The Giants have signed reserve infielder Ivan Ochoa to a 1-year contract. The 25-year old righty swinging Ochoa played in 47 games for the Giants last season and he was 24 for 120 (.200 avg, .511 OPS) with 7 runs scored and 3 RBIs. But, he played well in AAA last season. Ochoa played in 84 games in AAA last season and he was 93 for 292 (.318 avg, .844 OPS) with 54 runs scored, 6 homers, 32 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.

Look for the Giants to continue to be aggressive in free agency. Signing Jeremy Affeldt today was a good start but there is still work to do. The Giants really need a impact 1B and they will likely be in on the bidding for Mark Teixeira and Jason Giambi. If they miss on both of those guys look for them to take a flier on Richie Sexson, Ben Broussard or Chris Shelton. The Giants also need a starting type 2B or SS. Rafael Furcal is very high on the shopping list for the Giants as they could use his speed at the top of the batting order. If they lose out on him they would likely consider Orlando Cabrera, Edgar Renteria or Felipe Lopez at shortstop. If they opt for a 2B they will likely target Mark Grudzielanek, Mark Loretta or David Eckstein. The Giants also need a veteran infielder for the bench and they will likely take a look at Nick Punto, Alex Cora, Alex Cintron, Craig Counsell and Willie Bloomquist for that job. The Giants could use a veteran starting pitcher to fill out the starting rotation unless Noah Lowry is ready to return. Look for the Giants to consider Jon Garland, Greg Maddux, Brad Penny, Braden Looper, Paul Byrd and Pedro Martinez. If they opt for a lefty think Kenny Rogers, Odalis Perez or Mike Hampton. The Giants could also use a couple of veteran righty relievers to help set up. Luis Ayala, Russ Springer, Kyle Farnsworth, Juan Cruz, David Weathers, Bobby Howry and Chan Ho Park will likely be considered for the job. Look for the Giants to spend a lot of cash in free agency to improve the team in 2009.

The Giants have signed 29-year old lefty reliever Jeremy Affeldt to a 2-year, $8 million dollar contract. He pitched in 74 games (0 starts) for the Giants last season and he was 1-1 with a 3.33 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. Affeldt whiffed 80 batters in only 78.1 innings for the Reds last season showing what kind of stuff he has. This was a excellent addition for the Giants as I had Affeldt ranked as the #3 lefty reliever available in free agency. Affeldt has now pitched in 360 games (42 starts) in his major league career and he is 26-28 with 18 saves, a 4.55 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. Affeldt’s career numbers were skewed by him being a starting pitcher early on his career with the Royals. This was just the beginning for the Giants who have some cash to spend.

The Giants have declined 41-year old switch hitting shortstop Omar Vizquel’s 2009 option valued at $5.2 million bucks. Vizquel played in 92 games for the Giants last season and he was 59 for 266 (.222 avg, .550 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 23 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Vizquel played four years with the Giants covering 542 games in which he was 510 for 1,926 (.265 avg) with 232 runs scored, 11 homers, 177 RBIs and 67 stolen bases. Vizquel will likely try to keep playing as he’s getting close to 3,000 hits in his career. He has now played in 2,680 games in his major league career and he is 2,657 for 9,745 (.273 avg, .693 OPS) with 1,361 runs scored, 77 homers, 892 RBIs and 385 stolen bases. It will be interesting to see if he can find a team willing to let him start in 2009 as he can still pick it in the field with the best of them.

The Giants have signed 30-year old righty swinging 1B Josh Phelps to a minor league contract. Phelps played in 19 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 9 for 34 (.265 avg, .600 OPS) with 4 runs scored and 1 RBI. Phelps has now played in 465 games in his major league career and he is 380 for 1,394 (.273 avg, .815 OPS) with 198 runs scored, 64 homers and 244 RBIs. Phelps has two weaknesses in his game 1.) he whiffs too much (397 career whiffs) and 2.) he’s a poor defender. But, if Phelps is hitting the ball well in spring training he could surprise and win the starting 1B job on the Giants.