San Francisco Giants: Wearing the Fans' Patience Thin

"This can't go on all the time—all this franticness and jumping around. We've got to go someplace, find something."  Jack Kerouac, On the Road 

For the San Francisco Giants, that place is the World Series. That thing is the championship trophy.

After five long years of frantic futility and jumping around the periphery of the National League West races, the time for excuses has long since passed.

Consider the following seven data points:

The Giants haven't finished above .500 since 2004; they haven't really been close.

They haven't managed better than a third place finish in Major League Baseball's weakest division since that same year.

Their 2007 payroll of over $90 million was good for 12th in MLB.

Barry Bonds' 2007 salary was $15.8 million.

SF's 2008 payroll of just under $77 million was good for 17th in MLB and they actually spent less per player than the Cincinnati Reds (who finished 18th in total payroll).

Barry Lamar Bonds no longer patrols leftfield.

We loyal fans were assured that the money freed by Bonds' departure wouldn't just be pocketed by the owners, that a substantial amount would be put back into spikes.

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