Eric's Giants Blog

So let's see...

The Giants needed a slugging right fielder. Michael Tucker clearly wasn't it. Even if you buy Dustan Mohr's 2004 breakout, he played as a plate-selective table-setter, not a traditional power guy. Alright, I think that as a baseline the need for a slugger in that position was pretty clear.

So what they did was sign an extra left fielder to play right field. Eh. He's old and he can't play defense. He was really good in 2004. He was halfway decent in 2003. And he stunk it up in 2002. They paid him about $13M for his age 39 and 40 seasons, hoping that his .900+ OPS would hold up for two more years (even though he had big home/road splits, is moving into a much tougher park and is at an age where dropoffs are usually sudden and swift). All in all, I'd say it was a pretty high-risk gamble with pretty good upside, because if Alou actually hits for a .293 / .361 / .557 line in 2005 the Giants are going to win the division and Barry Bonds is going to challenge Jeff Bagwell's record for runs scored (152, if memory serves).

But let's think about another way they could have gone. Remember this guy?

Player X; Age 30; Pos: RF

2001: .305 / .382 / .533 (160 games)
2002: .320 / .381 / .597 (153 games)
2003: .317 / .380 / .546 (160 games)
2004: .292 / .351 / .485 (52 games)

Player X is currently unsigned, because ... he's high-risk. The knee injury that caused him to miss most of 2004 is still a question mark. More of a question mark than a 39-year-old left fielder who has suffered through chronic injuries for most of his later career? Who knows. As of right now Player X (known to some as Magglio Ordonez) looks likely to sign with some irrelevant team like the Orioles or Tigers. Possibly to an incentive-laden one-year deal.

Score another one for Sabean's "sign 'em early and overpay 'em" approach.

posted by Eric @ 7:42 AM