Spring Training News

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Noah Lowry admitted that the right oblique muscle he strained in last season's home opener might still be affecting him -- not physically, but mechanically. The left-hander is still struggling to find a consistent release point.

Maybe Sanchez could take Lowry's first start until he is ready to rock.

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Matt Cain pitched six innings and limited the White Sox to one run and two hits to earn his second win of the spring on Monday.
Cain has gotten better with every outing, lowering his ERA from 11.42 to 6.29 over his last three starts. It looks like he'll be just fine for the beginning of the season.

Giants reassigned RHP Tim Lincecum to minor league camp
Lincecum is expected to begin the year in Triple-A, and the 10th overall pick in the 2006 draft could be in the majors to stay by the All-Star break. He might have some value in NL-only leagues this season.

Never really worried about Cain's ability to overcome his early woes. Lincecum was a no brainer.

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Mark Sweeney was left out of a team meeting Monday, leading to speculation that he won't make the Giants' Opening Day roster.
Both Jason Ellison and Lance Niekro are out of options and the Giants are said to prefer them to Sweeney. The team reportedly placed Sweeney on revocable waivers, but no one claimed him and his $950,000 contract.

No real surprise after seeing Sweeney this spring. Its hard to say which one stays and which one gets traded. I say trade both for some sort of bullpen help.

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Brian Wilson retired just one batter on Tuesday and was charged with five runs in the ninth inning against the Mariners.
Wilson had been decent enough until today, but he has showed why it would be a bad idea to count on him as an eighth- or ninth-inning guy right now. He’ll be that kind of pitcher in time, but he has to show better command. Ideally, he’d pitch in middle relief at the beginning of this year.

Matt Morris had his best outing of the spring Tuesday, allowing two runs in six innings against the Mariners.
Morris has given up 22 runs -- 14 earned -- and 28 hits in 18 2/3 innings. He’ll probably do a decent impression of a fourth starter once the season gets going, but there’s no reason to spend more than a dollar on him in NL-only leagues.

Eliezer Alfonzo went 3-for-4 with a homer and four RBI to lead the Giants past the Mariners on Tuesday.
Alfonzo, who missed time with a strained oblique earlier in camp, entered the day 4-for-19 with no extra-base hits. He’ll be limited to a backup role this year despite his strong performance as a rookie, but there are worse $1 picks in NL-only leagues.

Wilson's outing today proves why we should not trade Benitez. Benitez has been real solid this spring. If we are out of it come July, phones will be ringing off the hook.

Morris had his second consecutive outing in which he looked good. Hopefully he has his mechanics down and is ready to start the season.

Alfonzo needed to have a big day like this. He is going to be needed a lot more than people think this year especially with Molina having a bad spring. I see 60+ games for Alfonzo.