San Francisco Giants: 10 Ways Pablo Sandoval Could Get Himself Demoted
San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval hit a home run Saturday on his first swing in his first batting practice at this year’s spring training.
After taking the league by storm in 2009 with a .330 average, 25 home runs and 90 RBI, Sandoval’s 2010 campaign was one of the year’s biggest disappointments across the majors. All season long, Sandoval battled with weight issues and off-the-field problems that carried over to the field.
Not only did his hitting ability disappear, his range in the field shrunk to the point that management did not even trust him. As the Giants marched to the World Series, Sandoval rode the bench, unable to make a contribution. Management made it clear that he would be sent down to Triple-A Fresno if things didn’t change over the offseason.
Now, down 38 pounds from last season to 240, Sandoval enters the season eager to show his “Kung Fu Panda” days were no fluke. Lots of pressure rides on the 24-year-old Venezuelan this season. Here are 10 Ways Pablo Sandoval Could Still Get Demoted During the 2011 season.
1. Fails to Improve Taking Pitches
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While many will say that Sandoval’s largest limiting factor was his weight, I’d argue that it is his plate discipline.
In 2010, Sandoval swung at an incredible 44.6 percent of the pitches thrown to him outside of the strike zone. Known as a free-swinger who “never saw a pitch he didn’t like,” it is imperative that Sandoval improves his strike zone discipline. Last season, just 38.3 percent of the pitches thrown to Sandoval were inside the strike zone. Pitchers know not to give him anything remotely hittable because he simply won’t take the pitches to earn a walk.
This offseason, Sandoval has gotten in touch with Giants great Barry Bonds, a slugger known for his incredible patience and ability to jump on a pitcher’s mistake. The ability to take pitches goes beyond just taking walks as it gets the hitter ahead in counts, runs the pitch totals up for starters, and gives the team a better opportunity to scout the opposing pitcher. If Sandoval fails to improve his discipline in 2011, the Giants will not hesitate to send him to work on it in Triple-A Fresno.
2. Fails to Hit Right-Handed
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Sandoval’s weight issues last season led to chronic hip pain that plagued him, especially from the right side of the plate.
Sandoval has commented that he required lots of deep-tissue rubs and “hurt-you” massages from trainer Ethan Banning to simply play daily. His ability to hit right-handed took a hard hit last season as his batting average fell from .379 in 2009 down to .227. As a switch-hitter, Sandoval gives the team the ability to run him out daily as a righty bat against left-handed pitching and a lefty bat against right-handed pitching.
Sandoval’s value drops significantly if he fails to improve his right-handed splits in 2011.
At the young age of 24, the Giants don’t want their young, offensive cornerstone to be in a platoon at third base. With the recent weight loss and intense offseason workout plan, Sandoval has said that he feels a lot better and the pain has subsided. However, injuries often linger with players of large stature and it could come back to haunt him midway through the season. If the right-handed swing doesn’t come back, expect Sandoval to spend sometime working on it against Triple-A pitching.
3. Fails to Hit for Power
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It goes without saying that there is an overall shortage for power bats in the Giants batting lineup.
With just a few 20-plus home run threats on the 40-man roster, Sandoval needs to step up as a power hitter in the middle of the lineup. He posted great totals in 2009 with 25 home runs and a .226 ISO (isolated power), but his career statistics will show that those power totals were uncharacteristically high (he’s a career .179 ISO hitter). With his weight back down to a manageable level, the Giants’ management will expect Sandoval to return to his 25 home run power. Unreal expectations could hurt his stock with the team
With the lack of power circulating in the Giants batting order, if power hitting third basemen become available through trade or up from the Giants’ minor leagues, Sandoval could find himself ousted for the bigger bat.
4. Fails to Hit with Runners On
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Hitting out of the 5th-7th slots in the lineup, Sandoval should find himself in quite a few opportunities with runners on base in 2011.
Last season, Sandoval was at his absolute worst with men on, hitting .251 with men on base and a putrid .208 when they were in scoring position. Just one of his 13 home runs was more than solo shot and his ISO rating was down to just .080 with men on base.
During the stretch and postseason run, the Giants succeeded primarily because they cashed in runners when opportunities presented themselves. For Sandoval to maintain a position in the meat of the lineup, he too will need to deliver in run production. Another poor couple of months with runners on base could spell a demotion.
5. Continues to GIDP (Ground Into Double Plays)
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As many Giants fans that watched games in 2010 can attest to, Pablo Sandoval killed a lot of runner on base situations with a costly and highly frustrating GIDP.
Sabermetric research by Fangraph’s Matt Klaassen concluded that each GIDP results in a .35 run loss for your team. According to that statistic, Sandoval’s National League leading 26 GIDPs cost the Giants nearly four runs total in 2011. With a stingy rotation like the Giants have, an extra run at an opportune time can be the difference between a tough loss and an extra-inning affair.
Although it certainly felt like more, Sandoval hit into double plays during 19 percent of his “opportunities.” None stands out to me more than his inning-ending, bases-loaded double play ball during Game 5 of the NLCS with just a 5-4 lead over the Phillies. I’m not sure how many more inning-ending/rally-ending GIDPs from Sandoval that Giants fans and Giants management will be able to handle in 2011.
6. Fails to Improve Fielding As a Third Baseman
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One knock on Sandoval over the past couple of seasons is his failure to improve as a fielding third baseman.
Sandoval rose through the minors primarily as a catcher and occasional first baseman but took over 3B full time with the big league club two seasons ago.
One would expect that as Sandoval gains experience playing the position his fielding percentage would increase and errors would decrease, but in fact the opposite occurred last season. Scouts will say that his weight issues affected his abilities and reports have surfaced that Sandoval struggled to bend over to pick up ground balls late last season. In my opinion however, Sandoval’s fielding mechanics still aren’t polished. He’s an average fielder with below-average throwing accuracy across the diamond.
Sandoval’s improved agility should help his defense to improve in 2011, but if he begins to struggle and become error-prone the Giants won’t hesitate to give him some extra work at Triple-A Fresno. Sandoval must improve his fielding if he hopes to stick in the National League as an everyday third baseman for the next decade.
7. Fails to Improve Range
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Many will say that it was Sandoval’s failure to cover third base in Game 5 of the NLCS on a bunt attempt by Roy Halladay (that catcher Buster Posey tried to get the lead runner on) that essentially ended any opportunity to start again during the postseason.
Sandoval is surprisingly athletic at the hot corner, making diving stops regularly, but by no means would one say he has “great range.” It is definitely true that Sandoval’s weight issues could have affected his range last season. Nonetheless, when he was slimmer in 2009, his range was still considered no more than average.
Sandoval’s offseason workouts should certainly improve his agility at the hot corner but he is still just a step above being a defensive liability at third base.
Left side partner, Miguel Tejada is in the late years of his career and will likely not be able to get to as many balls up the 5-6 hole as he would like to. If things start skirting through the infield more often than expected, Sandoval could be pulled for a more athletic third baseman late in games, or all together. It will certainly be interesting to see as Sandoval ages over the next few seasons whether his range will force him into a full-time, immobile first baseman-type role.
8. Fails to Keep Weight Off
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Health discipline is a slight concern for Sandoval. In 2011.
Sandoval will have a personal chef to help him monitor his diet but flashes of his infamous “Breakfast of Champions” at the World Series (Cheetos and Mountain Dew) still give me a little pause for concern.
While many discuss Sandoval’s incredible 38-pound weight loss across the offseason, few hear the story of his mid-December slip up. After working hard to cut weight following the World Series, trainer Ethan Banning says Sandoval gained eight pounds during a week-long trip to Venezuela in December. Few details are known, but it definitely shows that if Sandoval does not stay on his intense workout regimen and falls into old habits, the fat could build very quickly.
The Giants’ managements threats that Sandoval needs to shed weight over the offseason or he will be demoted leaves me no doubt over what would happen if he regained the weight.
9. Outperformed by Mark DeRosa, Emmanuel Burriss or Brandon Crawford
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One of the easiest ways that Sandoval could lose his job and get demoted is by simply getting outperformed by his competition.
Mark DeRosa returns hungry as ever in 2011 and is taking ground balls alongside Sandoval at this year’s spring training already. DeRosa is certainly much more athletic, has a great bat and could play his way to a starting left field role by Opening Day. He also has the ability to play third base as well and could certainly force Sandoval out with a hot couple of months accompanied by a cold streak by Sandoval.
DeRosa isn’t the only competition however. The aforementioned Miguel Tejada is much better suited at this point in his career to play third base. The issue is that the Giants are very limited at shortstop. If 26-year-old Manny Burriss or 24-year-old Brandon Crawford proves ready to start full time at shortstop, Tejada could bump Sandoval if he’s outperforming him. In either situation, depth at third base could force Sandoval down to Triple-A Fresno.
10. If He Hurts Buster Posey Again
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On a much more comical and sarcastic note, Sandoval could earn a ticket out of town and out of favor with Giants fans by hurting fan-favorite Buster Posey on a foul ball again.
Posey and Sandoval collided on a pop-up by Jason Heyward in foul territory early in Game 2 of the NLDS. Even with full catcher’s gear on, Posey (and Sandoval) was shook up after the play. I was glued to the television screen, swearing profusely at Sandoval.
Clearly I understand that collisions are a common aspect of the game, and this would not warrant any demotion. Regardless, I really pray we don’t see a more serious collision as Pablo hits like a monster truck.
