The Decline of the Giants: Old Hitting, Young Pitching

This post is the third and final part of a series detailing the Giants' decline, starting in 2004.

As the Giants' first losing season in almost a decade was largely attributed to injuries, Brian Sabean made only one major acquisition before 2006. Sabean believed that, with Bonds, Schmidt, Alou and Benitez healthy, the Giants would be a competitive team. However, Bonds was no longer in MVP form, and both he and Alou missed time to rest and injuries throughout the season. With their best two hitters missing significant portions of the season, the Giants could not produce offensively. Furthermore, the bullpen continued to struggle, blowing 22 saves over the course of the 2006 season.

The single major addition to the team, starter Matt Morris, did not help either. He silently suffered through an injury for much of the season, posting a 10-15 record, with an ERA of 4.98. With Morris a flop in 2006 and a combined 48 home runs between Bonds and Alou, the Giants starting pitching and offense could not make up for the lack of a bullpen. Thus, 2006 became the Giants' second losing season in as many years.

By the end of the 2006 season, the Giants were in a very deep hole. As a twice-losing team, the Giants found it difficult to obtain what they needed before the 2007 season: star hitter. Even Carlos Lee, who was offered more money by the Giants, decided to sign with Houston instead. Rather than signing a star hitter, Sabean signed the only star willing to come to San Francisco: Barry Zito, who came along with the most expensive pitching contract in baseball history. He also opted to resign Bonds and Durham, and added Molina and Roberts. Not surprisingly, this combination of veteran hitters and an unimproved bullpen is showing the same results as the similar 2004-2006 teams.

The major difference with the 2007 Giants team is the young pitching. Barry Zito, Tim Lincecum, Noah Lowry and Matt Cain are great starters who will likely be with San Francisco for years to come. In addition, the Giants have promising young relievers such as Brad Hennessey and Kevin Correia. The three first round draft picks taken by the Giants in the 2007 draft round out the picture of hope. With a good, young pitching staff and a replenished farm system, the Giants are only a few hitters away from once again being a winning club.