SF Giants Prediction Preview - Freddy Wills #1 MLB Handicapp

[Freddy Wills]

Vegas have set the San Francisco Giants as the favorites to win the NL West by setting them their total wins at 87.5. (See: ). The Giants led the NL West as late as August 9th, but it was injuries that really kept them from going back to the playoffs and making a deep run. The Giants used the DL more than any other MLB team in 2011 (25 times). It seemed the Giants had a letdown from their World Series win the year before but considering all the injuries and where the outlook is for 2012 it is not all that bad. I’ll break down all the SF Giants acquisitions and waives as well as projected lineups and rotation for the upcoming year and give you my prediction to wrap it all up. Don’t miss out on my MLB POD’s in 2012. I have over and along with a #1 finish among elite handicappers on Sportscapping.com.

Notable Losses:

The key loss has to be OF Carlos Beltran who really gave the Giants a spark hitting .323 with 7 homeruns and 18 RBI’s in 44 games since they acquired him, but the Cardinals signed him to a rich contract worth $26 million over two years. Other key losses on offense were infielders Mark DeRosa, Jeff Keppinger, and outfielders Pat Burrell and Cody Ross.

Jonathan Sanchez was another key loss, but they opted not to keep him by trading him to acquire one of their notable additions below. Sanchez had some injuries a year ago and it seemed like the Giants decided to move on.

Notable Additions:

The Giants acquired Melky Cabrera for Jonathan Sanchez. Cabrera hit over .300 vs. LHP and RHP which is a great sign as he had 658 AB hit for .305 with 18 HR, 87 RBI’s and a .809 OPS. It’s hard to imagine he improves on these career highs especially in a pitcher friendly park.

Angel Pagan joins the Giants and could be another key if he stays healthy and can do what he did in 2010. Pagan is another switch hitter like Cabrera with speed as he stole 69 bases in 85 attempts the last two seasons with the New York Mets. It’s clear that the Giants are going to try to win with pitching and manufacture runs with their offense. Other notable additions are RHP Clay Hensley and infielder Ryan Theriot, a .282 career hitter.

Projected Rotation: (2011 Stats)

1. Tim Lincecum, 13-14, 2.74 ERA
2. Matt Cain, 12-11, 2.88 ERA
3. Madison Bumgarner, 13-13, 3.21 ERA
4. Ryan Vogelsong, 13-7, 2.71 ERA
5. Barry Zito, 3-4, 5.87 ERA

Projected Batting Order (2011 STATS):

1. CF Angel Pagan: .262 BA, .322 OBP, .372 SLG, 7 HR, 56 RBI
2. 2B Freddy Sanchez:.289 BA, .332 OBP, .397 SLG, 3 HR, 24 RBI
3. 3B Pablo Sandoval: .315 BA, .357 OBP, .552 SLG, 23 HR, 70 RBI
4. C Buster Posey: .284 BA, .368 OBP, .389 SLG, 4 HR, 21 RBI
5. LF Melky Cabrera: .305 BA, .339 OBP, .470 SLG, 18 HR, 87 RBI
6. 1B Aubrey Huff: .246 BA, .306 OBP, .370 SLG, 12 HR, 59 RBI
7. RF Nate Schierholtz: .278 BA, .326 OBP, .430 SLG, 9 HR, 41 RBI
8. SS Brandon Crawford: .204 BA, .288 OBP, .296 SLG, 3 HR, 21 RBI

Easier to predict if we knew….

1.) Is Buster Posey back to 100% after his left leg injuries from a collision with the Marlins’ Scott Cousins?
2.) Will Ryan Vogelsong who came out of nowhere put up similar numbers to 2011 where he posted a 2.71 ERA?
3.) Will Barry Zito be effective and remain in the rotation all year long?

2012 SF Giants Prediction
Unlike the the Giants lost more than they gained in my opinion. Now they are still relying on the 1-2 punch of Lincecum and Matt Cain. Madison Bumgarner is still very young and Vogelsong and Barry Zito are huge question marks. This team goes as far as the 3-5 starting pitchers take them. The lineup is a huge question mark in my opinion and I don’t trust Pablo Sandoval considering his history of not giving the game 100%. With all that said the Giants can still win this division with pitching, but I like the Diamondbacks a bit better if I had to choose I would take the U87.5 wins in 2012, but I will not be making any on this total.