San Francisco Giants Season In Review: Hunter Pence

Oct 28, 2012; Detroit, MI, USA; San Francisco Giants players including Hunter Pence (8) throw sunflower seeds in the air as they enter the clubhouse after game four of the 2012 World Series against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. The Giants won 4-3 to sweep the series. Mandatory Credit: H. Darr Beiser-USA TODAY Sports

Oh, Hunter.

Few players arrive in a trade with the type of paparazzi like fanfare Pence received from the Giants and maybe looking back on it, it was too much as the pressure seemed to disrupt the already struggling Pence even more.

Coming over from the Philadelphia Phillies in a mid-Summer trade, Pence was supposed to be the middle of the lineup force the Giants needed. With Pablo Sandoval returning from his injury, the Giants’ offense, bashed by many, now had a heart of the lineup that featured Melky Cabrera, Pablo Sandoval, Buster Posey and Hunter Pence – certainly far from the trash many pundits made it out to be. Of course, that lineup played in one lone game – a 6 to 1 victory over the Washington Nationals before Cabrera was suspended and Pence went down baseball’s proverbial toilet.

Struggling already in Philadelphia behind season-long trade rumors, Pence was expected to clear his mind by the Bay – with a reinforced lineup and with a fantastic career history at AT&T Park, big things were expected from Pence but the Fort Worth native never came through – in fact – he did worse than just about anybody could imagine.

Pence’s numbers as a Giant made his awful numbers in Philadelphia look impressive – Pence hitting .219 in his 59 regular season games as Giant, his postseason even worse as he chimed in with a .210 average and only three extra base hits. What could’ve went wrong for Pence did – an oddity given his solid career track record, which should give Giant fans hope going into 2013 and beyond.

Still – for 2012, Pence was the definition of dreadful. As a great mind once said – you can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig. And for Pence, his 2012 as a San Francisco Giant was nothing short of awful. While I and many of you certainly appreciate his efforts in the clubhouse, what took place on the field was about as sub-par as it can be.

Season Grade: F