Stuck on Repeat / MLB Preview: San Francisco Giants

As Michael Jackson once said, this is it. The final team on the final day before the 2011 regular season.

Close your eyes and imagine you're in Heaven. What's it like? Who is there? How do you spend your time? How are you reading this if your eyes are closed? Are there any horse socks?

Ok, now open them. What did it look like to you?

When you Google image search "Heaven", you get some interesting results. My favorite was this:

For any fan of the San Francisco Giants, Heaven looked like November 1, 2010. It looked like Brian Wilson firing a 3-2 cutter past Nelson Cruz. It looked like the pandemonium outside AT&T Park, where fans gathered to light toiled paper on fire, throw corn tortillas in the air and other things celebratory mobs do. It looked like a million people packing Market St. and skipping an entire afternoon of work and not feeling an ounce of guilt. It looked like watching the World Series games on DVD so many times that your girlfriend thought a new baseball season had already started.

Now, while it would be easy to spin off 2,000 words on how incredible the World Series was and how it will never be forgotten and vindicated so many years of suffering, that's not what we're here for. We've had our months to lounge in the pool of the past. Now it's time for a new season. 

In many ways, the Giants players face the same obstacle as Giants fans: moving on.

Sounds easy enough, right?

Not for me. I've thought about the Giants winning the World Series pretty much every single day since November 1. I sit back in my chair with that far-away look in my eye and think to myself, "boy, wasn't that great."

My dad and I have this conversation whenever a team wins a title -- can a team really want it as bad the next year? I know players say they're still hungry, but they just achieved the one thing they've been working their entire lives toward. Somewhere inside, there has to be that sense of relief -- and a sense of release. Even if subconsciously, wouldn't it be hard to go back out there and bust your butt just as much as before? The pressure is off.

I believe the Giants have a great chance to make it back to the playoffs in 2011. I feel it's their cosmic destiny to meet the turbo-charged Philadelphia Phillies in an NLCS re-match. Objectively, of course. But it won't be easy to get there. Not only will the Giants have to battle complacency, they'll also have to battle a much improved NL West. 

The morning of Game 5 of the World Series I still couldn't have looked you in the eye and told you confidently that the Giants would score a run that night. The offense in 2010 was like a whack-a-mole game. You weren't really sure where it would come from, but it did come eventually. Certainly in 2011, the Giants hope to establish a more consistent scoring threat. They ranked only 17th in Runs, 15th in Batting Average and 19th in On Base Percentage. And they won the World Series.

Save the tearful departure of Juan Uribe and non-tearful departure of Edgar Renteria, the Giants offense returns intact. First Baseman Aubrey Huff (.290/26/86) was the Giants' offensive leader in 2010 and looks to be the same in 2011. While the Giants are praying Huff can recreate his 2010 performance, they're also hoping that those numbers won't necessarily lead the team in all offensive categories. Catcher Buster Posey, for one, figures to take a few away from Huff in his first full season in San Francisco. While a sophomore slump is possible as the league's pitching learns his weaknesses, Posey doesn't have many weaknesses to begin with and should rank among the most consistent hitters on the team. Former Pirate great Freddy Sanchez returns to his post at Second Base. The second half of 2010 was Sanchez's first injury-free stretch as a Giant and he responded accordingly. After a slow start to the season, Sanchez hit .368 in the last two months to bring his season average to .292. At shortstop will be Miguel Tejada, the poor man's Juan Uribe. At 37, he still managed to put up decent numbers last year (.269/15/71). If he can duplicate them in 2011, he'll have been a steal. Rounding out the infield is the X-factor of 2011, Pablo Sandoval. There we so many times during 2010 when I thought to myself, "The Giants are good, but imagine how good they'd be if they had the 2009 Pablo." Hopefully, we're about to find out.

After struggling for years in the Minor Leagues, Center Fielder Andres Torres finally burst through in a big way in 2010. Though he's already 33, 2010 was Torres' first time playing more than 100 games, making it almost like a rookie season. While everyone is hoping for a repeat performance from this speedy Center Fielder, nothing is guaranteed. In Right Field will be playoff sweetheart Cody Ross. Like Torres, there's no telling whether or not Ross will be able to duplicate his stunning pace from last season seeing as he's just a career .265 hitter. But does have 20+ home run potential and seems happy to be in San Francisco. Pat Burrell seems to have seized the Left Field spot after a solid spring. Burrell, who has hit at least 20 HR in 9 of the last 10 seasons, hopes to get a few more big hits for his boyhood team. 

This lineup is based on the big assumption that star prospect Brandon Belt will not start the season in San Francicso. But as evidenced by Monday night's starting lineup, that may not be the case. Despite only one season of experience in the Minor Leagues, Belt's power from the left side of the plate is more valuable than gold for the Giants. 

Gushing over the Giants' pitching staff is like saying the Office sucks now. We all know that already. The best pitching staff in baseball returns all five starters, each with another valuable year of experience.  Ace Tim Lincecum endured his first prolonged slump of his career in 2010, only to recover and rattle off 1.94 ERA in September and beat Derek Lowe, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee in the postseason. The second spot in the rotation will be southpaw Jonathan Sanchez. 2010 was easily Sanchez's best season, sporting a team best 3.07 ERA and an MLB best .204 Batting Average Against. Sanchez has some of the nastiest stuff in all of baseball. If he can minimize his walks and keep his composure, he has a chance to become a legitimate Ace. Matt Cain is always described the same way -- a horse. He's big, strong and eats up innings the way Liz Taylor did husbands (respect). Cain was the Giants' most consistent pitcher in 2010 and looks to anchor the staff yet again. In the #4 spot will be the Giants' fifth-best pitcher, Barry Zito. While he had a solid first half of 2010, he fell off the bus down the stretch. I've stopped hoping for Zito improve and just hope he doesn't get any worse. Finishing off the rotation will be 21 year old Madison Bumgarner. After mesmerizing the baseball world in Game 4 of the World Series, Bumgarner will be one of the most talked about young pitchers in baseball in 2011. While his workload in 2010 was a huge increase, his tall, solid frame should allow him to avoid any endurance issues. If he's this good at 21, the sky is the limit by 24 or 25.

In the posteason, the Giants' bullpen was as impressive as its starting pitching. The bullpen returns every significant contributor from 2010 and may add a few new faces that have performed well this Spring. Closer Brian Wilson looks to regain his dominant form once healing from a minor oblique injury. Behind him will be familiar faces Sergio Romo, Javier Lopez, Jeremy Affeldt and Santiago Casilla. The bullpen will be solid and managed well by bullpen-expert Bruce Bochy.

To win in 2011, the Giants will have to stay as healthy was they were in 2010, especially within their rotation. And they will have to fight the urge to use 2010 as a crutch. The 2011 Giants can't be the 2010 Giants. They can't be the first team in history to win a World Championship in San Francisco. All they can be is the 2011 Giants -- the first team in history to win back-to-back World Championships in San Francisco. That bit of motivation may be all it takes to get these misfits going.

The 2011 San Francisco Giants

C: Buster Posey

1B: Aubrey Huff / Brandon Belt

2B: Freddy Sanchez

SS: Miguel Tejada

3B: Pablo Sandoval

LF: Pat Burrell / Aubrey Huff

CF: Andres Torres

RF: Cody Ross

P: Tim Lincecum

P: Jonathan Sanchez

P: Matt Cain

P: Barry Zito

P: Madison Bumgarner

CL: Brian Wilson

Best Case Scenario:

Starting with a four game sweep of the Dodgers in LA, the defending World Champions look to back in top form right out of the gate. After both Brian Wilson and Cody Ross return from injury earlier than expected, the Giants starting lineup begins to gel and rattles off 30 wins in their first 45 games.

While the outfielders are producing, discontent grows among some due to a lack of playing time. The baseball world is shocked to hear that Aaron Rowand was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for two minor leaguers. Asked by reporters that night about the deal, Phillies GM slurs the words, "Come onnnn, he smashed....his fa-*hiccup* face into a wall....I love the guy!" Brian Sabean later reveals the deal in fact took place at a 2 for Tuesday Tequilla happy hour in Miami.

In other news, a Superior Court judge rules that the struggling Oakland A's cannot relocate to San Jose, stating the Giants have rights to the area. At 19-48 and averaging fewer than 10,000 fans per game, the Oakland A's decide to pack up and move to Las Vegas. Attempting to embrace their new city's culture while still staying true to their traditional name, they change their team name to the Las Vegas Ass.

The Giants go wire-to-wire in 2011, winning the West by 8 games over the upstart Arizona Diamondbacks. After sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLDS, the Giants do the unthinkable and sweep the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLCS. Giants fans get their dream World Series match up, taking on the New York Yankees. An instant classic, the Giants take the series to a seventh game in San Francisco where Tim Lincecum pitches a gem. Tied 1-1 in the bottom of the 13th, Buster Posey goes opposite field into McCovey Cove for only the second Game 7 walk-off home run in World Series history.

The Giants become the first NL team to win back to back World Series since 1976. 2 million people attend the victory parade during which Britney Spears performs a free concert accompanied by Barry Zito on guitar. 

Worst Case Scenario:

The Giant do exactly what they said they would not do by refusing to let go of 2010. The Giants marketing department has a 2010 World Series give-away at every single game, while team owner Bill Neukom mistakenly dates Giants players' checks with the year 2010 on a frequent basis. 

At the Break, the team is in disarray. All five starters struggle to find a rhythm. Sandoval appears lost at the plate. Freddy Sanchez goes down with an injury, while Miguel Tejada just goes down from exhaustion, has a hard time getting back up and decides to retire. Even Buster Posey struggles, hitting .299 at the half-way point.

Eager to spark a comeback, the Giants players agree to perform a series of reverse-jinxes. Tim Linecum cuts his hair, while Cody Ross grows his out. Brian Wilson shaves his beard, while Buster Posey goes weeks without shaving. Pablo Sandoval tries to re-gain weight, while Timmy tries to lose weight. Pat Burrell starts speaking Spanish, while Madison Bumgarner starts speaking English. In perhaps the most stunning move, Aubrey Huff starts wearing a red thong on the outside of his uniform, prompting a 10 game suspension from the conservative commissioner Bud Selig.

After the reverse jinxes fail miserably, the Giants plummet in the NL West standings. All three starting outfielder suffer injuries from tripping in divots in the grass caused by Cal Football's use of AT&T Park. By the end of the season the Giants are being consistently out-drawn by both the undefeated Cal Football team and the Sound of Music Sing-a-long at the Castro Theater. 

The Giants finish one game better than the San Diego Padres for fourth place in the NL West. The Dodgers win the NL West, NL Pennant and the World Series, with Juan Uribe being named NLCS and World Series MVP.