Giants should sign CC

Buster Olney was dead-on in his blog post yesterday: The Giants should think very strongly about signing CC Sabathia.

Barry Zito's awful $126 million contract aside, the Giants are a team with no identity. You could make the case that Tim Lincecum is talented enough to be the face of the franchise, but he doesn't seem to carry the charisma to be The Man.

The Giants are a team lacking offense, but their youthful pitching staff is envied around the league. Lincecum, Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez have all experienced different levels of success, and they have appear to have very bright futures. What better veteran could they have to learn from than Sabathia, the epitome of a "pro's pro."

Giants fans would flock to AT&T Park to watch Sabathia every fifth day, with the excitement of Lincecum pitching the day after.

Sabathia would be back in the area in which he grew up, pitching half his games at pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, not to mention the opportunity to throw similarly friendly ballparks in Los Angeles and San Diego.

The only glaring downside from Sabathia's point of view would be the unlikelihood of reaching the playoffs. The Giants, even with an outstanding pitching rotation if Sabathia were to join the squad, would need to vastly improve their offense and bullpen to be a playoff contender.

Still, the Giants need a face to their franchise to move beyond the Barry Bonds Era and Sabathia has emphasized the appeal of playing in California and being able to hit, as a NL pitcher. All the Giants need to do is realize Zito's contract is a sunk cost. Even if Sabathia costs an arm and a leg, his dominant pitching, leadership and vivacious personality could bring the Giants just what they need: an identity.