What To Do With The Jersey When They Leave

What do you do when one of your homegrown guys leaves for another team? Truth be told, we stopped getting attached to any of our guys since February 1985, when Jack Clark was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. We'll never forget it, Jack Clark and his then wife were being interviewed at the old Lyon's restaurant on El Camino Real in Millbrae by KRON-TV after the trade was made. We were crushed to see the only true star of the team going to St. Louis. It was a simpler time back then, we only had his baseball cards, and none of the countless number of apparel and souvenir items that exist today.

Fast forward to 2009, and this up and comer by the name of Pablo Sandoval came on the scene and became our starting third baseman. We liked what we saw in him, the guy could hit and field his position. He was Vladimir Guerrero all over again, his strike zone was from the laces to the bill of the cap, and he could square up his bat out of the zone. We remember watching him at Petco Park in San Diego at the end of the 2009 regular season and seeing him launch his 25th home run in an extra inning game to win a meaningless matchup. This is our guy, that's what we said ... he's gonna be with us for awhile and will be a cornerstone in our lineup. So we invested … we invested in an authentic road jersey with his name and number. The same one they wore in 2009, and even had the "Burns" memorial patch stitched to the sleeve too.

Through the following years, we saw him peak and fall back, but he was still our guy. After a dismal 2010 season, he regained his form and delivered in the subsequent years and was a key figure in the 2012 and 2014 World Championship clubs. And now he's gone.

His jersey sits quietly in our closet, and we won't wear it again in the foreseeable future. In all honestly, we may not wear again until we travel to Boston in 2016 to see the Giants play the Red Sox in inter league. After that, we won't wear it again until he retires and returns to San Francisco as a hero that helped us win three World Championships.

So long Pablo, we hope the baseball gods will grace you with some good luck and fortune in Bean Town.

Our Pablo Jersey

2015 SF Giants Stadium Giveaway Ideas

So we were thinking about the stadium giveaway (SGA) items for next year, and thought the items below should be on the SGA schedule, in addition to the standard items that are always on the schedule. What do you think? What items do you want to see added to the 2015 SGA lineup?

1. Hunter Pence right field splat catch in the NLDS bobblehead
2. Joe Panik dive to start a double play in the World Series bobblehead
3. Travis Ishikawa walk-off HR to win the pennant bobblehead
4. Madison Bumgarner NLCS and World Series MVP bobblehead
5. Inflatable World Series trophy
6. Cow bells with World Series Champions logo
7. T-shirt with all three championship flags on the back

Introducing our 2014 Limited Edition World Champions Shirt

What does one ponder when your team captures their third world championship in five years? A limited edition shirt! To celebrate the third crown in San Francisco Giants history, we created a shirt that honors the three championships.

On the back of the shirt, we have MLB's digital rendition of the Commissioner's Trophy and the years of the world championships. The front of the shirt has our standard branded graphic. The one unique aspect of the shirt is that it's the first v-neck shirt we've used. The v-neck was chosen to symbolize victory, a subtle change that we hope you'll like.

As usual, none of our shirts are for sale. We give them away for free to other die-hard fans. Good luck!

2015 SF Giants 25-man Roster Prediction

From the after-glow of a third world championship, the Giants front office face a difficult off season with plenty of questions to ask. Can they afford to resign Pablo Sandoval? What will the starting rotation look like next season? Who will be their regular left fielder? Is it time to move Buster Posey from behind the plate to first base?

The upside is that the core group of players (Posey, Hunter Pence, Madison Bumgarner, Joe Panik, Brandon Crawford) will be with the club for at least four more years. The possibility of winning at least two more world championships in the next five years is possible. So with that said, now is not the time for the Giants to stand pat. They must strike while the iron is hot, and fill some missing gaps that will ensure their return to the postseason.

First, we do not foresee the Giants resigning Pablo Sandoval. The dollars and years that the Yankees and Red Sox are ready to offer him will be simply too much for the Giants. Especially after a red hot postseason, Pablo has ensured himself of a big pay day. We expect Matt Duffy getting the nod as a temporary third base replacement.

Second, the starting pitching is a big concern. Will they resign Ryan Vogelsong? We don't see that happening. The Giants has squeezed every possible result from Vogey, and with an aging staff, they have to go younger and cheaper. Plus, Yusmeiro Petit has earned every right to become a starting pitcher for the Giants.

Third, Michael Morse is better suited to the American League as a part-time outfielder and full-time DH. We don't expect Travis Ishikawa to be on the club next season, nor do we expect Gregor Blanco being anointed the regular left fielder. Here, we see the Giants making the biggest play in the off season. Our prediction is that the Giants will trade for Yoenis Cespedes. The blockbuster trade will see Brandon Belt being shipped up to Boston and Cespedes returning to the Bay. By making this trade, the Giants solve their left field position, and have someone replace the lovable Panda.

Fourth, with Belt traded to Boston, now is the perfect time for Posey to play first base full time. The Giants simply cannot risk Posey getting injured from catching. The foul tips to the mask was too frequent in 2014, and they can't have another Matheny-like incident happening to them. Plus, the numbers prove that Posey is better hitter when playing first base. In addition, we all saw what catching a full season did to Posey in the World Series - he was a non-factor at the plate.

Starting pitchers:
Madison Bumgarner
Tim Hudson
Matt Cain
Yusmeiro Petit
Tim Lincecum

Relievers:
Santiago Casilla
Jeremy Affeldt
Javier Lopez
Hunter Strickland
Jean Machi
George Kontos
Erik Cordier

Infielders:
Joe Panik
Brandon Crawford
Matt Duffy
Buster Posey
Adam Duvall
Joaquin Arias

Catchers:
Andrew Susac
Hector Sanchez

Outfielders:
Hunter Pence
Angel Pagan
Yoenis Cespedes
Gregor Blanco
Juan Perez