Expectations for Aubrey Huff entering this season were reasonably low. He would be in his mid-30s, and a healthy dose of regression was inevitable, coming off of his incredible 2010 season. Out of nowhere, he had managed to hit .290/.385/.506 (.388 wOBA, 143 wRC+) on a measly one-year $3MM deal; he had posted the best walk rate of his career (12.4%) by far, and had even managed to steal seven bases without being caught at all. What’s more, he’d held his own defensively in the outfield — a position he hadn’t played since 2006 — after being asked to move there on short notice. He was, of sorts, the emblem of the Giants’ 2010 championship story, rally thong and all: a cheap one-year signing that had instantly revived his career with an all-star caliber season.
On November 23rd, the Giants rewarded him with a two-year $22MM contract; I’ve thought about this one a lot, and revisited it a while back. Conclusion: it was perfectly justifiable:
On No...
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