--C Buster Posey, the Giants' top pick in the June draft, was sent to Hawaii to play for the Waikiki Beach Boys, but he didn't last long. He lacked playing time, and the Giants pulled him off the island after four games (he went 6-for-14) and sent him to Arizona for more playing time in the Instructional League.
--SS Emmanuel Burriss was hitting .321 (no homers, six RBIs, seven steals in nine attempts) through 15 games for the Scottsdale Scorpions in the Arizona Fall League. GM Brian Sabean said he expects Burriss to be an everyday player in 2009. With SS Omar Vizquel not being re-signed, Burriss is favored to be the starting shortstop. --2B Kevin Frandsen, a candidate to start in 2009 after missing just about all of 2008 following Achilles' tendon surgery, is playing regularly in the Arizona Fall League. He was hitting .333 in his first 10 games for the Scottsdale Scorpions. Another option for second base next year is Eugenio Velez.
--LHP Noah Lowry is resuming his rehab from postseason left elbow surgery and still hopes to be ready for spring training. The starting pitcher missed the 2008 season after forearm surgery in spring training. He was hoping to pitch in Mexico this winter, but his latest surgery scrapped that idea.
--RF Randy Winn said he'd like to play for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic next year. Winn played in the first WBC and had three hits in 11 at-bats, sharing center field with Vernon Wells and Johnny Damon. The U.S. team will be picked in January.
--RHP Tyler Walker, RHP Brad Hennessey and RHP Kevin Correia were removed from the 40-man roster, and they will become free agents. The only way they can return to the Giants is if they are unable to land jobs with other teams and want to come back in a non-roster capacity. Correia (3-8, 6.05 ERA) opened the season in the rotation and struggled, and Hennessey (1-2, 7.81) came out of the bullpen and took his place in the final weeks, making three quality starts in four turns. Walker (5-8, 4.56) was inconsistent in middle relief.
BY THE NUMBERS: 26-26 -- The Giants' record after Aug. 1, a huge improvement from their 44-63 record prior to that date. The team implemented a youth movement in the season's final two months.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Both Brian and Bruce enthusiastically have endorsed the notion that we've got so much work to do that we're not going to worry about what their status is. Job 1 is identifying the talent, teaching the talent and playing the game in a winning way. There will be plenty of time for us after the '09 season to evaluate how each of us did and decide where we go from there." -- Bill Neukom, the Giants' new managing general partner, on GM Brian Sabean and manager Bruce Bochy, who will enter the 2009 season with one year remaining on their contracts.
