First off, this will add depth to the Giants team. It gives them another left handed bat, and also gives them an extremely deep bench. Juan Uribe and Travis Isihikawa are both going to be bench players now. In case of an injury or poor play by a starter, the team will have se3veral outstanding options to turn to. This move presumably makes recently signed Mark DeRosa the left fielder for the Giants, and will give the Giants greater depth in the outfield positions. This recent depth will help the Giants in late game situations, giving them more speed, quality bats, and great defensive substitutions coming off the bench.
Huff is coming off his worst season as a big leaguer. Last season he batted .242, with 15 home runs, and 88 RBIs. The previous season he hit .304, with 32 home runs, and 108 RBIs. Huff is a career .282 hitter, and should be able to jump back from his drop in production last season.
Huff seems to be in the same situation that Jose Cruz Jr. was in a few seasons ago. Cruz was coming off a down year, and signed a one year, $2.8 million deal with the Giants. He exceeded expectations by playing terrific defense and belting 20 home runs. His drop in left field during the post season will always be remembered, but none the less, he was a terrific sign and significantly helped the Giants get to the post season.
Huff is very versatile, he is able to play first base, third base, and both corner outfield positions. This only adds to the many combination of players Bruce Bochy will have to choose from when setting the lineup. The $3 million dollars due his way is easily worth the risk. It gives the Giants more depth as well as a player who has proven he can hit.
I like your positivity and I sure hope you're right that this was a good signing for our G-Men! I do think that mgmt should have done more to sign a power-hitter. If we had another Barry-type player in the line-up, we'd be unstoppable! One can always dream anyways......
ReplyDeleteCrazy Crabber