© Jake Roth | 2018 Jul 12
We have a texter to the ‘Murph & Mac’ show who launches the same text, in perfectly-timed intervals of every two hours or so. The text reads:
“Is this Farhan guy going to do something?”
We could be deep into a discussion on how the NBA has caught up to the Warriors, or how Levi’s Stadium came alive for the College Football Playoff, or how Nick Foles is what Jimmy Garoppolo dreams of being, or sorting through texts on Klay or Draymond or the 49ers’ No. 2 pick and here it comes again:
“Is this Farhan guy going to do something?”
It’s become a running gag, not unlike the ‘Simpsons’ scene where Sideshow Bob steps on a rake, over and over and over. And over.
Farhan Zaidi took over the Giants’ head of baseball operations gig on November 6. He was billed as “next gen” by Larry Baer, the Giants’ CEO.
Problem is, after two months at the helm, “next gen” is more like “next when?”
Zaidi’s hire has translated into a player haul so obscure and bereft of heft, I won’t even bother to write their names. Unless you want to know about Mike Gerber, the Tigers outfielder they claimed off waivers. Or Travis Bergen, the lefty from Toronto they claimed in Rule 5. Or Pat Venditte, the dude who throws both righty and lefty.
See? I knew you didn’t want to know.
I guess if Zaidi is known for anything so far, it’s been to non-tender Hunter Strickland, which seemed to please some Giants fans on a visceral level.
Leave it to Duane (Smooth) Kuiper to try and greet 2019 with the right attitude. He took into consideration the Giants’ heavy contractual obligations (hello, $60 million in Jeff Samardzija, Mark Melancon and Johnny Cueto alone) and the glacially-slow free agent market and said to us this morning: “Giants fans are going to have to be patient.”
Patient!?! Has Kuip ever heard of Twitter?!?
I’m as itchy as the next Giants fan to see something creative and dazzling. I thought that when Zaidi came in, the Giants would magically be transformed into a combination of Billy Beane’s best A’s moves and an array of Chris Taylor-Swiss Army Knives from Zaidi’s days in Dodger Stadium. I figured we’d be blown away by three-team trades only MIT guys could understand. I expected “next gen” to bring us round-trippers galore.
Turns out, as Kuip said, I’m going to have to be patient.
You will, too.
Things may not happen until February, or even March. Or July, if you’re talking Bumgarner trade.
I still have big-time confidence in the hire. I still think Bobby Evans needed to be removed. I still think Zaidi will build something good on the corner of 3rd and King. His track record says as much.
But until then? I’ll just keep reading the text line, and chuckling.