Posted By Jeff Fletcher on November 5, 2010 3:11 pm

Today I wrote about one of the Giants biggest offseason questions: What’s going to happen with Pablo Sandoval? The money quote, from Brian Sabean, is this one:

“I guess the worst-case is if he doesn’t pull off what he needs to do in the offseason … he could end up in the minor leagues to start the year to get his act right.”

So, yeah, the Giants are putting the spurs to Pablo this winter to shape up or ship out. My story contains some details on the other problems he had, aside from his weight. Personally I think his weight was maybe only half of his problem, because he was pretty fat last year too. I mean they felt strongly enough about his weight after he hit .330 to start Operation Panda I, so it’s not like he was thin in 2009.

Also, I asked a scout about his deteriorating defense, and his feeling was that Sandoval’s defense didn’t deteriorate as much as you’d think. It’s just that people noticed it more when he wasn’t hitting. Statistically (UZR and all that), Sandoval really wasn’t any different in 2010 than in 2009. Still seemed worse to me, but what do I know?

Among the other semi-interesting tidbits from today:

• Sabean said the Giants will not dive into the free agent market for a big bopper. They probably can’t afford to do that, with close to $100 million already committed to the current players, including those eligible for arbitration. That’s before spending a penny on any free agents, like Juan Uribe or Aubrey Huff, so you can’t guess that it’ll be tough to get a $15-20 million guy.
• That said, Sabean conceded that Carl Crawford would be a nice fit, and he’ll look into him. My guess is the Giants won’t be able to afford him.
• Jayson Werth, on the other hand, isn’t too appealing. Sabean said the Giants prefer a lefty, and you also get the feeling he’s a little gun shy after Aaron Rowand at taking another crack at a guy from that ballpark, that lineup. I had been saying for more than a year that Werth looked like another Rowand to me, but a lot of baseball people have told me I’m nuts. They say Werth is a better athlete than Rowand. We’ll see.
• Mark DeRosa (remember him?) seems to be in the Giants plans as a back-burner or utility guy. They aren’t going into the winter planning on him being an everyday player.
• Brandon Belt is the closest minor leaguer to being ready for the big leagues. He plays first and a little outfield. My feeling is the Giants would like to get a first baseman either on a one-year deal or someone who could play another position, so they can be free to put Belt out there when he’s ready.
• That’s why Aubrey Huff would make sense, if the Giants can get him for a one- or two-year deal. Huff could also play left field, if Belt is ready at first. Doesn’t sound like anything is imminent on Huff, but it seems to me that both sides have an interest in getting a deal done. My guess is two years, $16-18 million, with an option. That’s a lot more than the $3 million they paid him this year, but there will be a market for Huff after what he did this year, especially now that he proved he can play first base. Huff is going to be 34, so I’d be very careful about offering him too much.