The Brandons

A couple of the big question marks this year for the Giants are the Brandons, both Belt and Crawford. I've been a huge fan of both of them, and while last year started out slow for both of them, it ended on a great note. They both made huge strides and showed that they are capable of being major leaguers.

Now, the question is whether or not they'll continue to grow this year, or they've already reached their full potential.

Brandon Crawford ended up batting .248 on the season, but finished strong, hitting .281 in August and .290 in September. He had ten hits, seven RBIs, and seven walks in the 2012 postseason, despite hitting only .217. Luckily, shortstops don't need to bat .300. It is, however, the anchor of the infield defesively. The Giants have lacked a strong leader at this position for the last couple years, but the answer for the future to definitely lie in Crawford.

Quite obvious to anyone who watched the Giants in the playoffs, Crawford's greatest contribution was his defense. He was named the Giants' best defensive player and won the Wilson Defensive Player of the Year award, a new award that's figured out by putting a player's numbers through the "shredder system," a statistical analysis used by MLB Network. Although he made 18 errors last season, 12 of those came in the first 59 games. He went on to commit only six errors in the remaining 63 games that he started. And on the way to becoming a world champion, Crawford made just one error in 65 chances and turning nine double plays in the postseason.

Even though he lost out to Jimmy Rollins for the Gold Glove in 2012, it's pretty safe to say that he'll own that piece of hardware at some point in his career.

And now onto my favorite Giant (and yes, I realize labeling him as my favorite means he will probably get traded this season)....Brandon Belt!

Like Crawford, Belt really struggled at the beginning of the season, with many people calling for him to be benched. And he did struggle, I'm not saying that he didn't. He spent a lot of time swining at bad pitches and stranding men on base when he needed to get them home. However, he also didn't have a ton of consistent playing time over the first two months of the season. In June, when he began to start in back-to-back-to-back games, he batted .296. And though July was a tough month for him (batting .186), he finished the season strong, batting .293 after the All Star game. He ended the season at .275, with seven homeruns (tied for 5th on the team) and 56 RBIs (tied for 4th on the team).

Unlike Crawford, Belt really didn't shine in the postseason. He hit .304 in the LCS, but only hit .077 in the other rounds, giving him a cumulative total of just .184 with only three RBIs and one homerun. He did provide a solid defense, staying error-free in 125 chances, but Belt has got to learn to perform in the big pressure situations consistently.

Another possible concern about Belt is his lack of power. First base is definitely more of a power position, and Belt finished tied for 36th in the league among first basemen with his seven bombs. The Giants would love more power from him, and as he hit 23 in 2010 in the minors, we know that he has that capability. 2013 is a big year for Belt. Fingers crossed that he really comes into his own...and it wouldn't hurt if he made me look like a genius for always sticking up for him.

At 26 (Crawford) and 24 (Belt), the Brandons have long careers ahead of them. And I for one can't wait to see how many Gold Gloves they win between the two of them.