Huff Ready to Return to Giants in 2011

Nov. 3, 2010GIANTS PAGEGIANTS VIDEO

SAN FRANCISCO(AP)Aubrey Huff won a World Series with the San Francisco Giants and he wants to stay put right where he is.The free agent first baseman was backat the ballpark Wednesday after raising his lucky red thong forthousands of fans during a downtown victory parade. He said that hehopes to return to the Giants for 2011 and beyond."Oh, absolutely, without question,"Huff said. "I won a World Series here. I've been in last place my wholelife. I won a World Series. The fans are crazy. You'd be an idiot notto want to come back here. I love it. I've been on five differentteams. I liked them but I didn't love them. I love this place."The 33-year-old Huff reached theplayoffs for the first time in his 11-year big league career in hisfirst year with the Giants. He hit a two-run homer in a 4-0 Game 4victory.San Francisco signed Huff to a 3million, one-year contract last January to provide a boost in themiddle of the batting order. Huff hit .290 with a team-leading 26 homeruns and 86 RBIs while playing in 157 games. The Giants were countingon Huff returning to his 2008 form, when he hit .304 with 32 home runsand a career-best 108 RBIs.He certainly showed plenty ofimprovement, not to mention versatility playing both first and leftfield, in bouncing back from a career-worst .241 batting average in2009 with Baltimore and Detroit. He wound up with 15 homers and 85 RBIsin 150 games between the two teams last year.Huff feels at home in the Bay Area after only one season."I didn't know San Francisco had thatmany fans, that many people," Huff said. "That was something, man. Theschools were out, most of the people were off work. It wasunbelievable."Even the rival Oakland Athletics, whoswept San Francisco in the 1989 World Series, showed their appreciationfor the Giants. The A's took out a full-page ad in The San FranciscoChronicle saying, "Like everyone else, we're inspired."Also Wednesday, World Series MVPEdgar Renteria, who hit a three-run homer off Texas ace Cliff Lee inthe seventh inning of Monday night's 3-1 clincher, said he isn't readyto decide if he will retire. Injured most of the season, he said he isgoing to give himself a chance to rest for a while before determininghis future.Renteria spent three stints on the disabled list and finished the year playing with a torn biceps."It's always hard to think about retiring," Renteria said. "I want to rest. Whew, I feel great."Ace Tim Lincecum, who beat Lee inthe opener and again in the Series clincher, doesn't plan to rest forlong. He said he would return home to Seattle - where he plans to buy anew place - and take three weeks off before resuming his offseasonworkout program.The two-time reigning NL Cy YoungAward winner altered his routine to focus more on leg strength and corework during a career-worst five-star losing streak in August.The shaggy-haired pitcher is stillsoaking in the fact he just won a World Series ring, the city's firstchampionship since the franchise moved West in 1958. When he hopped thedugout rail to celebrate after the final out at Rangers Ballpark inArlington, he was in disbelief."It hadn't really settled in," the26-year-old Lincecum said. "You're just kind of standing there wavingyour hands and screaming, kind of more in shock than anything. Like,this really happened, can you believe it, that's what you're askingeverybody and asking yourself. It hasn't really set in yet, maybe alittle more today just because of the fans and getting to watch theirreaction to seeing us. I'm still waiting for those tears. I'll see whenthose happen."