Tuesday, January 15, 2008

One Roster Spot Left

We are officially one month away from pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training, and it appears as if Brian Sabean and the Giants front office aren't looking to add much to the current roster. Sabean has continued to stay at a stand-still ever since the Aaron Rowand signing a month ago. There have been indications that the Giants may go into spring training without a clear cut 1st or 3rd basemen as they are willing to wait and see if they can't work a deal for a corner infielder during the spring. They only have one spot open on their 40 man roster, so unless they work a trade or cut somebody, they can only go out and sign one more free agent. They also could decide to sign a reliever to fill that spot as there are still a few decent ones on the market (Akinori Otsuka, Jeremy Affeldt, Shawn Chacon and Octavio Dotel) but I would be very surprised if the spot didn't go to Pedro Feliz. For a while last week it looked like Feliz had some suitors and that he may leave San Francisco after all. The Brewers were a team that showed some interest in Feliz, but they just signed Mike Cameron which pushes Bill Hall to 3rd and fills that vacancy. The Cardinals were another possibility after they dealt Rolen, but Rolen ended up getting dealt for Troy Glaus so that killed whatever interest they may have had in Pedro.

Outside of a likely Pedro Feliz, 2 year, 10+ million dollar signing, I wouldn't expect much action as far as roster moves go from here on out. Again, a reliever or utility infielder could be added or brought to camp, but any chance of swinging a trade for a young 3rd or 1st basemen this winter gets smaller as the chances of a Feliz signing grow bigger. If it's between signing Feliz to a 2 year deal, or giving the job to Aurilia and Frandsen, I am all for going with the platoon. No use in tying up money into a guy you don't want or necessarily need. It makes much more sense to invest money in a guy like Otsuka, who could come in and be an impact arm in the bullpen and help this pitching staff grow as a whole when he gets healthy. In my opinion, a healthy Otsuka, Dotel or Chacon would help this team out more than Pedro Feliz and I just hope Brian Sabean can figure that out as well.

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