Aug 07 2008
Two Giants Players Showing Promise…
Alex Hinshaw is 1-1 with a 2.51 E.R.A in 32 appearances this season.
Two players to look out for as this season nears to a close and to keep an eye on next year is speedy outfielder Fred Lewis a.k.a Freddie and southpaw pitcher Alex Hinshaw a.k.a The Hinshaw Redemption. Both young players worked their ways through the system and their hard work in the minors is finally paying off here in the majors. Both are having solid years in their first full season. Lewis of anyone standouts on the offensive side, although he has shown his arm a few times like the one in yesterday’s game when he hosed out the Braves’ Casey Kotchman at the plate for the third out of the inning. Lewis is a sparkplug in this lineup and when he is not in the lineup or doing good things on the basepaths, Giants offense seems to kind of lag and be more horrendous than it already is. Lewis is a cornerstone piece for this offense and for this team as we build for the future starting in 09. He is currently hitting .283 avg. (which ranks second on the team to Randy Winn) with 8HR 33RBI 23 doubles 10 triples and 20 stolen bases. If he gets 10 more triples before the end of season which is unlikely, he could be part of a 20-20-20 club. His potential has always been there, but he is starting to prove that he is a five-tool player and can be an everyday guy. Hopefully, Sabean and Bochy come to their senses that he is the left fielder of the future and no need to keep Roberts here as the 4th outfielder and possibly Winn with Nate Schierholtz pretty much major-league ready and Dan Ortmeir and Brian Horwitz could be backups and cheaper alternatives their for the Giants in the future.
Another player who is on the rise and showing promise as a rookie is lefty reliever Alex Hinshaw. He has electric stuff and his poise on the mound is impressive to watch. He could be a starter, but there is no need for that in the Giants strong rotation as they have a surplus of starting pitchers with the return of Noah Lowry next season. Therefore, he should be moved to a more prominent role, rather than in middle relief or as a lefty specialist. This guy should be the 8th inning guy and Bochy should implant him there and see what happens as a result for the team’s success. Taschner is not a setup guy, but has definitely boded well in the lefty specialist role. Walker as we have all seen has struggled all season in a setup role and is much suited for middle relief or non pressure situations. Nonetheless, Hinshaw is younger and I feel he has better stuff and mound presence than Walker. Hinshaw is showing promise and could be a mainstay in the Giants bullpen as their 8th inning guy for many years. Although, I think he could evolve into an effective and dominating starter with the command of his low-to mid 90’s fastball and 12-6 curve and good change up. His numbers as a rookie are impressive: he is 1-1 with a 2.51 E.R.A in 32 appearances and has 37 strikeouts in only 28.2IP. I hope this guy has a more prominent role in the future because he is making some noise to the Giants fans and around the majors.
