I Wonder If I Shoulda Jumped.

I was determined to wait 24 hours after the 5 1/2-hour debacle at Colorado had concluded before posting, just for the sake of my own sanity.

After watching the Giants stumble, fumble and mismanage their way to yet another gut-wrenching loss, I did what any fan would do. I scaled a nearby peak, edging ever closer to the precipice and peering into the abyss, wondering if I should leap to my doom. Then I thought of my two small sons, considered whether baseball was really that important...and flipped  a coin.

Tails. I'm still here.

Fortunately in Milwaukee the Giants ran into a team that, at least for a day, was equally inept. Jonathan Sanchez gets the win despite walking a small South American village. The guy walks in a run (he issued a half-dozen freebees) fires three wild piitches, and the opposition finds a way to lose? Jeez, the guy did everything but hit the bull -- and on one of those WPs I coulda sworn I saw Crash Davis flashing the signs

If Sanchez didn't spring for Lotto tickets on the way home he missed an opportunity because he was the luckiest man on the planet. It was the first team I'd seen (other than the Giants) that seemed to be actively trying to find ways not to score.

Not too much else to say about the opener. The Brewers were bad. On the Giants' side only Aubrey Huff and Buster Posey swung the stick without embarassment. Speaking of embarassing...

Remember when Edgar Retneria was good? I'm sure someone does, but I'm also confident that to have that kind of recall the same person also has a vivid recollection of where they were when Kennedy was shot. He was useless on Sunday in Colorado and, when called upon to pinch hit in Milwaukee (actually to pinch bunt), couldn't even accompliish this most rudimentary of tasks.

Thank you, Milwaukee, for the gift. It couldn't have come at a better time.

Now back to Colorado. There is plenty to take exception with, but instead I want to start here: it's time to trade Nate Schierholtz. Seriously.

For whatever reason, the guy can't get off the bench. Was he caught with Bochy's daughter doing something worthy of Spice Channel? Sunday it was his pinch-hit blast that ingnited the Giants' only rally, yet he can't get any playing time. So let's move him, While we're at it, let's deal Posey and Sandoval. Yeah, that's the ticket. We've got enough vets that we don't need these young guys and their annoying talent.

The Giants' marginal offense is even less, uh, prolific, when you remove those guys from the equation. Yet Bochy made double switch after double switch -- each of which weakened the offense even further. Posey sat for Whiteside. Sandoval exited for Uribe (who's last hit came when people still fondly remembered disco), and Nate had to wait for the eighth inning to get into the game.

By the ninth inning, the only position players still in place were Renteria, Uribe and Rowand -- heroes all. Yeah, they'll win a game for ya. Swith after switch, all so that Bochy could continue to play Russian roulette with the bullpen. And predictably, he found the loaded chamber.
It's becoming increasingly clear that, among the position players, anyone under 30 need not apply -- at least not unless you come complete with an awesome marketing gimmick (panda hats availble here).

I spent some time listening to the pregame show today and there was a lot of talk about who was to blame. I'm gonna step in right now and say that I don't blame the players. Hey, no one actually sets out to suck. A carreer goal it ain't, and when someone offers money to play baseball -- that's the dream. But you gotta wonder who looked at this group of guys and said "yep, there's  a winner." Identify that guy and make sure the door doesn't hit him on his way out.

No matter who the caller or host blamed, there was concensus that the team has to change. The Giants never do. It's the same formula year after year, and it's not geting the job done. I'm getting to the point where I no longer care if they win or lose, I just want them to try something -- anything -- that isn't more of the same.

Field an all-shortstop lineup. Dig up Eddie Gaddel. Let a chimpanzee make out the line-up. Just spare me yet another season of "veteran leadership", which is Sabean-speak for "the old fart I overpaid".

Start with getting rid of the so-called Braintrust. Saban constructed this team. When the house falls apart, you blame he architect. Bochy also has to go -- his mismanagement of the game at Colorado Sunday was further evidence that he won't go with the younger players this team neeeds to develop to survive.

Rowand and Renteria are officially worthless. Neither has performed since he signed with the Giants, and the only reason to keep them in th eline-up is for the GM to try to justify these abysmal deals. Waiting for these guys to "return to form" is like the morons in Sacramento annually kicking the budget can down the road hoping that somehow, magically it'll get bettter next year. It never does.

It's time to be bold. Put Posey behind the plate and leve him there. Huff is the only real power threat so he goes to first. It's Freddy Sanchez at second, Uribe at short (pending a trade) and Sandoval at third (more on Panda later). The best outfield (left to right) is Burrell, Torres and Nate. Save Ishikawa for a late stick/defensive replacement -- and he can also be used to put Huff in the outfield to give someone a RARE blow.

Pitching wise it's Lincecum, Cain, Bumgarner, Romo and Wilson. Anyone else can be had.

The Giants need to go shopping for two things, a shortstop who can hit and relief help.

Will this make the team a winner? In itself, no. But it'll accomplish two things -- clear the deck of garbage and find out if the kids can play. Any turnover of this team has to start there.

Then the organization has to make the players accountable. For Sandoval and Uribe to be in the physical shape they are is embarassing. Teams enforce prohibitions on facial hair, routinely put weight and activity clauses in contracts, and yet the Giants don 't ensure that their athletes are actually athletes? Puh-leeze.

We're halfway through the campaign and the Giants are down but not totally out of the chase. There's still hope, but only if cooler (and smarter) heads prevail.