So I Guess San Francisco Wins the World Series in 2016, Right?

Well look what we have here, it looks like a pattern developing. The San Francisco Giants have made it a habit of missing the postseason only to win the World Series the next season. It happened in 2010, 2012 and it happened again in 2014. Will it happen again in 2016? Well looking at the free agency signing and the fact that Matt Cain is now you’re fifth starter it looks extremely likely.

First things first, they have to make the postseason. San Francisco should have a much clearer path to the postseason this coming year than in seasons past. The Los Angeles Dodgers have been their biggest obstacle within the division with their one-two punch of Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke at the top of the rotation but Greinke is gone and Kershaw was exposed for some not-so-nice comments he made to the team’s GM about right fielder and star player Yasiel Puig. Don Mattingly is gone and I just have a gut feeling that things are going to be a mess in Los Angeles. Especially if the Dodgers want to cut payroll by the $100 million that we have seen thrown around.

The Giants pitching staff is built for the long haul and is built for October baseball. Madison Bumgarner has been the only 200 IP in the San Francisco rotation since Matt Cain did it back in his hay day but this winter the team has seemingly fixed their rotation woes. The team signed Johnny Cueto to a six-year deal and signed Jeff Samardzija to a five-year deal, both perennial 200 IP pitchers, to plug in behind Bumgarner in the rotation. Samardzija and Cueto both pitched in hitter friendly ball parks in 2015, more so Cueto with the Reds than Samardzija in Chicago, and should benefit from the big dimensions and speedy outfielders in San Francisco’s outfield leading to more innings and more victories.

The time for San Francisco and teams like the Arizona Diamondbacks to strike is now and both teams are seemingly going full steam ahead. It shouldn’t matter though if the past is any indicator of the future, the San Francisco Giants missed the postseason completely in 2015 so they are almost a virtual lock for the World Series title in 2016. Right?

MyTake on the YES Network Trade Proposals

Lou DiPietro is a good guy. He works for the YES Network but will still take the time to interact with you on Twitter and even did an interview for us here on the blog once. For that we appreciate Lou and have zero issue with showcasing his work on the blog, including his work that came out recently on the YES Network website. Lou, like Mr. DiPietro does every season, threw out a few trade proposals to make the Yankees better and I leave you with those and my take on them for your reading pleasure. Enjoy and CLICK HERE for the original post.



YANKEES receive: SS Starlin Castro and LHP Travis Wood
CUBS receive: OF Brett Gardner, an RP from the "Scranton Shuttle," and a low-level pitcher

Dang it Lou, you had to go there.... I DON'T WANT STARLIN CASTRO. Castro is young but he's an average defender at best, he doesn't steal bases and he isn't even a marginal upgrade over what the team already has. Travis Wood would be a decent addition to an already crowded pitching staff but not at the extent of Brett Gardner. That;s not worth it in my opinion.



YANKEES receive: RHP Matt Cain and C Hector Sanchez
GIANTS receive: LHP CC Sabathia, RHP Bryan Mitchell, and an upper-level lefty-hitting outfielder

Now you're talking Lou. This has me intrigued as ever. Matt Cain is not the Matt Cain you think of from a couple seasons back but neither is CC Sabathia. If Sabathia is willing to go back to the West Coast along with a Mason Williams and Bryan Mitchell for Cain I think I have to pull that trigger. Cain is just 31-years old and would be a buy low after injuries have derailed his last couple of seasons while Sanchez likely gives the team a better version of what they had in John Ryan Murphy. The money for Cain and Sabathia matches up nicely but the Yankees get a younger pitcher and one that has been down due to injuries, not a degenerative knee condition.



YANKEES receive: LHP Aroldis Chapman
REDS receive: RHP Adam Warren, 2B Rob Refsnyder, a shuttle reliever and an upper-level outfielder

Adding Aroldis Chapman to the 8th inning in the Bronx would be an absolute God Send for the Yankees in their search for the super bullpen. Dellin Betances can pitch the 6th and 7th innings while Chapman and Miller finish out the game. That's before you mention Chasen Shreve, Justin Wilson or any other relief pitchers the Yankees currently have. Losing Warren is a tough loss and so is Refsnyder, especially for just one season of Chapman, but the deal would be nice. I'm not sure I make it without an extension window or something like that and I'm truly unsure if it makes the team better at this point but Greedy Pinstripers enjoy their big names. Chapman is a big name.

Cain's extension, and what it means to the Yankees

Via MLBTradeRumors, Matt Cain and the San Francisco Giants have agreed to an extension. The deal extends Cain for 5 years after 2012, and guarantees Matt $112.5 million. Cain receives a $5 million signing bonus, will get $20 million per season between 2013 and 2017, and includes a club/vesting option (based on a healthy 2017 season) worth $21 million with a buyout of $7.5 million. So the annual average value of the contract for 2013-2017 will be $22.5 million (Matt's making $15 million this season).

Buster Olney, via Twitter, pointed out that Cole Hamels is now slated to be "far and away" the #1 free agent after the season. That's not #1 free agent pitcher, that's #1 free agent overall. Which will be an incredible bargaining tool for Hamels, ensuring that he'll get paid more than what Cain just got.

What does that mean for the Yankees? Well, I think that makes the Michael Pineda acquisition even better. After this season the Yankee rotation, minus Pineda, could include CC Sabathia, Ivan Nova, and Phil Hughes. Hiroki Kuroda, Freddy Garcia, and Andy Pettitte are on one year deals, and it's not a certainty what-so-ever that even one of those three will be back in pintripes come next season. Even if we were to assume one of the AAA kids could take a rotation spot, that still leaves a nice hole in the rotation.

I'll stop here to point out that it's extremely unlikely the Yankees would enter a season with two rookies in the rotation. So anybody out there thinking "the Yankees could fill the rotation with two of Banuelos, Betances, Warren, Phelps, and Mitchell" can put their hands down now.

That would mean the Yankees might think of nabbing Cole Hamels, which could really throw a wrench into the team's future, since he'd cost an AAV of at least $23 million. They already have just under $119 million tied into 5 players for 2013, and that doesn't include the options for Cano ($15m) and Granderson ($13m), nor does it figure that Mariano Rivera will be a free agent. And what about possibly re-signing Swisher, or signing his replacement, for 2013?

If you didn't before, now you see why I and other Yankees fans were so excited about the trade for Pineda. Michael won't even reach his first year of arbitration eligibility until 2014, and won't be a free agent until 2017. Even as a bottom of the rotation starter he has great value to this team, and it's desire to get under a $189 million payroll in 2014 and 2015. But as a #3 or higher starter? Yeah, we'll be kissing Brian Cashman's feet quite a bit in the future.