San Francisco Giants’ Prized Addition: Matt Cain
2014 proved again to be a magical season for the San Francisco Giants, as they are now winners of three World Series titles in the last five years. That is a remarkable achievement for a team who was never the favorite to win the World Series. It goes to show, coaching and heart are important for success in today’s game.
For a portion of the season, inconsistency and injury seemed to plague the Giants, and a chance to make the playoffs seemed bleak. Rumors swirled around, focusing on the Giants need to make a push at the trade deadline to help bring this team back into the discussion of making the playoffs. Giants beat those rumors and decided to promote from the farm, and that move paid off for Brian Sabean.
After being heckled by fans and media personalities, Sabean took a risk and relied on the young guys to spark the team, which became a bigger investment than losing prized prospects and current major league players. Giants went on to win the 2014 World Series in an exciting and dramatic seven games.
The 2014 season is over, and the offseason has been in full swing since November. Lots of big names hit the market, including the Giants’ very own Pablo Sandoval, who seemed to be the focus for the front office, as they attempted to bring his services back to San Francisco for many more years. Sadly, the Giants were not able to retain Sandoval, who took his talents to Boston. They also missed out on players such as Yasmany Tomas, Nelson Cruz, Jon Lester, and James Shields. The Giants didn’t even retain Michael Morse, who was still affordable for the team to re-sign.
Giants ran out of big name options, and resigned Jake Peavy and Ryan Vogelsong, traded for Miami third baseman Casey McGehee, and signed Kansas City Royals’ free agent outfielder Nori Aoki. These offense acquisitions are not necessarily sexy, but they stopped the bleeding temporarily after the subtractions of Sandoval and Morse.
But who is the biggest offseason addition for the Giants? Matt Cain.
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Funny that I mention Cain as an acquisition, but he is a true addition. Giants previously won two World Series with Cain on the roster, acting as one of the aces. For the third World Series title, Matt Cain was transparent and didn’t contribute because he nursed an elbow injury for most of the season. This then led to him having surgery to clean out an elbow that has been bothering him over the years.
Cain missed out on the playoffs and left a hole in the rotation. He is back for 2015 with a clean elbow and feeling better than ever. Cain’s elbow problem started in high school, and over the years, he learned to pitch around it. Matt Cain’s recent struggles could be credited to the elbow. Now that the bone chips have been cleared out of the elbow in a non-Tommy John surgery procedure, there is no signs that Cain can’t return to his old form.
Cain is a workhorse, and he will work hard to return to the pitcher he was. Rather than going out and signing a Lester, Max Scherzer, or Shields, the Giants saved that additional money and regained a star pitcher. Madison Bumgarner single-handedly led the Giants to the World Series with the postseason of a lifetime, and has rightfully earned the title of leader of the rotation. But Bumgarner can be protected for 2015 and beyond with a healthy Cain, who still has the high-quality pitching of an ace.
While Giants’ fans have been pouting and nervous about a quiet 2015 offseason, there should be no reason to worry. The Giants got their big acquisition, and that is a healthy return of Cain.