See? This is what I mean

Next year, they gotta see what I'm talking about.

Randy Winn had better not lead off, for the same reasons that Ray Durham doesn't lead off anymore -- if the Giants want to believe that a good portion of the pop Winn is displaying is for real (some of it is) and that Winn will continue to be an extra-base machine next season, then they have to put him into a position where he'll be able to drive in some runs. Leading off, especially for a National League team, isn't going to cut it.

Lemme show you why this is. Winn has hit 14 home runs for the Giants, including the two he hit last night. The breakdown of how many he drove in with those round-trippers go like this:

Solo - 12
2R - 2
3R - 0
GS - 0

You can't hit all multi-run shots when you hit a home run, of course, but don't you think having 12 of your 14 total home runs be solo shots is a bit of a waste, not to mention the two that aren't be of the two-run variety?

The Giants' offense is still pretty poor without Barry Bonds, of course, but the Giants burying their best hitter over the last couple of months in the leadoff spot just because he's a "leadoff-type hitter" is asinine, and it cost the Giants runs, and perhaps victories (two of the three losses in games where Winn homered were by one run, and the other was by two runs).

This does not include doubles and triples, which are perfectly capable of scoring men on-base as well. But when you have the pitcher's spot and a guy in Mike Matheny who, at best, runs a .300 on-base percentage (and isn't exactly fleet of foot on the basepaths, either), there just aren't going to be many ducks on the pond for Winn to drive in if he happens to hit a double, triple, or home run, something he's done with great frequency since joining the club. Again, the Giants, through ignorance of common sense, have left a lot of runs out there unscored.

Old dog Father Alou, please learn a new trick next year. Just because he's supposed to be your leadoff hitter doesn't mean you have to bat him leadoff all the time (you seemed to learn this with Ray Durham) -- let Omar Vizquel handle that, and you can bat Winn 2nd, or even 5th, since Winn and Durham seem fairly similar hitters, especially from the left side.