Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Giants Dump Rowand, Tejada

We have plenty of dead-weight contracts of our own--many of them ex-Giants, too; fancy that--but up north, the Giants have dumped two of their veterans who haven't worked out: Aaron Rowand and Miguel Tejada.

"After much deliberation, including a long night last night and sleeping on it, we felt that this was the right time to set them free. We appreciate their efforts. Sorry it didn't turn out, but again, it's about managing the roster. There's only 40 spots. It's a lot to do with that, including giving somebody like Pill a chance." [GM Brian Sabean]

Rowand, still owed $12 million from the Giants in 2012, batted .233 (77-for-331) with four home runs and 21 RBIs in 108 games. He had four hits in his last 40 at-bats (.100), and he has struck out 26 times since July 5 without drawing a walk. Sabean said he discussed Rowand's contract status with club ownership -- he is owed roughly $14 million between this year and next -- and it wasn't an issue.

The outfielder never turned into the offensive player the Giants hoped he would be when they signed him to a five-year, $60 million contract, never batting higher than .271 or posting an OPS above .750. His role greatly diminished this season with regular time given to outfielders Andres Torres, Cody Ross, Nate Schierholtz, Brandon Belt and Carlos Beltran.

"He was brought here for a reason. He fulfilled his obligation as a professional, to try to put us in a spot to help us win a World Series, and he did just that," Sabean said. "We learned from his work ethic and his commitment and his passion. As I told him, there's no regrets. Did it turn out the way we wanted to in the end? Obviously not. But it's time for both parties to move on."

"I wish things would have turned out differently," Rowand told MLB.com via text message. "I thank the Giants for the opportunity. I'm gonna miss my teammates and I wish every single one of them the best."

Tejada saw his role equally diminished this season, losing time at shortstop to Mike Fontenot, rookie Brandon Crawford and Trade Deadline acquisition Orlando Cabrera. With Pablo Sandoval holding down third base, Tejada rarely received starts at that position. The 37-year-old former American League MVP even volunteered to play second base earlier this season, and got his first career starts there, just to keep himself in the lineup.

"Everybody knows what I can do in this game, what I can do in a baseball field," Tejada told the Spanish blog, Beisbol por Gotas. "I would have liked it [to try to help the Giants to win]. It just did not happen."

But Tejada's lack of production was just as noticeable as Rowand's. He batted .239 with a .596 OPS. Most recently, Tejada appeared to represent an attitude problem, even though Giants manager Bruce Bochy nixed that idea. Tejada was asked to lay down a sacrifice bunt on Sunday and appeared reluctant, later explaining he wasn't happy with the request, but he went through with the order and later apologized to Bochy and bench coach Ron Wotus.

No word on whether Ned Colletti wants to pick up either player.

3 comments:

rbnlaw said...

Rowand DFA'd so they can bring up Tyler Pill? One Titan moves on for another.

Josh S. said...

In related news, Dodgers sign Rowand and Tejada.

Kyle Baker said...

I like how you use "Rowand" and "Dump" in the same headline. Reminds us of Aaron's batting stance.