San Francisco Giants preview Another candidate to surprise this season, San Francisco is a team built on pitching and defense. And the Giants will need every strikeout Tim Lincecum provides and every daring catch Aaron Rowand makes in center field because little was done to improve one of the majors' worst offenses from last season. THREE QUESTIONS 1. Is this the N.L.'s best rotation? On paper, the Giants' starting five compares favorably to those of the Mets and Cubs, among others, and it should keep them in most games. Ace Tim Lincecum is the reigning N.L. Cy Young Award winner; Matt Cain has a 3.71 ERA over the past two seasons and has become a workhorse (417 2/3 innings over that span); a revitalized Randy Johnson made 30 starts with a sub-4.00 ERA last season; Barry Zito finished strong (3.15 ERA in five September starts); and Jonathan Sanchez showed flashes of greatness in the first half (8-5, 3.97 ERA) before collapsing in the second half (1-7, 7.47 ERA). At some point, San Francisco also hopes to have Noah Lowry healthy. This rotation could be great, if Johnson stays healthy, Zito finds some consistency and Sanchez puts together a full season. Even two out of those three would be huge. 2. Will San Francisco have enough offense? The Giants were the only team that failed to hit 100 homers last season, finishing with 94 (17 fewer than the next-lowest team). Catcher Bengie Molina led San Francisco with 16 homers, and outfielder Aaron Rowand was the only other Giant with more than 10. As for runs scored, only the Padres (637) scored fewer runs than the Giants (640). To put things into perspective, the Rangers had scored 640 runs by Aug. 4 (with 49 games remaining). Though San Francisco flirted with the idea of signing outfielder Manny Ramirez, its only real offensive addition this offseason was shortstop Edgar Renteria. Renteria has topped 15 homers once (the 2000 season), and his RBI totals have declined each of the past two seasons. The Giants are counting on some surprise pop from their new corner infielders, but they should struggle to score again in 2009. 3. Other than Renteria, who's in the infield? Not a lot of household names. First baseman Travis Ishikawa, who has displayed a bit of power this spring, has 20-homer potential -- but also has just 45 games of major league experience. He has a good glove but must prove he can hit lefties. At the hot corner, Pablo Sandoval also has some pop but, like Ishikawa, is inexperienced (41 games in the majors). The second base battle has been a good one this spring, with Kevin Frandsen and Emmanuel Burriss each hitting for a high average and sporting a solid on-base percentage. Though both are solid defensively, neither is much of an offensive force on a team desperate for run production. PROJECTED LINEUP 1. RF Randy Winn. Led Giants' regulars with .306 BA, 25 SBs. 2. SS Edgar Renteria. Hit .309 past five N.L. seasons; .274 past two A.L. seasons. 3. LF Fred Lewis. Has speed, but it's tough to find another No. 3 hitter with 9 HRs in '08. 4. C Bengie Molina. Struck out only 38 times in 530 at-bats last season. 5. 3B Pablo Sandoval. Hit 20 HRs between Class A and Class AA last season. 6. CF Aaron Rowand. Had 27 HRs, 105 runs with Phillies in '07; 13 HRs, 57 runs with Giants in '08. 7. 1B Travis Ishikawa. First walk this spring came in 20th game. 8. 2B Emmanuel Burriss. Flirting with .400 BA this spring, but only 8 extra-base hits in 240 at-bats in '08. PROJECTED ROTATION 1. RHP Tim Lincecum. Led the majors with 265 strikeouts. 2. LHP Randy Johnson. Five wins shy of 300 for career. 3. RHP Matt Cain. Career-high 1.36 WHIP last season, thanks to 91 walks. 4. LHP Jonathan Sanchez. ERA rose by more than a half-run in final two starts in '08. 5. LHP Barry Zito. Has 4.83 ERA two seasons into $126 million contract. PROJECTED CLOSER RHP Brian Wilson. Among closers with at least 30 saves last season, only George Sherrill had a higher ERA (4.73) than Wilson (4.62). GRADES Offense: D. If this team had added a bat or two, things would be different. But instead of addressing that glaring weakness in the offseason, the Giants bolstered their pitching staff. The anemic offense is the only thing holding this team back from a surprise season. Pitching: A. In addition to a top-notch rotation, the Giants feature a revamped bullpen. They added lefthander Jeremy Affeldt and righthander Bob Howry as setup men for closer Brian Wilson, who tied for second in the N.L. with 41 saves last season. The staff's weakness: walks (third-most in the majors last season). Bench: C. Infielder Rich Aurilia is likely to spell Ishikawa against lefthanders. Infielder Juan Uribe, signed in the offseason, is having a good spring and has three 20-homer seasons on his resume. However, he also has a career .295 on-base percentage. Nate Schierholtz is an improving fourth outfielder; veteran outfielder Dave Roberts was released. Manager: C. Bruce Bochy is 143-181 in two seasons with the Giants, and there are heightened expectations this season. Finishing above .500 -- something Bochy did five times during his tenure in San Diego -- is an attainable goal in this weak division. Bochy will hammer home the importance of strong defense and needs to take some risks offensively. Sporting News prediction: An N.L. scout told Sporting News that the Giants will set the record for most games lost 1-0. He might be right. With Manny back in Los Angeles, the Giants are much more likely to battle the Diamondbacks for second place than make a run at the Dodgers and the N.L. West title. --

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