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Some might say that finding a No. 3 and 4 hitter from the bunch won't be easy, either. Rowand, who's in his prime, put up big numbers in Philly last year (27 HRs, 89 RBIs, .309) and signed for $65 million over five years, should be their best player. But one scout said, "He's not going to hit 25 home runs in San Francisco. A lot of that had to do with the ballpark. Plus, in Philly he was supporting cast there. He can't be that now.''

Scouts do like their pitching, even with Barry Zito's transition to the NL taking longer than anticipated and Noah Lowry out until late April with a rare forearm disorder that caused him to walk nine batters in one-plus innings this spring and required surgery. "Hitters aren't going to be lining up to face some of their guys," one NL scout said.

But the same scouts who like their pitching can think of several reasons why their offense will fail, including two more that aren't a fault of theirs: 1) They play in what's become an extremely tough division, with very tough starting pitching, and 2) The ballparks in their division aren't exactly hitters' parks.

The Giants prospered for years by surrounding Bonds with strong complementary players via a string of positive trades. Then they limped along with him the last couple years when he often played sporadically, their farm system failed them and their latest signings bombed. Now with Bonds gone, all that remains for the lineup are a mix of underperforming, end-of-the-line veterans and unproven kids.

The Giants are desperate enough for hitters that when Toronto offered Alex Rios for super-stud pitcher Tim Lincecum, long-time GM Brian Sabean reportedly thought long and hard about it before ultimately doing the right thing by saying no. Ultimately, the Giants don't see the benefit in making a desperation play like that.

They did reach out to Alex Rodriguez as a natural replacement for Bonds before A-Rod re-signed with the Yankees. Now they'll have to use aging Rich Aurilia or utililtyman Kevin Frandsen at third, just another position long on hope but likely short on reality. Frandsen tried shortstop but wasn't suited for the position, so injured Omar Vizquel's spot will likely be manned by someone barely half his age, perhaps Brian Bocock, a slick fielder who hit .243 at Class A last year. Frandsen could also play some second, where Durham struggled offensively last year, batting .218.

There's been a lot of talk lately about the Giants possibly trading for White Sox third baseman Joe Crede. However, an NL scout who's seen Crede this spring isn't impressed.

"He has some holes in his swing, and he doesn't even look like an average third baseman right now,'' the scout said.

There's another reason it might want to rethink any possible push for Crede.

"He's not by himself going to save the San Francisco Giants," the scout said. "They're going to need three or four hitters.''

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