Top Ten:

1. Clayton Blackburn (SP)- I think on most lists, you are going to see someone else in the top spot, but I am a huge believer in Blackburn. A righty with good stuff, and tremendous command, I believe he has #2 starter potential, and think he is vastly underrated overall.

2. Kyle Crick (SP)- Crick didn’t waste any time in his first full season to flash his tremendous talent. He has an above average fastball and breaker, but has to get better with throwing more strikes. Plenty of time to iron that out, and he has a pretty ideal pitchers frame.

3. Chris Stratton(SP)- Stratton didn’t pitch a ton at the end of last season, but should have the ability to move quickly once he gets to full season ball this year. He shows a good feel for mixing his pitches and possesses a low to mid 90′s fastball with good movement, and a slider that is a true swing and miss pitch.

June 1, 2012; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs pitcher Chris Stratton (28) prepares to throw a pitch during the first inning in game one of the Tallahassee regional at Dick Howser Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

4. Joe Panik (SS)- Anyone remember Joe Randa? I do, and I have the feeling that Panik could have a similar career in major league baseball. He is a guy who shows a real good idea at the dish. Will probably hit a bunch of line drives and doubles, hit for average, and be solid defensively. Has pretty good athleticism but won’t wow anyone with it.

5. Gary Brown (OF)- Brown’s shine has a bit of tarnish after a 2012 season where he didn’t excite nearly as much offensively in 2011. Still, there is plenty of tools there to be an above average CF at the big league level. I just want to see 2013 to see who the real Gary Brown is. At the very least, he is a plus defender with plus speed and that has value.

6. Heath Hembree (RP)- Usually it’s not a good sign to have a reliever this high in the rankings. I feel like Hembree could be a top of the line closer though. A mid to upper 90′s fastball and devastating slider give Hembree two plus pitches.

7. Michael Kickham (SP)- Kickham sits in the low 90′s with his fastball and touches the mid 90′s. He does have some issues with command, and still needs to improve his breaking ball and change up, but he is getting better, and the Giants development staff is good.

8. Andrew Susac (C)- I really liked Susac coming out of college. At the least, I do think he has backup catcher at the major league level written all over him. If the bat comes along just a bit more, he could be a solid regular.

9. Edwin Escobar (SP)- A young left hander with solid stuff, Escobar pitched really well in low A ball last season. I suspect the Giants could develop him into a mid rotation starter.

10. Adalberto Mejia (SP)- Mejia is another young lefty with mid rotation potential. Had good numbers as a 19 year old in low A ball.

Just Missed The List:

Martin Agosta (P), Mac Williamson (OF), and a whole bunch of relievers.

Agosta is a strong armed pitcher that could be a back of rotation guy or set up type. Williamson has some solid tools and power potential. The Giants are loaded with relief arms that have strikeout potential.

Sleepers:

E.J. Encinosa (SP) and Joan Gregorio (SP)

These guys are both sleepers for the same reason, big framed guys that have the potential for plus stuff, but both still need to learn how to command and pitch.

Summary:

I went back and forth on this ranking as much as anyone. I think it’s pretty clear that the pitching is the strength of this farm system, and because it lacks a bit of balance, I put it in the back half of the rankings. I really like the top three pitchers, and there are some young Latin guys that have really good potential as well. Add to that the plethora of high end relief arms, and the Giants should have pitching for years to come.

I do believe that Brown and Panik can be every day guys at the big league level, but probably not more than average regulars. Guys like Francisco Peguero haven’t quite developed yet because of plate discipline, but the Giants always seem to find a way. Latin bonus baby Gustavo Cabrera is generating quite a bit of buzz, and outfielder Shilo McCall showed a bit of potential last season as an 18 year old.

Except that the Tigers have only scored 3 runs in 3 games of this series so far. And it’s put them in a 0-3 hole that is all but insurmountable.

The Tigers fell to the San Fransisco Giants tonight by a 2-0 final score, the same score they went down with 2 nights ago after a solid start from Doug Fister (a good outing despite the line drive that glanced off his head during his outing). Tonight, it was Anibal Sanchez, who suffered the loss thanks to a poor 2nd inning, with a run scoring Gregor Blanco triple accounting for the game winning run.

Prince Fielder (Photo: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports)

Yes, that’s right, game winning run, produced in the 2nd inning of tonight’s game. The anemic Tigers offense, fresh off a measly 2-hit effort in game 2, managed to scratch out only 5 hits tonight. The team did manage some life at 2 different stretches in the game, having 2 on and 1 out both times, only to hit into gut-wrenching, rally killing double plays, one by Prince Fielder and the other by Quintin Berry.

As for Fielder? Now batting .100 in the World Series. In addition to the GIDP, he struck out twice.

As for Sanchez, 7 innings, 2 runs, 6 hits, 1 walk, 8 strikeouts, zero run support.

The Giants Ryan Vogelsong went 5 2/3, giving up all 5 hits the Tigers could muster, walking 4 and striking out 3. In addition to the lack of Tigers clutch hitting has been the stellar defense behind Giants pitching in this series. Well placed in the field, as the Tigers are continuously hitting the ball right at, or in the vicinity of the defense. And if you take away the late game error by Brandon Crawford at shortstop, which had no ill effect, then it’s been a rather flawless series for the Giants as a whole.

The Tigers will attempt to salvage this series tomorrow night. Game 4, Max Scherzer vs. Matt Cain. The team will attempt to score a run for the first time since the 9th inning of game 1.

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Follow me on Twitter, @DisplacedTgrFan.

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Oct 10, 2012; Cincinnati, OH, USA; San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Barry Zito (75) pitches in the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds in game four of the 2012 NLDS at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-US PRESSWIRE

Game One: Barry Zito, LHP

The Giants haven’t made an official announcement regarding their pitching rotation, but it seems apparent that Zito will get the game one start on normal rest after pitching in game five of the NLCS. Barry Zito has a Cy Young award in his closet at home, but that came ten years ago, and he hasn’t put up an ERA below 4.00 in a season since 2006 while he was still with Oakland.

Game Two: Ryan Vogelsong, RHP

San Francisco’s game two starting pitcher is very much up in the air. Vogelsong would have to pitch on short rest in order to go in this slot, but he may be a more attractive option to the Giants than Madison Bumgarner, whose velocity has been trending sharply downward, or Tim Lincecum, who posted a 5.18 ERA in the regular season and got shelled (4.2 IP, 4 ER) in his one start in the NLCS.

I’m guessing they’ll try to get Vogelsong in here, because if they don’t, they’ll be stuck with the possibility of two starts from the Bumgarner/Lincecum combination and only one start from Vogelsong.

Game Three: Matt Cain, RHP

Matt Cain is the staff ace, so San Francisco would like to get him in the action as soon as possible and pitch him twice in the series. He’s a lock to pitch game three on normal rest which also lines him up for to pitch game seven as well. I’m sure the Giants would have loved to line him up for games one and five, like the Tigers did with Verlander, but that wasn’t an option after falling down three games to one in the NLCS to the Cardinals. They needed Cain for game seven to get to the World Series in the first place.

Game Four: Madison Bumgarner, LHP

We could very easily see Lincecum get this start, but he’s excelled in a relief role this postseason. Bumgarner’s velocity (and lack of effectiveness) has been a concern for San Francisco fans, but he would be on extra rest here, and they’d be able to put him on a short leash with Lincecum available for a couple of innings out of the pen.

Game Five: Barry Zito, LHP

Zito has pitched well in the postseason, but he’s nowhere near the Barry Zito of old and Giants fans can’t be particularly pleased about the prospect of him pitching twice in the World Series, especially if he’s matched up against Verlander in both games.

Game Six: Ryan Vogelsong, RHP

The advantage of Vogelsong pitching on short rest in game two would be his availability to pitch in game six. If he sticks with normal rest (actually extra rest) and pitches in game four then he’d only get one World Series start and we’d see Bumgarner or Lincecum start in a pivotal game six.

Game Seven: Matt Cain, RHP

Again, it’s an easy choice for Cain to pitch game seven. He’s their ace, and the Giants would have to be favored in a Cain-Anibal Sanchez matchup.

The Tigers have feasted off of right handed pitching this season (.275/.337/.434), so that gives them a leg up against the Giants’ top two pitchers (Cain and Vogelsong), but they’ll have to step up against the lefty Zito (and possibly Bumgarner) to take the series (Detroit hit .253/.329/.395 versus left-handers on the season).