The San Francisco Giants have a lineup that is the envy of little league clubs everywhere. So, that they are starting to make some changes should be not be surprising. Second baseman Kevin Frandsen has been recalled from triple-A Fresno and will be taking at-bats away from Emanuel Burriss. Burriss is slumping and this team already has too many holes to give him much leeway. The club is also giving Jesus Guzman (the former Venezuela Winter League MVP and Oakland Athletic) chance to take at-bats from first baseman Travis Ishikawa.
In six minor league seasons, primarily as a third baseman and second baseman for the Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics, and the Giants, Jesus Guzman has slash line of .300/.368/.471 with 72 homeruns, and 31 stolen bases in 2393 at-bats. The interesting stats are mostly in the last couple of seasons. In 2007 for the Mariner he smacked 25 homeruns with a slash of .301/.370/.539 in 518 at-bats at the High-A level. In 2008 for the Oakland Athletics he hit a combined 23 home in 415 at-bats at three different minor league levels. He signed as a minor league free-agent with the San Francisco Giants and for triple-A Fresno has hit .363/.391/.592 with 21 extra-base hits in 157 at-bats. I like him. Especially since Ishikawa has been so miserble this season. He does hit a lot of groundballs but hits tons of linedrives and is just 24-years old.
Jesus Guzman Statistics from The Baseball Cube
Minor League Split Statistics from Minor League Baseball Splits
Jesus Guzman Wins VWL MVP
Kevin Frandsen is not a special player when it comes to the things we fantasy owners like to see. But he is a good contact hitter with patience at the plate. These are qualities that the Giants can use in their lineup. Frandsen has mediocre power at best and I would be mildly surprised if he ever hit more than ten homeruns in a season. He is a decent second baseman and should be of value in NL-only leagues as a middle infielder or quality injury replacement.
