Today and tomorrow I will examine the big questions that face the Giants this offseason. Today is simply the questions, tomorrow I will do my best to prognosticate what 2013 might look like. Here we go:

1) What can we expect from Tim Lincecum: the question isn’t really should he start or relieve, the question is can he regain his old form? More importantly, can he reinvent himself from a guy with nasty stuff to a great pitcher?

2) Can the rotation back up this post-season performance again: There’s no doubt that the Giants pitched well enough in 2011 to repeat. However they fell short due to a plethora of injuries that decimated the everyday lineup. But, as good as the pitching was during the post-season, there are questions about everybody: Lincecum (see above), Matt Cain (did he get tired this year, can he continue to carry the Ace mantle), Madison Bumgarner (can he regain velocity and put together a full season of dominance), Ryan Vogelsong (will the real Vogey please stand up…was his bad August/early September a sign that the bottom is falling out or just an aberration), and Barry Zito (can he do it again next year).

3) Can the lineup stay healthy: This is an overly simplistic view of reality, but there’s no denying the fact that in the two years the Giants have enjoyed Buster Posey’s presence in their lineup from June through October they won the World Series and in the one year he was out during that time they missed the playoffs. More to the point, this post-season demonstrated just how dynamic the middle of the lineup can be with Panda and Posey there and at full strength. So, Pablo can you stay in the lineup all season?

4) Will the Giants make the same mistakes from 2010: After winning the World Series the Giants allowed themselves to throw some objectivity out the window signing Aubrey Huff and Freddy Sanchez to new deals. Both of those guys were on the field celebrating in 2012 but had absolutely no impact on the games the team played. After 2011 Sabean and company shaped up a bit and made some more objective decisions, but rose-colored glasses could affect how they go after the holes in CF, LF, 2B, and in the bullpen.

5) Will the Giants make a splash in Free Agency: More and more money will be available and that money should probably go to a Buster Posey extension and a few other things, but the higher-ups could get excited about the buzz a Josh Hamilton signing would make. Do they go that direction or stick to the script that worked so well in 2010 and 2012?

We will tackle some of the answers tomorrow!

(-SB)