NOVEMBER 16TH, 2011

The GM meetings are taking place in Milwaukee at the Pfister Hotel, where practically every team stays when playing the Brewers. The old hotel is also supposedly haunted.

(No joke: Pablo Sandoval refuses to stay there. When Edgar Renteria was a Giant, he moved a few blocks down to the Intercontinental, too.)

Nowadays, the only spirits you’re sure to see are flowing in the lobby. Having covered the GM meetings a few times, I can tell you they’re a pretty informal affair. They exist to set the groundwork for the agenda at the winter meetings, which begin Dec. 4 in Dallas. This agenda consists of both trade discussions between clubs as well as bringing up new business in the formal sessions. Proposing rule changes, etc.


As we all know, the Giants front office is in favor of a rule change that would protect catchers from being targeted in home-plate collisions. GM Brian Sabean and manager Bruce Bochy both came out strongly in favor of changing the rules after Buster Posey’s season-ending injury at the plate May 25. But neither Sabean nor Bochy has been able to build any consensus within the industry. Joe Torre, MLB’s on-field operations chief, told Bochy a few months ago that he would not support any rule changes to protect catchers. Amid that climate, my understanding is that the Giants will not even bother to raise the issue.

Instead, the news the past 48 hours (ramped up by Jon Heyman of SI.com) is that the Giants are looking to sign Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain to multiyear contract extensions. This isn’t a surprise. Sabean has said for months now that his first priority is to “take care of the pitching staff.” Cain and Lincecum, obviously, are the two most important pieces of that staff.

Lincecum must be dealt with first because he does not have a contract for 2012. He is eligible for arbitration this winter and next before becoming a free agent after the 2013 season. As the process goes, Lincecum’s camp and the Giants would file their salary figures between Jan. 5-15 and they would exchange them Jan. 18. If the two sides cannot come to an agreement after that, an arbiter will pick one of the two salaries, with hearings scheduled for Feb. 1-21 in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Two years ago, the Giants and Lincecum were about to enter the chamber when the two sides worked out a two-year contract. Now that contract has lapsed, and this time, the Giants would like to sign Lincecum to a four-year deal that buys out two of his free-agency years.

This should make for an interesting dance. Lincecum, don’t forget, told the San Francisco Chronicle in September that he prefers to operate on short-term contracts so he doesn’t feel the pressure to live up to a major deal. It’s also reasonable to assume that Lincecum will want to see how the team performs in 2012. If he loses three more 1-0 decision to Clayton Kershaw, that frustration could influence whether he wants to stay. When you bang your head against the wall enough times, you get a headache. That’s just how the world works.

Regardless of Lincecum’s appetite, it makes all the strategic sense for Timmy’s camp to hold off until the two sides exchange figures. You’re getting to see two more cards on the flop. No reason to act before all the information is at your disposal, right? So regardless of how aggressive the Giants plan to be, my expectation is that nothing is imminent. Also, it bears repeating: Lincecum cannot bolt for Seattle or anywhere else as a free agent until after the 2013 season.

As for Cain, he gets a major bump from $7 million in 2011 to $15 million next season. Then he’s a free agent. Typically, the Giants wait until spring training to extend players already under contract. There seems to be a greater incentive to get something done with Cain, though. I do believe he wants to remain a Giant and there should be common ground to hammer something out. So we’ll see.

I do think the clear preference among club officials is to extend Cain and Lincecum at the same time. Then they can have a big, happy news conference full of wet kisses.

–
The owners meetings immediately follow the GM meetings in Milwaukee and I’m told the Giants’ organizational restructuring of power from Bill Neukom to Larry Baer is not likely to come up for approval. That probably will happen at the next set of owners’ meetings in January, along with perhaps more discussion about the A’s potential move to San Jose.

For now, the owners have a full plate with the ratification of the new collective bargaining agreement and its various permutations, including a soft slotting system for the draft and the move of the Houston Astros to the American League.

Sources continue to tell me that the approval of Baer to the role of CEO will have nothing to do with the A’s/San Jose matter.

–
The Giants face one immediate action date on Friday. They must set reserve lists, which means protecting those players who otherwise would be eligible to be taken in the Rule 5 draft. You protect eligible players by placing them on your 40-man roster.

Charlie Culberson, Roger Kieschnick and Nick Noonan are the most recognizable names of minor leaguers who are eligible to be snatched up by another club unless they’re protected. You might not know about right-hander Hector Correa, but I consider him the easiest slam dunk to be added to the 40-man. He’s a potential impact relief arm and will be graded appropriately on Baseball America’s top prospects list. (Huge extra credit points if you remember that the Giants got Correa two springs ago when they traded Jack Taschner to the Pirates for Ronny Paulino, then flipped Paulino to Florida.)

Right now, the Giants have 36 players on the 40-man. I suspect they will add Correa and Culberson, at least. Kieschnick is a tougher call but probably ranks third on the list. Noonan, sadly, has dropped off the map.

The Giants also might look to protect lefty David Quinowski and right-hander Justin Fitzgerald. Right-hander Daniel Otero has been a closer in the system and isn’t a pure stuff guy, but has solid numbers and might merit a roster spot. Catchers Johnny Monell and Jackson Williams would be in play, too. Monell is not a premium defender, but has left-handed power and that is a rarity.

One thing is for sure: The Giants won’t max out their 40-man. They need to keep space open in case they sign a free agent or add a player in a trade, etc.

But there is a way the club can create more space to protect some of these prospects: By cutting ties now with others on the roster who are not in the plans for 2012. The Giants have a slew of arbitration-eligible players and they don’t plan to offer contracts to all of them. Officially, they don’t have to tender those contracts until midnight on Dec. 12. But if they already know they aren’t going to bring back players like Eli Whiteside, Jeff Keppinger, Mike Fontenot, etc., they might as well do them a favor and let them loose by Friday. That way, they can have more time to catch on with another team.

Whiteside, in particular, is a candidate to be taken off the roster. He’s beloved by his teammates, he caught the only no-hitter by a Giant in almost four decades and he owns a World Series ring. I think Giants fans will always think fondly of Eli. But Chris Stewart clearly brought more defensive skills to the table last year.

–
One other signing note: The Giants inked center fielder Gregor Blanco, a six-year minor league free agent who hit .201 for Washington’s Triple-A club last season. This is an organizational filler move. Then again, so was Ryan Vogelsong last year and Andres Torres the year before.

It’s baseball. You never know.