San Francisco Giants Notes, Quotes 2009-02-01

--INFs Kevin Frandsen, Emmanuel Burriss and Eugenio Velez still are the three candidates to start at second base despite the acquisition of INF Juan Uribe, who was signed to a minor-league contract with a chance to make the big-league club. Uribe is considered by the Giants more of a left-side infielder and seemingly is destined for utility work. Uribe's .977 fielding percentage ranked third among AL shortstops since 2005.

--RHP Tim Lincecum has made it -- he'll have his own bobblehead. The Giants announced they'll have a Lincecum bobblehead day on May 17 and give out the tiny Tims, in honor of the 2008 Cy Young Award winner, to the first 20,000 fans who attend the Giants-Mets game. Other bobblehead promos will honor closer Brian Wilson on July 12 and broadcaster Jon Miller on Aug. 7.

--1B Travis Ishikawa has 119 career at-bats in the majors, only seven against lefties. So it would seem that any increased role for the Giants in 2009 would come with a platoon tag, with 3B Pablo Sandoval playing first against lefties with INF Juan Uribe playing third. Ishikawa is 31-for-112 (.277) vs. righties and 2-for-7 (.286) vs. lefties.

--Will Clark, one of the most popular Giants in their 51-year history in San Francisco and recently hired as a special assistant, likened the current Giants to the late-'80s teams that helped revitalize the franchise. Those Giants had Clark, Robby Thompson, Matt Williams and other youth. "Some of the younger players in the organization came up together for the first time last year and can build on that," Clark said. "They can make that part of their rallying cry. Two years after we were called up, we were in the playoffs and four years later, we were in the World Series."

--LF Manny Ramirez still is on the Giants' radar. Team president Larry Baer said the Giants are "interested in the player, but it would have to be a perfect fit," according to an interview on the MLB Network. Baer echoed earlier comments from Bill Neukom, managing general partner, who called a Ramirez signing "unlikely" and added the team was willing to offer just one year and an option. Added Baer: "What we can't do is have a player that prevents us from doing things two years from now, three years from now, four years from now."

BY THE NUMBERS: .121 -- Juan Uribe's career average at the Giants' downtown ballpark. In 17 games along the shores of McCovey Cove, Uribe is 7-for-58.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I haven't felt the last four or five years that I was part of the (Diamondbacks') organization because I didn't play in the organization. But coming to San Francisco, this is my longest-tenured team and the team I grew up with and made it to the World Series with. There are a lot of proud memories, and I'll be proud to put that jersey on again," -- Will Clark, who's rejoining the Giants as a special assistant after being on the Diamondbacks' payroll in recent years.



Author: Fox Sports
Author's Website: http://www.foxsports.com
Added: February 1, 2009