I think Detroit takes this in six - Verlander, Fielder and Cabrera are elite players and San Fran's lineup was badly weakened with the Cabrera suspension.  Interesting that they kept him out of the playoffs - I wonder if he'd be a good buy-low option for the Jays in the offseason.

I also agree that it's great to see Scutaro in the WS - I love the scrappy games who plays his way into a regular gig later in life.  Here's hoping Aviles can follow the same career path - neither were regulars until their late 20s and both earned solid defensive reps as they gained playing time.  Scutaro's offense wasn't consistent for several years but he's a solid number 2 hitter and and even better bat in the bottom 3 - if Aviles can manage that, I'd be thrilled with the Farrel deal. 

I'd also be thrilled if we re-signed Scutaro, although his value will have spiked with the NLCS MVP.  Congrats Marco!   

I thought my Giants were toast, down 3-1 with Zito starting game 5, but he managed to find some of his old magic.  Going to be tough against a Detroit rotation that is clicking on all cylinders.  First 2 games will be a pitching mismatch with the Giants 2 best starters of late, Vogelsong and Cain, unavailable.  Still, they seem to be finding a way to win, and badly outplayed a pretty solid Cardinals team over the last 3 games.  Some poor infield defense really hurt the Cards and maybe Detroit will show the same problem.  Valverde in the closer role is another potential weakness that could be exploited.  The Giants need Posey to get untracked.

Agree about Melky Cabrera as a potential pickup for the Jays in the offseason if the Giants don't resign him.  Came into his own last season at age 27, and sure, his numbers were likely inflated this year, but even if you knock off 10-20%, you've still got quite a season once you allow for that great pitchers' park he played in this year.  I think the Giants will resign him, though.  I think he's not playing now because he's been out for so long, and who knows how his timing would be affected, his frame of mind, etc.  Better to have a fresh start next year.

Of course, sign-and-trade might make sense..

I believe that free agents cannot be traded the year they are signed until June or so, unless they consent to an earlier trade. So the NBA sign-and-trade model doesn't apply here.

Heard an interesting stat before the game tonight.  Since baseball instituted a playoff system, rather than just the 2 league winners meeting in the World Series, there have been 3 cases where 1 team won their LCS 4 games to none and the other team took the full 7 games to win their LCS.  You would think that the team that won in 4 straight would be a more dominant team, and would have the better chance to win the World Series, but in fact, exactly the opposite has happened.  The 4-3 winners have pasted the 4-0 winners every time, winning the Series 4 games to 1 twice, and 4 games straight the other time.  Total score in games is 12-2 for the teams that took 7 games to win the LCS.  Well, 13-2 now after tonight's game. 

Sounds like the other team got rusty with the all the time off.  Their pitchers lose their feel for the strike zone, their hitters' timing gets a bit off.  Sure enough, that's exactly what the Tigers' mgr said when asked about Verlander's performance tonight.

In the Giants' last 4 games, they're now outscoring their opponents by a combined score of 28-4. 

They had an interesting analysis about Lincecum's delivery on the broadcast, too.  He's pitching out of the stretch to keep his torso back.  Apparently, he was letting his upper body get out in front, and it was costing him velocity and control.  He looked a lot like his old self tonight, not like the stiff who was wearing his uniform during the season.

Thanks, Mike Green.  After a long wait, 2 championships in 3 years is very nice, indeed.  I just hope they don't repeat the Blue Jays' pattern of a long drought after 2 Series victories.  With Crawford and Belt just beginning to scratch the surface of their abilites, and young or youngish guys like Posey, Sandoval, Bumgarner, Cain, Romo, and hopefully, a rebounding Lincecum and a healthy Wilson, I think the Giants might be around the post season for a while.  There will be greater payroll flexibility soon, as Zito's deal is almost done - nice to finally get some return on that contract this year - although some of the young guys will start to get expensive in a few years.  Will be interesting to see what happens this offseason with their free agents.  BTW, I'm not from the Bay area, I'm a GTA resident, but have been a Giants' fan since long before the Blue Jays were a gleam in anybody's eyes.