1973 Recap: Once upon a time the New York Giants were a perennial contender. During their time in the Big Apple the Giants went to 5 World Series between 1946 and 1957. I guess there must have been a curse or something left upon them from the Polo Grounds because they haven't reached the playoffs since. In fact, they've been under .500 in every year of the divisional era save 1969.
1973 opened with the team having little hope and... things played out pretty much the way the dwindling fanbase expected. The Giants eventually set a team record in losses with 91 and were only saved from the NL West cellar by the even-worse performance of their fellow West Coast pilgrims the LA Dodgers. This team was bad on offense (585 runs scored, 4th worst in the NL) and defense (666(!) runs allowed, 3rd worst). They ran a lot! (2nd in steals) That was pretty much the only thing these Giants were even above average in.
1974 Outlook: The offense is led by a "young" George Harrison, which is nice. They badly need to find other guys around him and 2B Bob McAdoo. They do have 6 players in the BNN Top 100 (nice!) but nobody higher than 24th (not nice!) so it might still be a few years before these Giants are worth watching again.
Having run through the roster now... I think I spoke too soon. A lot of the youngsters have already hit. The Giants lost a lot of games because they have some really big holes on their roster, most notably at shortstop and in the back end of their rotation. I don't expect them to fill all of that immediately, nor should they try too hard to do so, but I don't think they're a "few years" away. Let's see what 1974 does and who knows, maybe this is a Cinderella candidate for 1975.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
SP No. 7
RR, 7'2" 222 lbs.
Born 1947-11-09
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 PHO AAA | 15 | 6 | 0 | 3.23 | 24 | 24 | 6 | 178.0 | 144 | 67 | 64 | 64 | 80 |
| 1971 SF MLB | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2.42 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 29.2 | 25 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 13 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 12 | 12 | 0 | 3.18 | 29 | 29 | 8 | 217.1 | 187 | 84 | 77 | 64 | 110 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3.82 | 13 | 13 | 1 | 75.1 | 80 | 37 | 32 | 30 | 46 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
Following a nice rookie season, the Milwaukee Bucks center (who I think IRL only changed his name in 1972) had to deal with a nerve issue in his throwing arm in spring training and, wanting to stay extra-cautious given his prolific NBA career, didn't even play in his first game until the end of July. Abdul-Jabbar never quite shook off the rust, regressing in control while still sitting below the magical 6 K threshold.
Abdul-Jabbar has only average to maybe a tick above average stuff in spite of all the natural leverage he gets with his height and wingspan and a fastball that gets into the low 90s on a regular basis. In 1972 that was enough because of good control; last year he struggled to find the plate at times. When he did play, another worrying trend for the future was that Kareem's stuff often petered out by the 6th and 7th inning and 100ish pitches. It's crazy to say this about a guy who regularly plays 40 minutes or more in the NBA but Abdul-Jabbar might not have the stamina to start in this league. He also doesn't pay a huge amount of attention to runners on base although last year 6 of 11 base-stealers on him got thrown out so he must be doing something right.
1974 needs to just be a season where Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stays injury-free. That's easier said than done for a guy with all of his size.
Oscar Amador
SP No. 2
RL, 6'1" 187 lbs.
Born 1946-11-17
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 TUC AAA | 14 | 11 | 0 | 3.85 | 30 | 30 | 2 | 217.0 | 160 | 103 | 93 | 186 | 176 |
| 1971 CHW MLB | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6.38 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 18.1 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 8 | 16 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2.55 | 15 | 15 | 1 | 102.0 | 70 | 34 | 29 | 62 | 99 |
| 1972 TUC AAA | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2.48 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 54.1 | 35 | 17 | 15 | 36 | 42 |
| 1972 TUL AAA | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3.85 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 42.0 | 32 | 21 | 18 | 25 | 53 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2.51 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 28.2 | 25 | 10 | 8 | 11 | 26 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 3 | 8 | 0 | 4.07 | 19 | 15 | 1 | 92.2 | 94 | 58 | 42 | 63 | 72 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
Oscar Amador has gone some electric stuff. Perhaps it's too electric. His fastball climbs into the mid 90s and that's not even his out pitch: give that up to his curveball or a nifty knuckle-curve. The issue here is, his stuff is so incredible that much of the time Amador doesn't even know where it's going. He allowed 6.1 BB/9 innings last year and it's not like this was just first-real-chance jitters: he's shown this wildness all throughout a long minor league run that's included stops in 3 separate organizations.
To me this is an arsenal that screams relief pitcher. He's got pretty decent stamina but when you're walking 6 guys a night, "pretty decent stamina" is still going to barely get you into the 6th. The Giants have been burned by this kind of player before - Roy Holm - and yet, that just makes him even more a Giants kind of player if you ask me.
Charlie Bechtel
CL No. 27
RR, 5'12" 183 lbs.
Born 1947-01-11
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 NYM MLB | 5 | 3 | 6 | 2.89 | 55 | 0 | 0 | 74.2 | 66 | 26 | 24 | 14 | 56 |
| 1972 NYM MLB | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6.2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2.25 | 39 | 2 | 0 | 56.0 | 42 | 14 | 14 | 21 | 40 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 6 | 6 | 17 | 2.82 | 62 | 0 | 0 | 86.0 | 77 | 29 | 27 | 24 | 67 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
As MY LINE GOES, Charlie Bechtel only appears when, in a movie or television show, two or more women have a conversation that is about something other than men. It's surprising how rarely he appears... well, I guess 1973 was a feminist revolution, then, because the 26 yaer old set a career high in games pitched and took over as the Giants' closer, saving 17 games in 18 chances.
Bechtel throws a cut fastball and a slider, neither of which ever get above waist-level. That doesn't stop hitters from swinging and missing at his pitches a lot. Bechtel was at his best in high-leverage situations, holding opponents to a triple slash of 191/241/217 with the game on the line. Too bad that didn't happen more often in San Francisco! He's allowed just 13 of 42 inherited runners to score, too, so it's not like that low ERA has come at the expense of the men he relieved. Bechtel did melt down 10 times last year but saved those mostly for situations where the game was already out of hand (I think that's not at all what meltdown is but humor me).
Charlie Bechtel is the biggest reason why I probably won't promote Oscar Amador to top closer in 1974. Relievers always have someone breathing down their neck unless they're Sparky Lemus or Malcolm Post. He's used to it, I'm sure.
Jon Berry
OF No. 15
LL, 6'3" 202 lbs.
Born 1940-09-29
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 MIL MLB | .357 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 1971 SF MLB | .241 | 60 | 166 | 24 | 40 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 18 | 5 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .226 | 67 | 195 | 23 | 44 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 21 | 40 | 7 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .267 | 135 | 513 | 93 | 137 | 21 | 6 | 9 | 41 | 66 | 73 | 46 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
John Berry was the Red Sox' left fielder and leadoff hitter in the 60s but has kind of been wandering in the woods since then with stops in California and Milwaukee before getting traded to San Francisco in 1971 for the great Marco Villafana (.240, 14, 46 in Philadelphia this year). At the age of 32 (now 33) the Giants handed him the job and the slot again and he proved that he's still a very talented player. In spite of the offensive issues this team had, Berry finished 6th in the NL in runs scored and led the league in steals.
At first glance I have to admit I overlooked the steals and was like "how is this guy worth 4.2 WAR?". Berry hit for his highest batting average since 1966 but it still wasn't super high. He did do the leadoff hitter thing of fouling off lots and lots of pitches until he got a walk or sweated out a hit. When he hits .270ish that translates into a .357 on-base percentage. Berry cut down on his Ks, perhaps ironically enough by facing more left-handed pitchers, who he did a pretty good job against last year (a .305 average). He's at an age where speed can suddenly leave you but Berry still has it both on the bases and in the field. In fact he did a fine job in left field.
Berry basically got this gig because the incumbent / prospect / LF of the future Jimmy Walker completely imploded in 1972. At this point, even if Walker bounces back Berry should still keep his job.
Mike Goltry
MR No. 21
RR, 6'3" 195 lbs.
Born 1941-09-09
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 PHO AAA | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3.33 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 27.0 | 18 | 15 | 10 | 23 | 16 |
| 1971 SF MLB | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2.62 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 24.0 | 24 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 15 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2.36 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 38.0 | 28 | 10 | 10 | 23 | 19 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6.21 | 43 | 0 | 0 | 50.2 | 47 | 35 | 35 | 28 | 31 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
Mike Goltry went from being one of the best relievers in the game in 1972 to one of the worst in 1973. One big reason: in 72 he allowed 0 HRs, in 73 he allowed 8. That's an infinity percent increase! The biggest issue, it seems, is that his curveball, which was once pretty solid, now seems to hang all the time. Goltry doesn't have other breaking pitches to go to, just a really fast (if straight) fastball and a 2-seamer he mixes in. He also had a lot of issues getting his pitches over the plate, which only exacerbated things, and he also had a veeeeeeery low LOB% of 64.3%.
However you want to slice it, this was a bad season, the kind of bad season that is the last bad season a team tolerates. He hasn't been cut yet but it feels like a matter of time.
George Harrison
3B No. 13
LR, 6'1" 179 lbs.
Born 1947-11-29
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 AMA AA | .258 | 83 | 302 | 38 | 78 | 8 | 3 | 8 | 42 | 25 | 37 | 4 |
| 1971 PHO AAA | .252 | 29 | 111 | 15 | 28 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 2 |
| 1971 SF MLB | .388 | 33 | 121 | 15 | 47 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 5 | 12 | 0 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .263 | 139 | 524 | 54 | 138 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 53 | 35 | 57 | 4 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .315 | 151 | 606 | 71 | 191 | 32 | 3 | 17 | 84 | 49 | 70 | 1 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
George Harrison followed up a sophomore slump of a 1972 with a great season that cemented him as the rock of the Giants' rock and roll lineup (hey, maybe that can be its nickname if they get good!) and put him in the same stratosphere as his former bandmate and current Padres 2nd baseman Paul McCartney. Harrison added power to his game last year, hitting almost as many HRs in 1973 as he has in his entire professional baseball career (20). Also he hit well over .300 and in fact finished 2nd in the senior circuit in average.
Hitting comes as easily to Harrison as strumming a guitar. He likes to get in there swinging early on in the count. The RBIs were low for a man who hit 3rd and 4th all season but you can mostly blame that on a lack of ability for his teammates to get on base consistently. Harrison did hit 10 points lower (.305) with runners in scoring position than otherwise - usually you hit for a higher average if for no other reason than that you are usually facing a guy who just allowed someone to reach 2nd base. Still, even with the relative lack of clutch, teams were afraid enough of that bat to walk him intentionally 11 times, itself the 2nd highest total in the NL. Harrison has a great arm but doesn't move to his left well; for now this still makes him roughly average defensively but he might have to move to first or an outfield corner in the future.
With George Harrison ascending into stardom, only John Lennon is still kind of "meh" amongst the Fab Four.
Mugur Isarescu
C No. 9
LR, 6'3" 214 lbs.
Born 1949-08-02
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 FRE A | .000 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 1971 DEC A | .234 | 82 | 201 | 28 | 47 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 30 | 46 | 68 | 1 |
| 1971 AMA AA | .209 | 24 | 67 | 3 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 25 | 0 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .224 | 106 | 294 | 26 | 66 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 34 | 67 | 67 | 0 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .209 | 59 | 158 | 17 | 33 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 30 | 48 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
The Giants ended the year with a young international catching duo. Mugur Isarescu, who works in a bank in Romania in the offseason, is the less talented between himself and Stellan Starsgaard, but like Starsgaard he's young enough to where just being in the major leagues is an accomplishment. He's the better defensive player and also bats lefty, so he'll have opportunity to play even as Starsgaard locks in as the regular starter for all of 1974. Isarescu's best asset is plate discipline. His worst asset: he's not really good at all at protecting the plate with two strikes, and also he doesn't have super great power so he really has to work the draw those walks.
Isarescu is a hard worker who will probably never really be a starter-quality backstop but as I've said with several other guys, backup catchers last forever.
Don Johnson
SP/LR No. 25
RR, 6'0" 188 lbs.
Born 1949-12-15
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 DEC A | 8 | 4 | 13 | 2.26 | 51 | 0 | 0 | 75.1 | 62 | 19 | 19 | 28 | 74 |
| 1971 AMA AA | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3.1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| 1972 AMA AA | 5 | 1 | 7 | 2.14 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 54.2 | 39 | 14 | 13 | 30 | 28 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3.48 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10.1 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 3 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2.87 | 21 | 21 | 1 | 140.2 | 127 | 53 | 45 | 41 | 92 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3.13 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 51.2 | 49 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 32 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
Don Johnson, a 12th round pick in 1970, pitched well enough in AAA Phoenix to earn himself a late-season call-up and then did well both in long relief and as a starter. He's never been on anyone's radar as a prospect but hey, the future TV star and wearer of neon suits throws in the low 90s, has decent enough control, and did a good job of avoiding HRs last year. Johnson doesn't really do anything well but the sum of his parts might just be as a mid-rotation starter and he still has some room to grow.
Johnson could become a dark-horse candidate for Rookie of the Year in 1974... if he qualifies. I don't know how the rookie rules work.
Phil Lynott
1B/PH No. 5
SL, 6'4" 206 lbs.
Born 1949-08-19
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 FRE A | .281 | 110 | 437 | 39 | 123 | 20 | 4 | 5 | 44 | 27 | 55 | 1 |
| 1972 DEC A | .342 | 48 | 196 | 26 | 67 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 30 | 10 | 27 | 0 |
| 1972 AMA AA | .249 | 82 | 281 | 32 | 70 | 9 | 3 | 12 | 49 | 21 | 27 | 2 |
| 1973 AMA AA | .327 | 43 | 165 | 14 | 54 | 15 | 0 | 4 | 17 | 5 | 15 | 0 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .346 | 19 | 78 | 18 | 27 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .251 | 63 | 175 | 10 | 44 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 21 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
San Franciso traded one rock frontman for another in their lineup last year, sending Iggy Pop down to the minor leagues but calling up Thin Lizzy lead singer Phil Lynott in his place. It's karma or something. Lynott was mostly platooned and demonstrated that he needs to stay that way: he hit a solid .273 vs RHPs but just .204 vs LHPs. That was pretty big because Lynott's average, such that it was, was pretty empty last year: just 8 extra-base hits and 5 walks. Scouts are telling me that he's got decent power but then they also say "he could hit 10 homeruns in a season" which, um, that doesn't actually sound that great, guys. He's a left-hander but would play first base even if he wasn't; he's pretty clumsy out there.
Lynott's personality bio says "often told he looks familiar". I'm not sure anyone is mistaking him for a baseball player right now.
Josh Matthews
SP No. 34
LL, 5'11" 187 lbs.
Born 1946-03-02
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 CLE MLB | 13 | 17 | 0 | 3.56 | 35 | 35 | 10 | 267.1 | 257 | 118 | 106 | 99 | 165 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 15 | 12 | 0 | 3.02 | 30 | 30 | 13 | 229.0 | 211 | 88 | 77 | 83 | 135 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 12 | 16 | 0 | 2.78 | 33 | 33 | 17 | 261.2 | 217 | 87 | 81 | 87 | 183 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
Josh Matthews is the epitome of a good, maybe even great pitcher who toils for a bad team. Matthews was a back-to-back 20 game winner for Cleveland in 1969 and 1970 and his "reward" for that was overseeing the slow collapse of that franchise, then getting traded away to the hopeless, hopeless Giants where he's been 1 game below .500 in spite of a 2.90 ERA. This year the Giants leaned on Matthews hard - he had the highest complete game percentage in baseball and somehow only finished 2nd in pitches per game - and he repaid them the way Josh Matthews does, with consistently good work.
Matthews throws a big, breaking curveball that scouts rank as one of the best in the business, a low-90s fastball, and a very good slider. He never did learn a proper change of pace but nobody's going to mess with that success at this point. After a little blip his first season in the NL, he got back up above the 6 Ks/9 rate that is the mark of a good power pitcher. His control is kind of average... but at the same time, and in spite of that curve, Matthews keeps the ball down. He's never allowed more than 19 HRs in a season and last year gave up just 14 in 261 IPs. There were some beastly seasons from NL pitchers this year (Vince Bachler allowed just 4 all year long!) so that didn't rate in the top 10 but this is definitely a plus of his. Matthews has a great pickoff move, although he's a bit awkward in the field when it comes to fielding bunts and short hits.
Josh Matthews feels like he's been in the league forever but he's still only 27 years of age. I came in thinking oh hey, this guy is a good trade chip... but what if he's part of the next Giants dynasty?
Bob McAdoo
2B No. 20
RR, 6'9" 204 lbs.
Born 1951-09-29
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 DEC A | .281 | 120 | 491 | 45 | 138 | 32 | 1 | 3 | 31 | 29 | 96 | 3 |
| 1971 AMA AA | .267 | 8 | 30 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .261 | 97 | 380 | 26 | 99 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 19 | 17 | 50 | 1 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .309 | 56 | 233 | 19 | 72 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 9 | 26 | 0 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .291 | 125 | 530 | 44 | 154 | 45 | 2 | 7 | 56 | 21 | 66 | 5 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
The Giants' young core consists of rock stars and basketball stars. McAdoo along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is in the latter group. He proved that the .309 average he put up in 56 games in the majors in 1972 was no fluke as he hit .291 and finished 2nd in the National League in doubles with 45 (he was 9th in extra base hits with 54). Somehow he missed the All-Star Game... the game log indicates that Montreal's Hudson Watts, probably their only AS entrant, started and played the whole game. Still. Still!
McAdoo is the protypical #2 hitter in just about every way: he's got good bat control, hits for a nice average, and even as a right-hander he can hit behind the runner given the situation. McAdoo loves to go with the pitch. He belts line drives; those 45 doubles are no fluke. The one thing he doesn't do is wait out a lot of pitches. With his strike zone, can you blame him? McAdoo isn't blessed with natural speed but he's a smart guy on the basepaths and that plus a long frame help him to be something of a terror on the basepaths. A lack of a good arm prevents him from being a shortstop but otherwise he's a fantastic defensive second baseman, so good that even though he only played 24 games at 2nd he's still in the Gold Glove running.
McAdoo might have lost out on an All-Star berth in 73 but he'll start making them soon enough.
Kyle McKinley
SS/2B No. 16
SR, 6'0" 192 lbs.
Born 1947-06-06
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 FRE A | .226 | 36 | 133 | 12 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 34 | 5 |
| 1971 DEC A | .255 | 60 | 102 | 10 | 26 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 9 | 17 | 5 |
| 1972 AMA AA | .196 | 78 | 250 | 30 | 49 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 30 | 54 | 26 | 9 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .121 | 37 | 107 | 7 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 18 | 2 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .400 | 13 | 45 | 6 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .211 | 68 | 185 | 15 | 39 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 17 | 24 | 27 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
The Giants might have had the worst play at shortstop of all time. Starter Mario Sanchez carried a -16.5 ZR in only 100 games; his backup Kyle McKinley said "hold my beer"... or maybe he decided to take it on the field with him, because in just 48 starts he was -10.9 at shortstop itself. Any questions as to why the Giants underperformed in 1973 should begin and end with this position.
McKinley doesn't exactly make it up on the other side either. He has a bit of pop but sometimes falls in love with his power and winds up lofting a lot of pop-outs and weak flies to the pull part of the field (as a switch hitter he'll pull to either side). His K rate, given that, is fine, although his walks were goosed up tremendously by 10 IBBs last season - McKinley hit 8th most of the time he played and teams preferred to put his 40 grade speed on base and face the pitcher. Defensively... at least Mario Sanchez has decent hands. Kyle McKinley has hands of stone and committed 13 errors in 405 defensive innings at shortstop for a .938 fielding average. The Giants as a team committed the 2nd most errors in the NL.
The Giants badly, badly need to upgrade here. I think Mario Sanchez can be a reasonable backup middle infielder but Kyle McKinley's best place might be hitting fungo balls to guys as a coach.
Panos Michalopolous
OF No. 18
RR, 6'0" 190 lbs.
Born 1949-01-15
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 DEC A | .272 | 24 | 92 | 13 | 25 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 17 | 4 |
| 1971 AMA AA | .279 | 99 | 348 | 41 | 97 | 27 | 3 | 6 | 36 | 54 | 54 | 17 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .210 | 94 | 338 | 34 | 71 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 25 | 31 | 33 | 4 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .321 | 100 | 380 | 66 | 122 | 23 | 2 | 19 | 59 | 34 | 37 | 2 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .312 | 53 | 170 | 24 | 53 | 10 | 2 | 6 | 23 | 17 | 26 | 2 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Panos Michalopolous, a 2nd round pick out of Greece in 1970 who considers himself an actor, got a long look in the second half following a breakout first half in AAA Phoenix. Is he for real? It would sure be nice. Michalopolous hit a combined 25 HRs with 82 RBIs over two levels and if he makes the team he'd immediately be their best power hitter. He's done well to cut down on strikeouts in spite of his long swing, although he probably won't sustain a .312 average for his career (scouts say he could hit .250, which, um, that's a lot different). He didn't walk a huge amount last year but he's still only 24 and that could come with time and respect from NL pitchers. He's slow but has a decent first step that partially makes up for it in the field, and while his arm is better suited for left he won't kill you in right.
Michalopolous can't possibly repeat what he did last year over a full season but even if he's "just" a 20+ HR guy, that's a lot for this power-starved team.
Tim Mock
1B/3B No. 4
RR, 6'0" 196 lbs.
Born 1941-03-31
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 SF MLB | .246 | 109 | 407 | 39 | 100 | 12 | 4 | 7 | 43 | 26 | 45 | 4 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .251 | 70 | 191 | 16 | 48 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 14 | 22 | 2 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .241 | 79 | 170 | 12 | 41 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 11 | 24 | 2 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Tim Mock has slowly seen his playing time cut back and at this point in his career he's a platoony corner infielder. He doesn't... really do anything. He's got pretty decent bat control although the 13% K rate was his highest since 1966. That also comes with few walks and a lot of singles. This year the career .266 hitter also batted for the lowest average of his career. Not a great trend! Mock has deceptive speed and can wreak havoc taking extra bases when he does get on base. He operated as the Giants' primary pinch-hitter vs LHPs but was absolutely terrible at it: 4-35, 7 of his Ks. Maybe less of that? I should note that in spite of that horrendous pinch-hitting Mock was still substantially better vs LHPs (.268) than RHPs (.205). He was the 3rd baseman on the 1969 Miracle Mets team but at this point in his career he makes too many stupid mistakes in the field to count on him as a regular third sacker (which, to be fair, the Giants have a guy there already).
Even though he had a bad season, Mock still has a role on this team and in this league.
Obke Olthof
SP No. 8
RR, 6'4" 200 lbs.
Born 1945-04-01
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 NYY MLB | 12 | 13 | 0 | 3.85 | 37 | 37 | 8 | 252.1 | 273 | 119 | 108 | 63 | 169 |
| 1972 CHW MLB | 13 | 12 | 0 | 3.74 | 31 | 31 | 8 | 235.2 | 215 | 100 | 98 | 61 | 152 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 8 | 18 | 0 | 4.71 | 33 | 30 | 6 | 211.2 | 219 | 121 | 111 | 47 | 138 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
4 years ago the Flying Dutchman Obke Olthof had everything going for him: he was a 21 game winner for a good team in the biggest city in the country, and I don't mean he played for the Mets. He struggled with New York, which led to a trade to the White Sox, and then last offseason he moved to his 3rd team in 3 years in a deal for OF prospect Carl Weathers (.194, 9, 35 in AAA Iowa) and pitcher Valeriy Borzov (4-2, 3.46). Olthof did not adjust well to the new league at all; he led the entire senior circuit in losses and posted the worst ERA in the entire NL. Only his history of success and relative youth - Olthof is still only 28 years of age - kept him in the rotation.
What went wrong? If you know the answer, Obke Olthof would like to know, too. He's good, solid, sometimes electric stuff and a low to mid 90s fastball, a nice curve, and solid offerings with a slider and a circle change. Olthof was literally the best pitcher in the NL in terms of control, leading the league in BB/9 with 2.0. He tries to keep the ball down but he does make mistakes out over the middle of the plate sometimes and allowed 21 HRs last year in spite of doing home games at Candlestick Park (12 of those were allowed - in just 96.1 IP - on the road). More than anything else, Olthof just gave up a lot of hits on the balls hitters were able to put in play. He was juuuuuust short of 6 Ks/9 but still allowed a .269 OBA. Do you blame that on bad fielding, bad luck, or a simple propensity for the Amsterdam native to give up hard hits?
Olthof will certainly get at least one more chance to show what he can do. The clock, however, is beginning to tick.
Iggy Pop
C No. 33
LR, 6'4" 202 lbs.
Born 1947-10-05
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 AMA AA | .400 | 21 | 65 | 9 | 26 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 1 |
| 1971 PHO AAA | .248 | 76 | 250 | 23 | 62 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 31 | 33 | 42 | 1 |
| 1971 SF MLB | .277 | 39 | 101 | 11 | 28 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 15 | 23 | 0 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .218 | 110 | 307 | 33 | 67 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 35 | 42 | 78 | 0 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .220 | 91 | 287 | 29 | 63 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 37 | 35 | 61 | 1 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .159 | 24 | 69 | 5 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 15 | 21 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Even on a bad team like San Francisco, time is cruel. Iggy Pop, the Stooges frontman who was acquired from Kansas City in October of 1970, had a promising rookie year that led to him being named the starter in 1972. That season didn't go so well but nobody was ready for the bottom to completely drop out on him in 73. Pop hit .140 in April, didn't get better in about a week's worth of appearances in May, and was promptly sent down to AAA Phoenix to try and figure things out. In the meantime the team discovered a brand new catcher to fall in love with and now Iggy Pop finds himself as the #3 guy in the catching rotation. He's a solid if not great defender but isn't going to get a great chance to prove how solid if he can't stop striking out.
Just 2 seasons removed from looking like San Francisco's catcher of the future, Iggy Pop looks like a guy who'd better concentrate on his rock and roll career.
Justin Richens
1B/PH No. 30
LL, 5'11" 191 lbs.
Born 1932-05-10
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 HOU MLB | .272 | 91 | 287 | 45 | 78 | 18 | 0 | 9 | 48 | 27 | 54 | 0 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .247 | 65 | 198 | 28 | 49 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 20 | 24 | 30 | 0 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .225 | 70 | 218 | 28 | 49 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 25 | 26 | 30 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
It's the end of the line for Justin Richens, who at 41 years of age is the oldest player in baseball and one of three 40+ year olds currently in the game (and all of them except maybe Kevin Landry look like they're about to retire). As recently as 3 years ago he was still quite an effective player for the Astros but his once-massive power is gone and he posted the lowest average of his career to boot.
Richens has 430 homeruns and 1,417 RBIs, both of which are the 6th most in baseball history. I'm inclined to say this is enough for him to punch a ticket to Cooperstown once he's eligible. No, he's not going to join the 500 HR club even in the unlikely event he finds a new team, and 1,500 RBIs seems equally unobtainable, but I have a feeling that we'll look back on the 1960s and realize how low-offense it was and that in that environment, Richens was one of the best hitters in the American League (he came up with Detroit in 1954 and played for them into the 1969 season). He has a HOF Standards score of 45 (currently right on the average) and a Monitor score of 157 (100 means "this guy is probably a HOFer"). I wouldn't call him a shoo-in but... he's pretty close.
A.J. Robinson
MR No. 24
LL, 6'2" 189 lbs.
Born 1949-01-18
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 DEC A | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4.13 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 37.0 | 37 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 39 |
| 1971 AMA AA | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1.46 | 20 | 20 | 14 | 171.2 | 103 | 30 | 28 | 55 | 121 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | 9 | 5 | 0 | 2.10 | 16 | 16 | 5 | 124.0 | 81 | 29 | 29 | 44 | 66 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.84 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 19.0 | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 14 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3.28 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 35.2 | 36 | 14 | 13 | 21 | 26 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2.51 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 53.2 | 35 | 17 | 15 | 19 | 35 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
AJ Robinson earned a big promotion into the Giants' left-handed middle relief option and he made the most of it. Robinson can come out of the bullpen or start but as a reliever last year in the majors he exerted much, much better control over a snappy 4-pitch arsenal than he did starting in the minor leagues, in spite of not having / being able to concentrate on just one or two "out" pitches. He struck out an above average 5.9 guys / 9 innings and held opponents to a .185 average. Lefties actually hit him better than righties (.205 vs .171) but it's not like lefties hit him all that well. He does throw a screwball so that might be a real trend.
Even if he does work out to be a reverse left-hander, AJ Robinson has good enough stuff overall to be a great reliever or, maybe, if he can prove ha's got the control, an interesting option at starter.
Mario Sanchez
SS No. 14
RR, 6'0" 183 lbs.
Born 1948-03-16
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 SF MLB | .231 | 65 | 208 | 25 | 48 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 23 | 24 | 46 | 0 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .245 | 41 | 110 | 16 | 27 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 2 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .231 | 100 | 373 | 39 | 86 | 15 | 0 | 7 | 36 | 42 | 68 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
For a shortstop, Mario Sanchez is a big boy. He's also been in the league since 1970 so he's just a guy in spite of the fact that he's still only 25. He finally got a shot at starting following 3 years as a backup and... looked like a guy you're going to want to replace.
Sanchez has pop in his bat in shortstop terms but not in 6 footer terms. I'm reminded of the real-life early 80s shortstop Junior Kennedy, who was 5'11" and had even less power than this man. Anyway, enough about real players! Sanchez's K rate climbed a bit last season but it's still not, like, terribad. If he played a full season he'd have okay looking doubles numbers and while he doesn't have blazing speed he's not, like, horrifically slow or anything. What he is horrific at is defense. Sanchez just plain doesn't have the range to play shortstop in the major leagues. He has decent hands but lacks a sense of hustle to get to balls in play. He had the worst zone rating among shortstops in all of baseball at -16.5, 3 points worse than the Cubs' Jeremy Taylor, who is not out there for his defensive acumen.
The Giants took a brief look at Richard Gere (.190, 2, 10) at the end of the season but the longterm fit at the position, both in terms of talent and artistic temperament, is Queen bassist John Deacon (.278, 9, 32 at AA Amarillo), who was named the #73 prospect in baseball at midseason. Fortunately for San Francisco, Sanchez's days are numbered.
Danny Seligman
CF No. 22
RR, 6'3" 201 lbs.
Born 1941-05-30
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 SF MLB | .333 | 115 | 489 | 59 | 163 | 15 | 2 | 6 | 44 | 27 | 67 | 30 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .263 | 116 | 487 | 49 | 128 | 16 | 2 | 4 | 34 | 21 | 72 | 17 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .248 | 73 | 274 | 25 | 68 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 19 | 8 | 71 | 16 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Danny "The Phantom" Seligman is your classic case of an all-world defensive centerfielder who sacrifices his body too much for his own good. The longtime Ginats vet missed a total of 2 1/2 months last year with a lingering rib cage injury that also, for the second straight season, sapped his hitting and, as ugly as this is, makes you wonder if he still has it as a hitter.
Seligman tried to play through the injury for a chunk of time last year and his K rate almost doubled. He's a career .277 hitter in large part because he uses his feet to generate hits but you do need at least some level of contact to get that in place and it's no coincidence that Seligman hit for his lowest average since 1965. At the best of times, Seligman doesn't like to take walks and last year that meant his OBP was just .271. He has some decent gap power when he's not hurt; last year not so much. Seligman is still very, very fast and when he's healthy he's still got that Gold Glove quality in center, although he simply missed too much time to win his 4th straight trophy.
You really have to wonder how much Seligman has left in the tank. He's only 32 but he's a beat-up 32.
Stellan Starsgaard
C No. 60
RR, 6'3" 201 lbs.
Born 1951-07-29
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 VAL R | .370 | 49 | 173 | 25 | 64 | 17 | 2 | 5 | 35 | 23 | 47 | 1 |
| 1971 FRE A | .333 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1972 DEC A | .328 | 18 | 64 | 10 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 0 |
| 1972 AMA AA | .310 | 85 | 248 | 26 | 77 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 31 | 48 | 46 | 0 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .171 | 13 | 41 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 0 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .240 | 20 | 75 | 8 | 18 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 16 | 0 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .273 | 99 | 348 | 24 | 95 | 17 | 2 | 7 | 32 | 23 | 86 | 0 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Stellan Starsgaard is a young actor who is pretty good, good enough to be drafted 6th overall in 1971. He's rocketed up the Giants' minor league system since then and found himself not just in the major leagues but, once the dust settled, he was the team's seasonal starter. The Swedish national hasn't quite learned the tools of the trade yet but that only makes what he did in the big leagues last year that much more incredible.
Starsgaard has had some issues tracking pitches, especially in the majors, but scouts think he has a natural talent for contact hitting. Power-wise, he's a guy who puts on a real show in batting practice; once that raw power translates into game power, just watch out. He didn't walk much in his first taste of the bigs but has shown some ability to do that in the minors, too, so it's hard to know if that will be an actual weakness going forward. Right now he's something of a liability behind the plate; he threw out only 26.2% of baserunners and sometimes needs for pitchers to call their own game right now. He's a smart young man though and once he understands the tools of the trade - and let's face it, catcher might be the toughest position to learn in all of baseball - Starsgaard should become a decent catcher.
Stellan Starsgaard is a natural leader who works hard and wants to be the best at what he does. At 22, the test here and the one that he passed is that he showed up in the major leagues and didn't look overwhelmed.
Mike Stuckey
SP No. 6
RR, 5'11" 199 lbs.
Born 1940-12-14
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 SF MLB | 13 | 11 | 0 | 3.18 | 31 | 30 | 7 | 228.2 | 230 | 96 | 81 | 81 | 156 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 12 | 13 | 0 | 2.37 | 31 | 31 | 12 | 246.1 | 200 | 73 | 65 | 67 | 141 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 12 | 11 | 0 | 3.95 | 32 | 30 | 4 | 213.2 | 201 | 98 | 94 | 81 | 116 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
Mike Stuckey pinioned from being one of the best pitchers in the league in 1972 to one of the worst in 1973. The real answer lies in between. Stuckey actually had an awful first half, worse than the numbers suggest: as of June 27 he was 7-6 but with a 4.62 ERA and only a lack of starting pitching depth kept him in the lineup. Then he posted ERAs of 2.68 and 3.33 in July and August before getting taken out of the rotation for most of September and putting up his worst numbers (1-1, 5.03) in just 23.1 IP of work.
Stuckey is a finesse-based junkballer who has never thrown that fast but got a lot of buzz including a top 5 draft position in 1963 thanks to a lot of lively movement on his pitches. He still can fool hitters with a nasty circle change. Like Josh Matthews, Stuckey does keep the ball down well but he didn't have the pinpoint control he exerted in 1972 and that really came back to bite him last year. It also didn't help that his opponents' batting average climbed from .222 in 1972 to a still a little above average but not elite .249. I should add that his left-on-base percentage fell to 70.7%, which some fans see as a lack of clutch but stat nerds insist is just bad luck: either way, this was the lowest mark Stuckey has put up as a starter.
Stuckey's true place in the league is as a middle to back of the rotation starter. On the Giants he's their #2.
Mads Vindig
OF No. 12
LR, 6'0" 192 lbs.
Born 1948-12-09
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 AMA AA | .285 | 78 | 260 | 31 | 74 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 29 | 31 | 44 | 12 |
| 1971 TR AA | .273 | 45 | 172 | 24 | 47 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 22 | 22 | 27 | 2 |
| 1972 AMA AA | .314 | 40 | 137 | 22 | 43 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 24 | 17 | 4 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .218 | 104 | 362 | 43 | 79 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 41 | 43 | 41 | 8 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .314 | 44 | 153 | 19 | 48 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 11 | 3 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .298 | 90 | 356 | 41 | 106 | 18 | 2 | 7 | 40 | 30 | 40 | 3 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Mads Vindig was a nice little under-the-radar guy the Giants acquired from the Reds in exchange for CF Sonny Burwell (.262, 2, 13 with STL). Without ever making anyone's prospect lists, he showed signs of major league contact and plus outfield defense that culminated into a June call-up and a nice rookie season.
Vindig has a short, compact swing that he generates more power out of than you'd expect. It also helps him cut down on Ks: even facing major league pitching for the first time last year he barely K'ed once every 10 at-bats. For the aggressiveness, Vindig wasn't terrible with pitch recognition in 1973 either and finished with a .358 OBP. He lacks the speed for a prototypical leadoff man, although he was 3/3 in steals so when he does run he runs well. Vindig will bunt for a hit if you play him too far back in the infield. In the field sometimes he'll try a little bit too hard and create an error when he could have cut off a ball into the gap. All in all he's still a very good corner outfielder and average-ish in center.
The big question with Vindig is whether or not he'll suffer from the classic sophomore slump. He generated a lot of hits on balls in play last season (a .319 BABIP) but he has a history of doing that in the minor leagues as well and he's a guy who pushes hard out there so maybe?
Jimmy Walker
OF No. 36
RR, 5'11" 197 lbs.
Born 1947-12-01
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 AMA AA | .292 | 23 | 72 | 10 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 12 | 14 | 3 |
| 1971 SF MLB | .276 | 107 | 399 | 50 | 110 | 22 | 3 | 14 | 56 | 30 | 88 | 10 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .174 | 54 | 172 | 22 | 30 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 15 | 27 | 32 | 2 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .177 | 57 | 198 | 14 | 35 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 48 | 1 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .258 | 48 | 124 | 17 | 32 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 17 | 12 | 23 | 2 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .246 | 48 | 122 | 20 | 30 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 18 | 28 | 2 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Jimmy Waaaaaaaalker used to say "dy-no-mite", that's right. Walker was a real... turkey in 1972 in both the major and the minor leagues. He broke camp with the team but in spite of a good start (.296, 3, 6 in April) he cratered in May and June and was sent down to Phoenix again. I'm not sure that the time actually helped all that much but then again when he did come back up in August he wasn't hitting .140 anymore.
Walker probably won't ever hit .276 again - he strikes out too much for that - but he does pretty much everything but hit for average. He's got a bit of an uppercut to his swing but when he does connect he hits lots and lots of line drives. He gets on base enough to where even when he only hits in the 240s he can still get on base at a .340 clip. Last year he faced a steady diet of left-handed pitching and socked them to the tune of a .500 SLG. It'd be nice to see him do better in the clutch - Walker was 2-20 with RISP - but maybe sample size was the issue there, I don't know. Walker's got good speed, although he tends to hit towards the middle of the order where there are often guys on base in front of him. He lacks a good first step in the field but he's smart and basically never misplays a ball when he does catch up to it (I guess technically he did make 1 error in the field last year).
Everyone gets along with Jimmy Walker and his teammates at least would love for him to spend the entire year with the team. He does have one option year left and he's only 25 so it could go either way I guess.
Andrew Lloyd Webber
2B/1B No. 26
RR, 5'11" 187 lbs.
Born 1948-05-02
Code:
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
| 1971 AMA AA | .278 | 53 | 158 | 24 | 44 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 6 |
| 1971 PHO AAA | .250 | 47 | 76 | 7 | 19 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 6 | 2 |
| 1972 PHO AAA | .238 | 106 | 231 | 20 | 55 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 26 | 19 | 4 |
| 1972 SF MLB | .286 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .241 | 60 | 158 | 17 | 38 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 6 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .257 | 40 | 105 | 3 | 27 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 7 | 14 | 1 |
+ ------------ + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + -------- + ------- + ------- + ------- +
Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber split time at first and second base in 1973 and combined the worst of both worlds, hitting like a 2nd baseman but fielding like a man who should stay at first. Webber slaps at the ball but has only average speed in the field and in the major leagues last year he had absolutely now power, finishing with a SLG of just .305. Defensively Webber makes all the plays he gets to but he doesn't get to enough. He's decent enough on the pivot so that's nice at least.
Webber was considered a top prospect in the 60s but never came through on the talent and at this point he's a 25 year old who doesn't do anything at a major league level. 1973 might be his high point.
Sam Williams
MR/SP No. 41
LL, 6'2" 202 lbs.
Born 1944-05-01
Code:
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| yrtmlvl | w | l | sv | era | g | gs | cg | ip | h | r | er | bb | k |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
| 1971 PHO AAA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4.20 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 40.2 | 41 | 19 | 19 | 22 | 19 |
| 1971 SF MLB | 9 | 12 | 1 | 3.81 | 30 | 23 | 4 | 172.1 | 166 | 87 | 73 | 77 | 115 |
| 1972 SF MLB | 10 | 13 | 0 | 3.63 | 30 | 26 | 4 | 195.1 | 167 | 82 | 79 | 80 | 105 |
| 1973 SF MLB | 6 | 9 | 1 | 4.58 | 29 | 16 | 4 | 125.2 | 121 | 73 | 64 | 54 | 84 |
+ ------------ + ------ + ------ + ------- + -------- + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------- + ------ + ------ + ------- + ------- + ------ +
You wouldn't be able to see this from the final numbers but Mike Williams actually started the year pretty well: as of the end of April he was 3-1, 3.09 and his ERA was still under 4 at the end of May (4-5, 3.58 as of May 28th). Then he had an absolutely horrific June (0-4, 8.31), got banished to the bullpen, and was even worse coming on in relief. Going forward, I guess that's the lesson: do not use this man as a relief pitcher. Williams was 6-9, 4.42 as a starter, which isn't great, but carried a 5.74 ERA in relief. He doubled down on his mid to high 90s fastball for strikeouts but also allowed 4 HRs in 15.2 IPs.
The question then becomes: what do you do with this guy? Maybe a change of scenery is the final answer.
Ruberto Yebra
1B/LF No. 1
RR, 6'2" 189 lbs.
Born 1942-06-04
Code:
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| yrtmlvl | avg | g | ab | r | h | 2b | 3b | hr | rbi | bb | so | sb |
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| 1971 NYM MLB | .269 | 106 | 379 | 47 | 102 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 32 | 33 | 40 | 19 |
| 1972 MON MLB | .184 | 22 | 49 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2 |
| 1973 PHO AAA | .282 | 75 | 241 | 27 | 68 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 25 | 21 | 25 | 17 |
| 1973 SF MLB | .283 | 48 | 145 | 17 | 41 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 13 | 13 | 21 | 7 |
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Ruberto Yebra is a bit of an enigma. When he gets a chance to play he's displayed great speed in the past; maybe he won't lead the league in steals anymore the way he did 4 times in the 1960s but it's still very much there. Defensive lapses and a complete lack of hitting led to him getting his release from the lowly Expos in July of 1972. Often that would spell the end of a man's career but to his credit, Yebra signed on with the Giants' organization this April, agreed to go down to AAA to show he could still be the guy, and by the end of the season he'd been called up to platoon with Phil Lynott at first base.
Yebra has only average contact hitting ability but still has a good ability to beat out ground balls when he hits them. He did steal 24 bases combined between levels. Defensively he never has been able to make that still-in-the-70s grade speed of his in the field and last year the Giants barely even tried to use him in the outfield. This is problematic because Yebra, frankly, doesn't hit the way you need a first baseman to hit.
Yebra has the rep of being a fun clubhouse guy. He's also reportedly unhappy but not, as one would assume, because he thinks he should be playing more. Look, I am no psychologist but Yebra reportedly doesn't like losing and he wasn't happy with his own lack of power last year. One guy who can fix that, Ruberto!