San Francisco Is Ready To Hop On The Bel-Train

It appears a new train has just come through the Amtrak station over by the Embarcadero in San Francisco.

With a World Series ring in their back pocket and eyeing for another with a current first place lead atop the National League West, the San Francisco Giants made a huge splash by acquiring the top hitter floating around in the trade market: New York Mets Outfielder Carlos Beltran.

Dealing for the switching-hitter wasn’t an easy move for the Giants, as they had to give up their best minor-league pitching prospect in Zach Wheeler to get him. A high prize to pay for a player whose future with the team after this season is uncertain, as he will be a free agent in the 2012 off-season.

So what can the fans of San Francisco expect with their new acquisition and how long will that train be stationing itself in the city by the Bay?

When looking at the current Giants’ lineup, it’s obvious why they need a player of his caliber. The team will be ecstatic that have a switch hitter with pop, as he comes in and instantly leads the team in home runs (Beltran has fifteen, while the player following after him is Pablo Sandoval with ten). That kind of thump in the middle will not only help because he can smash a ball into McCovey Cove, but it will also boost those same totals for those who hit around him (which will most likely be both Aubrey Huff and Sandoval).

That job was supposed to be held by Buster Posey, until he got laid out early in the season and is pretty much done for the year with a broken leg.

The addition of Beltran will also bolster the morale of the pitching rotation, which has surely been weary of a lineup that features little to assist them in wins this season.

The Giants have been putting on a show this season with how exceptional they are with close game wins and forcing opponents to play their style of ball; low scoring battles coming down to whose pitchers can dominate most efficiently. Yet, at some point later in the year or in the playoffs, if they reach it, other franchises will flex their muscles and force San Francisco into a bat-off.

Without Beltran, who will be able to swing with those opponents?

Sandoval will be able to hang with some of the best hitters in the league, but even he will tell you that one hitter is just not enough to push a team through (just look at his totals from 2009 and see where the Giants ended up that season). Now, with Beltran as a teammate, they can put up a fight when the runs category for both teams escalates in any game going forward.

The addition should be an incremental push for Huff to get himself going, as he will most likely see pitches much closer to his happy zone.

Huff was widely considered as the big bat in the middle of the San Francisco lineup. He was an extremely big presence when he joined the club last season and appeared to be ready to prove that he can still be an impact player. It looks as if the hangover from the World Series parties may be getting to the 35-year-old journeyman.

He is currently on pace for career-lows in various categories. Whether it’s the feeling that he’s not as focused as last season or because he’s beginning to dwindle into the twilight of his career, the addition of Beltran should allow Huff to get back into the swing of things, so to speak. He will most likely hit behind their new acquisition, which makes his input even more valuable given that Beltran will most likely get less pitches in the zone and more free passes to first base.

If Huff can recover that magic from last year with his bat in the final 60 games and into the playoffs, again this is just speculation, the move will be an even bigger success given that Beltran was able to affect not only himself, but a player like Huff who is in desperate need of a wake-up call.

The biggest contention that will come with this trade is the fact the Giants gave up a great pitching prospect for a player that may only be on the team for the next few months.

First off, the issue of dealing Wheeler, a stud pitcher who is only 21, for the Mets’ star is not as big a casualty as it appears.

Not only does San Francisco have one of the best rotations in baseball, but it is also one of the youngest. Aside from Ryan Vogelsong (34) and Barry Zito (33), the rest of the staff is either 28 or younger. Jonathan Sanchez (28), Tim Lincecum (27), Matt Cain (26), and Madison Bumgarner (21) are all lynchpins in this rotation and will be the future of the team.

Although the Giants will have to deal with how they can shell out big contracts to keep Lincecum and Cain when they are free agents in the next year or two, illustrating to their staff that they will protect them by acquiring hitters and getting the best team possible around them will help in future negotiations with their star hurlers.

In regards to the future of Beltran as a Giant after the 2011 season, no one can say for sure if this will be a one-way trip onboard this train.

Of course, the six-time all-star will be looking for a big money contract after this year, but what if this current squad is able to pull off the unthinkable and win their second straight title? Not only could that mean that the Giants may possible have deeper pockets to lure the star back to San Francisco, but he may see before him the enticing opportunity to win multiple titles for a contender whose window of opportunity expands through next year.

Beltran has only participated in two post season runs during his illustrious career, and he understands that his own chance to play for a successful club who can get into the playoffs in the next few years may currently be on the franchise he just got traded to.

The idea of hitting with Posey and Sandoval around him with the stellar starting and relief pitching may possibly ease tension slightly when it comes to contract negotiations.

If this is indeed a short rental of an impact, offensive player, the San Francisco Giants organization and its fans will be in full elation that they now have a real legit shot at repeating as champions again. The idea of another rousing and raucous celebration down Market Street and into the Civic Center plaza now has more credibility thanks to their newest acquisition.

The only difference would be that everyone won’t be riding on a cable car, but upon their new Bel-train that they luckily were able to secure from New York.