The Giants have selected 22-year old righty starting pitcher Steve Johnson from the Orioles in the Rule 5 Draft. Johnson was the #15 rated prospect in the Dodgers’ system heading into last season according to Baseball America. Johnson pitched in 27 games (25 starts) in A+AA ball last season and he was 12-7 with 1 save, a 3.41 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. He has now pitched in 91 games (82 starts) and he is 32-28 with 1 save, a 4.13 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. Johnson has a nice upside and he will be given every chance to make the Giants bullpen in spring training.

30-year old lefty reliever Jeremy Affeldt finished tied with Chris Coghlan and Brad Hawpe for 28th for the N.L. MVP Award. Affeldt pitched in 74 games (0 starts) for the Giants last year and he was 2-2 with a 1.73 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. He only allowed 42 hits in 62 1/3 innings while whiffing 55 batters showing just how tough he was last season. Affeldt has now pitched in 434 games (42 starts) in his major league career and he is 28-30 with 18 saves, a 4.27 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. The Giants are hoping that 2009 was just a sign of things to come for Affeldt as he has never pitched close to that well in his major league career before.

23-year old switch-hitting 3B/C Pablo Sandoval finished 7th in the voting for the N.L. MVP Award. He played in 153 games last season for the Giants and he was 189 for 572 (.330 avg, .943 OPS) with 79 runs scored, 25 homers and 90 RBIs. Sandoval has now played in 194 games in his two years with the Giants and he is 239 for 717 (.333 avg, .924 OPS) with 103 runs scored, 28 homers and 114 RBIs. Look for Sandoval to be a legit threat to win the MVP Award at some point if the Giants start putting better hitters around him which would be very scary for opposing teams.