Giants Making It Clear They'll Need Hitter

SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- The more I watch the Giants, the more I see general manager Brian Sabean having to answer a thorny question in coming months, if not sooner.

Should Sabean trade for a hitter, although the cost almost certainly would be flashy pitching prospect Madison Bumgarner?

I believe the answer will be yes. A qualified yes, because injuries and ebb and flow can scramble the picture. A sad yes, because the Giants created this problem by overspending on past-their-prime hitters. A watery yes, because the Giants will gain a promising hitter when they promote Buster Posey next month.

But ... yes.

The problem is well known. The Giants seldom score runs. They must work hard to score at all. Too hard. Every time West Coast Bias watches them, he grows tired, although an episode of Dancing with the Stars does that to me too. At this rate, the Giants themselves will be tuckered out come September.

The Giants have almost no power, and they balance that by having no footspeed.

The lack of speed gets overlooked, unless you watch the Padres, who were 7-0 against the Giants entering their game on Tuesday. Like the Giants, the Padres have good pitching and a home ballpark that plays very big. The Padres have less power than the Giants, but much more speed. Speed shows up on the basepaths and afield.

My guess is the Giants will go the power route this summer. Maybe someone like Brewers outfielder Corey Hart, a right-handed hitter who also runs pretty well.

I asked Giants manager Bruce Bochy if his team has enough hitting talent to parlay its stellar pitching into a playoff berth.

"That's a question we have to answer," Bochy said. "We think we do. We've got to go out and prove it. We're a little nicked up."

Bochy said three projected regulars should return to the lineup by month's end: second baseman Freddy Sanchez, shortstop Edgar Renteria and left fielder Mark DeRosa.



Share Sanchez offers the most hope, likely as a No. 2 hitter, and might be in the lineup Wednesday. He's a career .299 hitter and can spray the ball, encouraging Bochy to call more hit-and-runs. The surprising Andres Torres -- who has rewarded Bochy's faith in him -- and Sanchez might supply a decent 1-2 punch atop the lineup, allowing leadoff man Aaron Rowand to bat fifth, where he belongs.

Renteria and DeRosa are role players. Even if they return to health, it's doubtful that either will prove durable. The Giants overpaid when they gave two-year, $12 million deals to Sanchez and DeRosa last offseason..

To trade Bumgarner may seem like throwing good money after bad. A 20-year-old left-hander who recently regained good form, the left-hander should evolve into a No. 3 or 4 starter. Or maybe better. It's exciting to think what Bumgarner could do as the No. 5 starter for San Francisco's potent rotation this summer. My guess, though, is that the Giants will need to acquire a legitimate hitter/ballplayer under age 30, and Bumgarner will be the price. And my first call would be to the Marlins regarding Hanley Ramirez.

Emotional Day

When Bochy got to Petco Park on Tuesday, his less-than-great mood had nothing to do with the team's 0-4 record in San Diego this season.

Bochy woke up at his offseason home in north San Diego early Tuesday, then looked at his dog Jessie knowing it would be their final morning together.

A black labrador, Jessie had been in poor health for several months.

"It was time," Bochy said. "I had to put her down."

Bochy's wife Kim is a tough person. The wife of a baseball man and mother of two boys who are now young men, she lent steel to a family that pulled up roots several times.

But when the time came to take Jessie to the vet, Kim couldn't bear to go along.

"I took her myself," Bochy said.

The black labrador's life tracked Bochy's managerial life -- Jessie joined the family in 1995, Bruce's first year of managing the Padres. When Bochy went to the Padres' clubhouse every winter, he gave Jessie the run of the place. The two went together on hunting trips. Looking Jessie in the eyes on Tuesday morning, Bochy felt a swirl of emotions.

"Gosh," Bochy said. "You don't realize it. [Pets] are part of the family."