After the season San Francisco Giants first baseman Aubrey Huff had in 2011, many fans were wishing never to see his face again.  

The versatile lefty, who was in many ways the engine of the Giants’ offense during the transcendent 2010 campaign, made $10 million while only accumulating a .306 on-base percentage, which for a first baseman is nothing short of shameful.

And before being put on the disabled list April 25 with an anxiety disorder, 2012 wasn’t going a whole lot better.  

But as Huff’s return approaches and the injuries in San Francisco begin to mount, the Giants can use a return to form from the first baseman, however steep the odds. 

The Giants took a debilitating body blow last Wednesday night when third baseman and de facto mascot Pablo Sandoval broke the hamate bone in his left hand while batting in what would end up being the second of three consecutive losses to the struggling Miami Marlins. The injury is the same one sidelining the slugger last season, just in the other hand. 

Sandoval had surgery Friday and is expected to return to the lineup in four to six weeks. 

His bat, though, will obviously be sorely missed. The team called up Conor Gillaspie, who sports solid minor league numbers but has so far failed to impress in the bigs. He will nonetheless get another shot, since manager Bruce Bochy has to put nine warm bodies on the field every night. 

But while it stings to lose perhaps one half of the 3-4 punch of Sandoval and Buster Posey for a month or so, and have that half replaced by an empty ball cap, the Panda should be back and as strong as ever by mid-June. If the team can manage to go at least .500 while he’s out, the Dodgers will still be plenty catchable. The season is young. 

The place the Giants need the most help right now is in the middle infield, usually patrolled at the moment by shortstop Brandon Crawford and utility man Ryan Theriot.

The Giants have long been admiring of the know-how a veteran presence brings to a lineup. Any long-time fan will be able to recount the frustratingly drawn-out careers of Randy Winn and Bengie Molina as examples of this unreasonable commitment to experience. 

This is the only reason Ryan Theriot still has a roster spot on a serious baseball team. In 44 at bats this season, “The Riot” is only sporting a .217 on-base percentage and has a grand total of one extra-base hit to his credit. 

The guy who should be getting the starts in his place is Brett Pill, who is usually seen as part of the first base mix, but saw significant time at second last season in Fresno. Pill has been hammering the ball this season, with a slash line of .300/.385/.500 in 30 at bats. For a team struggling to earn clutch hits with runners in scoring position, Bochy simply has to go with the hot hand and start Pill every day at second base. It should be his spot to lose. 

This brings us to the most infamous of Giants at the moment: Crawford. 

No one expected Crawford to be Derek Jeter at the dish. From the beginning of his career, he projected as a bottom-of-the-order bat, but was an exciting prospect for his defense, which many predicted could be of gold-glove quality. 

As of right now, though, he’s the biggest weak spot on a shaky roster and a candidate for immediate replacement. 

On top of hitting a conspicuous .208, he is among the worst defensive shortstops in the game right now, with six errors already on this season.  

His should-be replacement, journeyman Joaquin Arias, has already shown a slick glove, but more importantly a knack for coming up with clutch hits, a quality shared by virtually no other players on this roster.

 The Giants shouldn’t be overly worried about the temporary loss of Sandoval’s bat, if only because there are far more pressing, long-term question marks throughout the lineup. For right now, Crawford and Theriot should be benched in favor of the hot bat, but if San Francisco has championship aspirations, a more permanent solution will need to be found.

Alex Grotewohl can be reached at [email protected].