33-year old righty swinging Pat Burrell really struggled for the Tampa Bay Rays earlier this season as a DH. He played in 24 games for the Rays in which he was 17 of 84 (.202 avg, .625 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 2 homers and 13 RBIs. That led to his release. The Giants took a chance with him figuring that getting him back out in the field could help revive his bat and it certainly has. Burrell has played in 92 games for the Giants so far this year and he is 73 of 275 (.265 avg, .880 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 18 homers and 51 RBIs. Burrell’s plate discipline has also returned as he has walked 47 times for the Giants so far. Without Burrell, the Giants wouldn’t be where they are right now….period.

25-year old righty starting pitcher Matt Cain is one of the best starting pitchers in baseball but you would never know by looking at his record. Cain has started 31 games for the Giants this year and he is 12-10 with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He has only given up 169 hits in 210 1/3 innings this season while whiffing 165 batters which shows what kind of stuff he has. Cain has also tightened up his control quite a bit this year as he has only walked 59 batters this season. But as well as Cain has pitched the Giants either don’t score enough runs for him to the bullpen blows it for him. Cain has now pitched in 169 games (168 starts) in his major league career and he is 56-61 with a 3.42 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. He has only given up 913 hits in 1082 2/3 innings in his career which is outstanding! One day maybe the Giants will score runs for Cain and the bullpen will back him up so he can approach a 20-win season.

Almost every team last winter that was calling the Giants about a deal wanted 27-year old lefty starting pitcher Jonathan Sanchez. The Giants decided to keep him and hope that he would finally realize his potential in 2010. The confidence in Sanchez has paid off for the Giants this year. Sanchez has pitched in 31 games (30 starts) for the Giants this year and he is 11-8 with a 3.21 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He has only given up 132 hits this season while whiffing 188 batters in 176 2/3 innings for the Giants this year. His only weakness is his control at times as he has walked 85 batters this year. That is nitpicking though as Sanchez has been a solid pitcher all year long for the Giants and he is a big reason why they are in first place in the N.L. West right now.

The Giants will be without 32-year old switch hitting CF Andres Torres for the next 10-14 days due to an appendectomy. Torres has played in 131 games for the Giants this year and he is 129 of 479 (.269 avg, .822 OPS) with 81 runs scored, 14 homers, 60 RBIs and 23 stolen bases. Aaron Rowand and Cody Ross will likely share CF until Torres gets back. Rowand has played in 98 games for the Giants this year and he is 74 of 320 (.231 avg, .659 OPS) with 41 runs scored, 10 homers, 32 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Cody Ross has played in 15 games since coming over from the Marlins and he is 5 of 27 (.185 avg, .488 OPS) with 6 runs scored and 2 RBIs. The Giants are going to miss Torres while he’s out of action.

28-year old righty Ramon Ramirez and 32-year old lefty reliever Javier Lopez came over in trade deadline deals on July 31st and they have both been outstanding for the Giants. Ramirez has pitched in 17 games (0 starts) for the Giants this year and he is 0-0 with a 1.00 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. He has only allowed 11 hits in 18 innings but he has walked 10 batters and that is way too many. Javier Lopez has pitched in 19 games (0 starts) for the Giants and he is 2-0 with a 1.10 ERA and a 0.55 WHIP. He has only given up 7 hits and walked 2 batters in 16 1/3 innings. These guys have really given the Giants’ bullpen a boost so far.

23-year old switch hitting 3B Pablo Sandoval burst onto the scene for the Giants in 2009. He played in 153 games last season for the Giants and he was 189 of 572 (.330 avg, .943 OPS) with 79 runs scored, 25 homers, 90 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. The Kung Fu Panda has struggled this season though as pitchers have been working him over. Sandoval has played in 129 games for the Giants this year and he is 136 of 499 (.273 avg, .747 OPS) with 56 runs scored, 12 homers, 58 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. The Giants need Sandoval to play more like his 2009 version in September so they can catch the Padres in the N.L. West.