30-year old switch-hitting CF Angel Pagan has been really hitting the ball well for the San Francisco Giants so far this year. He has played in 46 games for the Giants so far this year and he is 58 for 188 (.309 avg, .821 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 4 homers, 19 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Pagan is tied for first in stolen bases on the Giants with Melky Cabrera and he is also #2 in runs scored (26) and #3 in RBIs (19) on the team. The deal that sent Pagan to the Giants over the winter is starting to look like a steal for them.

27-year old switch-hitting outfielder Melky Cabrera had a breakout season for the Royals last year. He played in 155 games for the Royals last year and he was 201 of 658 (.305 avg, .809 OPS) with 102 runs scored, 18 homers, 87 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. The Royals thought his year was kind of fluky, so they dealt him to the Giants over the winter for lefty starting pitcher Jonathan Sanchez. So far, this deal has been an absolute steal for the Giants. Cabrera has played in 44 games for the Giants so far this year and he is 64 for 180 (.356 avg, .910 OPS) with 28 runs scored, 2 homers, 18 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. It looks to me like Cabrera is a late bloomer and that his success with the bat is legit!

The Giants have signed 34-year old righty starting pitcher Brad Penny to a minor league deal. Penny got run out of Japan this year after just one start due to a shoulder problem. He was 0-1 with a 10.80 ERA and a 3.00 WHIP for Softbank out of Japan. Penny pitched in 31 games (all starts) last year for the Tigers and he was 11-11 with a 5.30 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. Penny pitched for the Giants back in 2009 when he started 6 games in which he was 4-1 with a 2.59 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP. Penny has now pitched in 319 games (315 starts) in his first 12 years in the majors and he is 119-99 with a 4.23 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. If Penny has anything left in the gas tank, he will likely get a shot with the Giants at some point in 2012.

22-year old righty reliever Luis Rojas has been suspended for 50 games for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. Rojas pitched in 6 games (0 starts) in A-ball this year and he is 0-0 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP. Rojas has now pitched in 104 games (0 starts) in his first six years in the minors and he is 10-11 with 12 saves, a 5.09 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP. What Rojas needs to do is find drugs that make him throw strikes as he has walked a stunning 128 batters in his first 155 2/3 innings in the minors. This is really going to hurt Rojas’ standing in the Giants’ organization.

Coming into last season, 34-year old righty starting pitcher Ryan Vogelsong had pitched in 120 games (33 starts) in his first six years in the majors and he was 10-22 with a 5.86 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. He came out of nowhere to win a job in the Giants’ starting rotation in 2011 and he ran with it. Vogelsong pitched in 30 games (28 starts) for the Giants last year and he was 13-7 with a 2.71 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Vogelsong is proving that last year wasn’t a fluke. He has started 6 games for the Giants so far this year and he is 1-2 with a 2.66 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. The Giants hope Vogelsong keeps up the good work as he is looking like an awesome late bloomer.

The Giants have designated 29-year old lefty reliever Travis Blackley for assignment. Blackley pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Giants this year and he was 0-0 with a 9.00 ERA and a 1.80 WHIP. He pitched in 6 games (2 starts) in his two years with the Giants and he was 0-0 with a 7.90 ERA and a 1.76 WHIP. The Giants won’t miss Blackley going forward.

UPDATE: (5/14/2012) - The Oakland A’s have claimed Travis Blackley off waivers.

23-year old righty reliever Heath Hembree came into this season as the Giants’ #3 prospect according to Baseball America. Hembree has pitched in 13 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 1-0 with 8 saves, a 2.08 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP. He has now pitched in 79 games (0 starts) in his first three years in the minors and he is 2-1 with 49 saves, a 1.75 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. Hembree only has given up 51 hits in his first 77 1/3 innings in the minors while whiffing 110 batters….so he has been nasty. The Giants need help in the pen, so don’t be surprised if Hembree gets a call to the show soon.

The Giants have placed 32-year old righty swinging infielder Ryan Theriot on the 15-day disabled list due to right elbow inflammation. Theriot has played in 20 games for the Giants so far this year and he is 10 for 56 (.179 avg, .413 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 0 homers and 2 RBIs. The Giants have called up 32-year old righty reliever Shane Loux to take Theriot’s spot on the roster. Loux has pitched in 13 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball for the Giants so far this year and he is 3-1 with a 0.43 ERA and a 0.67 WHIP. He has only given up 11 hits in 21 innings in the minors for the Giants while whiffing 12 batters and walking only 3. Loux last pitched in the majors back in 2009 for the Angels. Loux has pitched in 39 games (13 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 3-7 with a 6.14 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP.

27-year old righty starting pitcher Tim Lincecum was awful in his first three starts this year, but he has been much better as of late.  In his last three starts, Lincecum is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP.  He has pitched in 6 games (all starts) overall this year for the Giants and he is 2-2 with a 5.68 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP.  Lincecum has given up 31 hits and he has walked 17 batters (that has gotten him into a lot of trouble), while whiffing 33 batters in 31 2/3 innings.  The Giants hope that Lincecum continues to pitch well because the Giants still aren’t scoring a lot of runs so far this year.

38-year old righty reliever Guillermo Mota has been suspended for 100 games by Major League Baseball due to a second positive test for performance enhancing drugs. He has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) for the Giants so far this year and he was 0-1 with a 5.06 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. Mota has pitched in 117 games (0 starts) in his first three years with the Giants and he is 3-6 with 2 saves, a 4.10 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. This might end Mota’s career with the Giants and in the show.