Merry Christmas Giants Fans!

This Christmas I want the lonely to find company; sick to gain health; sad to find levity; unemployed to find work; broken-hearted to endure; and a World Championship for the Giants in 2012.

It's Bowl Season ... Some Giants Will Be Watching Closely

A number of the Giants will have a vested interest in this year's college bowl season. The list below represents those players whose alma mater is bowlin'!

2011 Bowl Season
Brandon Belt (Texas in the Holiday Bowl)
Brandon Crawford (UCLA in the Fight Hunger Bowl)
Mike Fontentot & Brian Wilson (LSU in the BCS Championship Game)
Tim Lincecum (Washington in the Alamo Bowl)
Javier Lopez (Virginia in the Chick-fil-A Bowl)
Buster Posey (Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl)
Eric Surkamp (NC State in the Belk Bowl)
Steve Edlefsen (Nebraska in the Capital One Bowl)

Pagan Joins Club in 3-Player Trade

The New York Mets and the SF Giants hooked up for another trade this evening, with the Giants obtaining Angel Pagan in exchange for 2010 Willie Mac Award Winner, Andres Torres and Ramon Ramirez.

Torres' struggles in 2011 is well documented, but in Pagan, the club will receive an outfielder that is three years younger than Torres and can hit for a higher average and steal more bases.

We here at the Sons of Johnnie LeMaster don't mind this trade, in fact, we view it as a slight improvement. The club still needs more offense, but the club is better now than it was at the start of the day.

Addendum: Pagan's career batting average vs. the NL West is .275. His career splits against the NL West teams are as follows: .349 vs. Arizona; .252 vs. Colorado; .304 vs. Los Angeles; .203 vs. San Diego.

Angel Pagan - the newest Giant

Ranking the 2012 SF Giants Stadium Giveaways (SGA)

Okay, by now the true die-hards have already reviewed the 2012 Giants promotional schedule, and I'm sure most of them have even penciled in their calendar which games they must attend.

So, if you haven't seen the list or are wondering what are going to be the hot stadium give-aways (SGA), I've taken the liberty to rank them for you. So here we go ...

The Must-Haves, i.e. the crazy long lines

• Orange Friday Knit Hat, First 20,000 fans (Friday, April 27 v. Padres)
• Giants Messenger Bag, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, April 28 v. Padres)
• Orange Friday Texting Gloves, First 20,000 fans (Friday, May 4 v. Brewers)
• Sergio Romo Bobblehead, First 25,000 fans (Saturday, May 5 v. Brewers)
• Brian Wilson Gnome, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, May 20 v. A's)
• 2002 Player Bobbleheads, First 25,000 fans (Saturday, June 30 v. Reds)
• Madison Bumgarner Bobblehead, First 25,000 fans (Sunday, July 15 v. Astros)
• Pablo Sandoval Bobblehead, First 25,000 fans (Sunday, Aug. 26 v. Braves)

Cool, I want one, i.e. long lines

• Giants Welcome Mat, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, April 15 v Pirates)
• Giants Player T-Shirt, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, July 14 v. Astros)
• Gigantes Player T-Shirt, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, Sept. 8 v. Dodgers0

Eh, I'll take one, but I won't wait in line for it, i.e. no lines necessary

• Opening Day Calendars, First 40,000 fans (Friday, April 13 v. Pirates)
• Magnet Schedule, First 20,000 fans (Monday, April 16 v. Phillies)
• Giants Cap, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, June 10 v. Rangers)
• Giants Trading Cards, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, July 28 v. Dodgers)

Overall, the lineup is pretty good, but I had a few thoughts concerning the schedule. First, the Photo Day promo was absent last year and it doesn't appear in 2012 either. Second, the giveaways are still allocated to the first 20,000-25,000 fans - this I don't get. Why can't the Giants and the respective sponsors have 40,000 items available, and help avoid the long lines and chaos; and the crying kids, and upset mothers that miss out on a give away? Other teams do it, not sure what the problem is here. Third, Sandoval returns for his second bobblehead, the others (Bumgarner, Romo) are first-timers.

The bobblehead give away that started it all ... Willie Mays bobblehead from the 1999 giveaway schedule.