1 Weekend, 2 Philosophies

This past weekend, I watched a crucial Giants-Padres series in San Francisco. Obviously, it didn't go quite as well as we Giants fans hoped. While it was clear that there were 2 different teams on the field, it was painfully obvious that there were teams being run with 2 different mentalities.

And that made all the difference in the series. And that might make all the difference in the season.

The San Diego Padres are a team that is happy where it's at. They are a group of players and managers who play their brand of baseball and force other teams to play it as well. And then, the Padres beat them. As of today, August 17th, the Padres have a season-high 5-game lead in the National League West, and the Giants have just lost the Wild Card lead to the Phillies (in embaressing fashion).

What is the prime difference between these 2 teams?

San Diego is confident in it's players. The Giants are not.

Over the course of this season, San Diego has pretty much stuck to it's original line-up. On opening day, the Padres line-up consisted of Tony Gwynn Jr., Adrian Gonzalez, Chase Headley, Will Venable, Nick Hundley, Everth Cabrera, David Eckstein, and Kyle Blanks. This past weekend in San Francisco, the first 6 guys were out there, still playing on a consistent basis. David Eckstein is out because of a calf injury and Kyle Blanks is out with Tommy John Surgery. With both of these guys going down (Blanks in mid-may and Eckstein in mid-july), the Padres went out and made trades before the deadline that dealt with their positions. First, they picked up Miguel Tejada, knowing Cabrera could move from shortstop to 2B. Then, the Padres picked up Ryan Ludwick, knowing that Venable could move from right field to left.

San Diego didn't pick up these guys simply to try out new players or for the sake of making trades. They had needs to fill and they filled them. They didn't get Tejada because they were throwing in the towel on Cabrera. At 23, with only a season and a half under his belt, the Padres aren't ready to give up on him. He could be the future of the infield, and they are willing to see what they have in him before they give up. Same goes for Venable. The Padres didn't pick up Ludwick because they wanted Venable to sit on the bench. At 27, he also has less than 2 full seasons in the big leagues under his belt. San Diego isn't willing to sit their young talent for the sake of veterans. They believe in their guys, they believe in their roster. All 25 men contribute.

The Giants management is the exact opposite.

3 weeks ago, I was all set to write a blog giving Brian Sabean credit for holding off before the trading deadline and not making trades just for the sake of making trades. He did a great job of getting rid of some dead-weight (Molina) for something they desperately needed: bullpen help.
In July, he traded a minor-league player for another reliever, Ramon Ramirez. So far, so good. (I personally think he went a little overboard trading both an outfield [John Bowker] and, yes, a reliever [Joe Martinez] for another reliever in Javier Lopez. Hopefully those guys don't go on to become all-stars...).

But then came August. And Mike Fontenot. While I believe that they needed some infield help (Renteria on the DL, Sanchez struggling, Huff struggling lately, Uribe a defensive liability), I'm still not sure why they couldn't have given a guy like Emmanual Burriss a start or 2 before sending him back to Fresno. The day Renteria went on the DL, Fontenot was traded for and Burriss was sent down. Management clearly doesn't believe in him. Also, he's under 32.

And then came Jose Guillen. And I had to write this blog. Guillen is the last thing that this team needed and could spell the end of the season for the 2010 Giants. I hope I'm wrong. I hope they win the World Series. But do I think it'll happen? Nope. Here's why:

1. Guillen is a clubhouse cancer. He's been on 10 teams in 14 seasons. In 2004, he was suspended by Mike Scioscia (Angels manager) for the last 8 games of the season for throwing a temper tantrum. During a series with the Angels in 2005, Guillen was still throwing tantrums, telling the press that Scioscia could "go to hell" and calling him a "piece of garbage." Pretty Classy.

2. In 2007, Guillen's name was on the Mitchell Report as a major steroid user from 2003-2005 (the 3 years he hit the most homeruns in his career). He was also under investigation for buying thousands of dollars worth of the drugs.

3. In 2010, the Giants have 1,000 outfielders. Well, close. They had 5. 5 guys to play 3 positions. With Torres and Rowand (who, in my opinion, should never play in a major league game again. ever) trading off in CF, Burrell and Huff patroling LF and RF, and Schierholtz (the best defensive OF) coming off the bench, the Giants should have been set. They now have a RF who's very slow, with a mediocre arm, and, did I mention?, he's VERY slow. Molina slow. Yes, seriously.

4. With the acquisition of Guillen, this pushes Huff back to 1B and Travis Ishikawa back to the bench. Now, Ishi is batting .284 on the season and his defense is fantastic, but, as we all know, he's only 26. Travis struggled in his first full season last year, but has bounced back nicely in 2010. He started as a pinch-hitter and earned his spot as a starter. It's got to be difficult to have the 4th best average on the team and still get sent to the bench.

It would make sense if Guillen was only playing against left-handed pitchers, with Ishikawa starting against RHP. I guess. But, this being the Giants, Bohcy has already said that Guillen will start. When Brian Sabean gets someone, you play them. Heck, Rowand still plays. Garko played last year. Travis Ishikawa cannot buy a secure starting spot on this team - the management doesn't believe in him. Just like they don't honestly think this team can do it.

From the Giants 2010 opening day roster, only 3 players are still in the line-up. I didn't believe that that Giants line-up (average age: 32) could get the job done this season. After 2 months, they were a game over .500. Then came the road-trip that turned the season around. Who got it done? The youth. Buster Posey and Travis Ishikawa (2 guys who management didn't believe could get it done in April). Fans wondered why the managerment didn't get that "The Younger we get, the better we get." With the acquisition of Guillen, the Giants average age went back up to 30.65.

The San Diego Padres will win the National League West because they believe that their 25-man roster can get it done. They have believed it all season.

The Giants are always looking for the next player to push them over the edge. Perhaps if they had some confidence and worked to bring out the best in their own guys, they wouldn't be 5 games back right now.

And perhaps management will never learn.