D. Drew.

The Giants open a spot for Posey behind the plate. Drew becomes the everyday rightfielder, a proven performer who has fallen out of favor with the Red Sox. He’s a left-hand power hitter with some speed. Huff returns to first base full-time. Left field opens up for Burrell and Torres.

See? If everything falls together, the Giants could take their talented farm system and hook up with the Red Sox (also with a nice group of prospects) to completely change the lineup.

It’s odd that folks assume the Giants would just keep adding ill-equipped defensive outfielders who can hit some, without an idea in mind to clear some playing time if they all slam their way into the lineup.

If Posey hits, Posey stays in the big leagues. And, it’s generally accepted that Molina isn’t comfortable with sharing his job. So perhaps, trading the popular veteran catcher would be doing him a favor?

Rowand would seem to be without value to the Giants, but he has proven he can help a championship-type team. Send him where his big contract isn’t an issue and where he isn’t pressured to be a big-time run producer and—he could have value indeed.

The Yankees gave former Giants right fielder Randy Winn his outright release on Thursday. That opens a spot for a veteran outfielder in the Yankees lineup and, obviously, Rowand’s contract wouldn’t scare them off if they felt he could help them.

In fact, Molina would fill a hole in New York bigger than the one he could fill in Boston. He can catch until injured Jorge Posada returns, the fill in as a designated hitter for the team that lost DH Nick Johnson to injury earlier.

These are the thoughts fans of a playoff contender should have, rather than those involving who to blame for the most recent 3-1 loss.

—

Ted Sillanpaa is a Northern California sports writer and columnist. Reach Ted at: tsillanpaa1956@gmail.com

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Do the Giants really need pitching to overtake the pesky Padres?  

Really?  

It appears so, because I saw Lincecum struggle through his second start in a row, and the bullpen blow another lead that would have given him six wins.  

Sure, Lincecum struggled, but the entire staff needs improvement.  

My main point of emphasis is the wild pitches.  

The Giants let another game get away with another WP thrown to give the Dbacks the lead. It’s happened too many times already this season, and not just a few are at fault.  

Guillermo Mota and Barry Zito have both thrown four.

Jeremy Affeldt and Todd Wellemeyer have both thrown three.

Waldis Joaquin is at fault for two.

Matt Cain, Dan Runzler, Tim Lincecum, and Jonathon Sanchez have all thrown one.

Twenty wild pitches in 40 games?  

That’s ridiculous for a staff that (on paper) looks to be the best in the NL.  

This means every other game, there’s a good chance Zito or Affeldt will throw one past Molina and give the go-ahead run away.  

Not all 20 have yielded runs, but it does present cause for concern. Starting with Zito, I love watching him throw the curve, and I understand that it can get wild.  But it’s up to him and the catcher to realize what the count is, what the situation is, and how confident he is with that pitch on a given day.  

Lincecum and Sanchez we’ve seen can be wild youngsters, Sanchez more often than the former.  

With Lincecum winning back-to-back Cy Youngs, I’m not going to tell him what he needs to do, but someone should talk to them and get them more focused and committed on each pitch.  

Jeremy Affeldt is having all sorts of problems this year. In just 17 innings, he’s given up 15 hits and five earned runs. On top of his three wild pitches, he’s also hit two batters.

The Giants’ woes are not solely on the offense (believe it or not).  

The bullpen has blown four wins for Lincecum—and the game three other times.  

There’s a lot of frustration when the team can only put up a couple runs every day, but the pitching staff must re-focus and concentrate on the remaining month and a half until the break.  

With Sanchez coming back, Renteria and DeRosa coming back soon, and Pablo Sandoval getting healthy, the pitchers should get a renewed confidence with some spark adding to the lineup.  

Because the hitters and fans are always thankful for the fantastic pitching. 

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Damn that Brian Sabean!

Bruce Bochy is ruining everything!

Geesh! How in the world could Sabean not anticipate that Mark DeRosa’s surgically-repaired wrist ligament would rupture even after DeRosa was given a clean bill of health by team doctors and other physicians?

DeRosa wasn’t considered that “old” when the club signed him and then got off to a fast start in April. But, hell, now it’s apparent that Sabean just can’t help but sign broken down old free agents—like the 35-year-old DeRosa.

The Giants need hitters. They need a veteran presence in the middle of the order. How could Sabean have not signed a frontline slugger like (name a frontline slugger who hasn’t been injured or flopped since entering free agency) ?

Sure, DeRosa’s a veteran. And, OK, he’s put up good numbers while playing up to five different positions.

Sabean was wrong to sign him, though, because after doctors told Sabean that DeRosa was healthy, Sabean signed DeRosa and then DeRosa got hurt.

The Giants can’t start Buster Posey’s arbitration clock. It wasn’t that important to have their No. 1 minor league hitting prospect on the roster because that fast start in April made his presence in San Francisco irrelevant. Sure, they lost a couple games in that early-season burst that, maybe, Posey could’ve turned around.

The Giants’ long-term financial health is far more important than two, three wins in April.

Man, this is laughable! The Padres are 3.5 games ahead of the Giants in the NL West. The division is right there to be won and the Giants’ brass must be held accountable for frittering away games in the spring for lack of hitting or for lack of speed. They have a kid like Posey in Fresno and they let that fast start become increasingly meaningless because the big club didn’t have him around when they really needed him.

Jonathan Sanchez is running out of rope. Tim Lincecum’s been brilliant. Barry Zito’s bounced back from being lost in the wilderness to being incredibly good. Matt Cain’s the best No. 3 starter around. Ol’ Cainer…”Shotgun,” fans love him! Then, out comes Sanchez to muck things up.

Sanchez had a 3.00 ERA entering Thursday’s start against the Padres. It’s such a luxury to have him as the fourth starter. Instead of always wondering how the club can get a hitter, it would make so much sense to build a stronger defense behind him. Cain walked six batters in Tuesday’s loss. Sanchez was magnificient in Wednesday’s loss.

Let’s get it fixed.

Sabean just doesn’t get it!

It’s not easy being a Giants fan who believed that the fast start was greasing the skids for a quick, easy glide to the NL West pennant.

Everything we believed in the off-season got turned on its ear in the first month. The club pitched better than we expected and, obviously, was far more productive with the bats than anyone had reason to imagine.

We even went a couple weeks without someone demanding that John Bowker and his .200’ish batting average be inserted in the lineup. Things were really good, remember?

Now, they’re really bad and we don’t know what to do. So, we blame the general manager and we blame the field manager.

It’s ridiculous.

Have you noticed how terribly the bullpen has performed lately? The club really thought it could win with young set-up guys like Sergio Romo and Dan Runzler?

Come on.

Hold on. We all loved them when they were mowing guys down in April, but we must’ve secretly acknowledged that, when the club hit the skids, we’d be able to quickly blame those relief pitchers for failing to deliver.

The Giants are exactly who we thought they were.

Well, there two positive surprises. The starting pitching has been even better than anyone anticipated…and we’d never have imagined that was possible. And, the MVP has been a player most fans wanted to run out of town — center fielder Aaron Rowand.

Beyond that, the Giants have good-not-great bullpen, a worthless bench and an everyday lineup that could reasonably stand an upgrade at every single spot. They’re not, nor have they been, in position to tweak and tinker and steam to a title.

This bunch can win or it can implode and finish far off the pace. Just consider the three key everyday players fans count on the most:

Pablo Sandoval keeps getting bigger and bigger and that makes him an increasing defensive liability at third base. The idea that a guy as young as Sandoval is struggling at bat because he’s fatigued from playing every inning is a red flag. It’s May 13 and the guy is already tired? (Personal experience shows me that carrying 30 extra pounds, or more, around will tire a guy out really quickly.)

Bengie Molina has gotten to that point where his thickly-muscled legs are causing him enough trouble that he’s a bit of a liability once the club relies on him to hit No. 4. He’s not going to be out there every single day, so…who else can hit fourth?

Juan Uribe will be in the lineup every day, even with former batting champion Freddy Sanchez returning to play second base. Wherever Uribe plays in the field will make that position a defensive liability.

Anybody still calling for Uribe to be the everyday shortstop? Didn’t think so.

All that and they manage to keep Travis Ishikawa on the bench, eating a roster spot, because he’s a wonderful defender at first base.

The Giants can win it all, even with the shortcomings we all knew they had all along.

Remember when we all agreed that patience was key?

The Giants were cruising in first place and the idea of bringing Posey to the big club was mocked because, how much impact could he make? Remember?

It’s a long season.

Hang in there.

Things will get better and, man, after that hot start…it’ll be worth the wait for Posey (starting in June) and for Bowker to get the next last chance in left field and all.

Or, not …

It’s mid-May and the club isn’t scoring runs. The defense has booted games away.

Damn that Sabean! Letting Bochy foul up such a good thing!

Oh…oh…you know, one of the KNBR guys said that Lincecum is going to the Yankees?

Yep. The Yankees!

Well, the guy said that the Giants haven’t mentioned Lincecum being a “career Giant” and that the Yankees have more money than any other team and that, he figured, most great players pass through New York but…

Timmy’s gonna be a Yankee? Great. What else can go wrong?

How could they let us believe that the bright, happy April would become a dismal mid-May?

The Giants are who we thought they were. Who they become as the season unfolds will be up to the guys who swing the bat, throw the pitches and make the plays.

Feel free, however, to blame every loss on Sabean or Bochy and every win on the grit of a bunch of over-achievers — and to worry about where Lincecum will be when he turns 30.

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San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy again said Tuesday in South Florida that Bengie Molina was posturing.

Two-time Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum hopes he will reconsider during the season.

No word from Bengie himself.

Last Saturday, Giants catcher Bengie Molina again mentioned that he will likely call it a career in the majors after the 2010 campaign, tweeted Sean Farnham of FOX Sports Radio. 

Molina said he would retire if he’s not the starter next season and added that he is unhappy with the way the Buster Posey situation has been handled.

The news is surprising considering Molina’s play so far this season. 

The 35-year-old is hitting .343 in 19 games, which is currently ninth best in the National League.

Bochy has been so satisfied with his batting that he has gotten him back in the lineup again as his cleanup batter.

Bochy has also praised Molina for his defense too and how he is playing like a Gold Glover.

However, two weeks ago, Molina expressed his frustrations in a published report by a San Francisco Bay area newspaper with how his free agency played out this offseason. 

After turning down a $5.5 million offer from the Mets, Molina ultimately chose to stay in San Francisco for $1 million less. While his 80 RBI impressed some, his overall stats did not lead to a multi-year offer.

“If I had trouble finding a job after five of my best years, what am I supposed to expect?” Molina said. “You are supposed to get paid for your numbers. But even if I have another good year, I know I cannot expect anything.”

Molina said in the interview said he is approaching this season as if it could be his last.

He is certain it will be his last as a Giant. Rookie Buster Posey could be in the major leagues any day, and he is preordained to be the club’s full-time catcher next season.

The 35-year-old veteran said he would retire before he would sign to become a second stringer next year behind Posey or anyone else. Even if the St. Louis Cardinals offered him a job backing up his All-Star brother Yadier, he said he would not be interested.

“It would eat away at me,” said Molina, a two-time Willie Mac Award winner as the most inspirational Giant. “I always appreciate this game. I never take it for granted that I am still here. I am seriously happy in San Francisco.”

Probably if not as a Giant, maybe he ends up with brother Jose with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Time will tell how his future will end after the end of 2010—of course, if he is not traded before.

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