Barry Zito's Redemption

In continuing my review of the top ten Giants stories of the 2012 season, it is time to reflect upon the redemption of Barry Zito. The former ace of the A's will never be the pitcher that we all hoped for when he signed a huge contract with the Giants several years ago but over the past couple of seasons he has been able to redeem himself a bit and it all came together for him in the second half of last season and even more so in the NLCS and World Series.

After years of disappointment, culminating in being left off the 2010 playoff roster, Zito has began to re-establish himself as a reliable starter for the Giants. The pressure of being the ace is long gone, with the development of Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum and Madison Bumgarner. As a fifth starter for the Giants, anything the Giants get from Zito is now a bonus. For much of last year, the pressure was off and Zito turned in his best year as a Giant.

In the regular season he won 15 games and pitched well enough to earn a spot in the playoff rotation over Tim Lincecum, who struggled  through most of the regular season. After surviving a short, rocky start against the Reds in round one, Zito delivered a season saving effort for the Giants in the NLCS when they were down 3-1 to the Cardinals. To say the least, we saw the Zito that we all thought we were getting years ago. To top it all off, Zito then went on to out-pitch the best pitcher in baseball, Justin Verlander, in game one of the World Series. Counting the playoffs, Zito now enters 2013 with a Major League best 14 start unbeaten streak.

Angel Pagan Sets the Tone

In continuing to review last season's top stories, I think Angel Pagan's contribution atop the batting order was a huge key to the Giants success. Despite the fact that Buster Posey was the National League's MVP, Pagan was almost as critical to Giants victories all year long. After struggling through much of April, Bruce Bochy moved Pagan out of the lead off spot and down in the order. Once he got his swing back he made his way back to the top of the lineup and there really was no looking back from that point on.

In the second half of the season Pagan was one of the best leadoff hitters in the National League and, despite not getting the national attention that he deserves, once the playoffs began I really felt that he gave the Giants the best leadoff hitter in the postseason. His play exemplified hard work and determination. Angel Pagan played the game hard all year long and that made him a lot of fun to watch in 2012. His reward was a 4 year contract worth 50 million dollars. As long as he stays healthy and plays the game the way he did last year, the contract will be worth it.

Melky Cabrera and his Melk Maids

With the year ending, it is time to review the top ten Giants stories of 2012. Over the next two weeks, I will work my way from ten to one to remind us all about the things we loved most from this past season. If you have any others or comments on what I have included, please let me know. With that said, here is my number ten Giants story of 2012-Melky Cabrera and his Melk Maids.

It didn't end well for Melky in San Francisco but you can't deny that he almost instantly became a fan favorite with his tremendous hitting and hustle. It didn't take long for fans to adopt him as one of our own and we started seeing stadiums everywhere the Giants went with a contingent of Melk Men and Melk Maids. His hustle and stellar hitting were a hit with fans and Melky was one of the most popular players on the team. The vote for Melky initiative got him a starting spot in the all star game, where he went on to win the games MVP award.

Now, with Melky, you do have to remember why it didn't last beyond a year. While he was a highlight of this season, his PED suspension left a dark cloud over the team and the way that he handled that entire situation is the reason that he won't be back. It is a shame that the Melkman ended it the way he did, he could have been a Giant for years and it certainly was nice to see a star in left field again. However, some things can't and shouldn't be forgiven. Melky is in Toronto now and it will be interesting to see how he re-builds his character there. I hope he has success because I don't want to see a man buried by one case of horrible decision making.

What Could Have Been?

Although Sabean never confirmed this, many reported that just before the Giants acquired Hunter Pence from the Phillies there was a deal in place to acquire veteran slugger Alfonso Soriano from the Cubs instead. The deal, according to reports, was agreed upon but vetoed by Soriano's no trade clause. So, essentially, he didn't want to be a Giant. Instead, the deal was struck with the Phillies and, although his batting average was not impressive, Pence made a nice impact in San Francisco.

At the time, I was happy that the Giants didn't acquire Soriano. While his power is impressive, his hitting is extremely streaky and there have long been those who have said that he is not a good clubhouse presence. The biggest impact that Pence had with the Giants was in the clubhouse. While it is not fun to hear that a star doesn't want to come to your favorite club, I really feel that this turned out to be a real blessing.

Barry Bonds-Hall of Fame

This is the first year that the major league's leader in career homeruns will be eligible for the hall of fame. It is very unlikely that Barry Bonds will get the 75% needed to be elected on his first ballot. Some never want to see him in the hall of fame and have painted him as the face of baseball's "steroid era." While I have little doubt that he will get in at some point, it is shame that he will not get in the first time. I am a Barry Bonds fan because he is still the greatest offensive player that I have ever seen. Despite the likelihood that he played on PHD's, I think he is still a legend worth honoring.

The baseball hall of fame is the greatest hall of fame in sports. It is truly an exclusive club that only accepts the very best of the best players. Barry Bonds deserves to be there. He deserved it before 1999 and despite what he did with advantages that not everyone else had, he was the best player of his era. The travesty in all of this is that many of the voters have a very open and personal agenda against Bonds because of how he treated them as sports writers. It really feels like an abuse of power to hold that against him. However good or bad of a person he is, Barry Bonds was a great player and that is what he should be measured by. While steroids and other PHD's will be the reported reason behind him not getting in this time, the truth is that he gave them all an excuse to punish him.

When he gets in, Barry will join the best of the best that this great game has ever seen. Let us just realize that he is not exactly joining the best people the game has ever seen. Babe Ruth was a legendary drinker and heavy smoker, hardly the definition of a role model. Ty Cobb, much like Barry, was legendary for treating reporters and fans like shit. George Brett once nearly assaulted an umpire after being ejected. Roberto Alomar spit in an umpire's face. As much as we would love for our stars of the game to be role models and heroes, that is not their place. Let's really analyze what they do on the field and in the game when we evaluate the very best. Once you analyze Barry's career their is no doubt where he belongs. He will get there one day.