Giants GM: No plans to trade Barry Zito

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Barry Zito has fallen to fifth in the San Francisco Giants’ starting rotation, but General Manager Brian Sabean said he has no plans to trade the left-hander this winter.

Zito has three years and $64.5 million left on his contract, and the Giants might be able to add some offensive help in trade if they were willing to swallow the bulk of that money. Zito did not make the Giants’ playoff roster, and Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez and Madison Bumgarner have established themselves as a formidable front four for years to come.

‘We like Barry’s contribution as far as the innings he pitches and the starts he makes,’ Sabean said before Game 5 of the World Series on Monday. ‘Part of Barry’s problem is that we haven’t been able to score for him.’

Zito has posted a losing record in each of his four years with the Giants, with an earned-run average ranging from 4.03 to 5.15. But he has pitched at least 180 innings every year, supporting the development of the young arms that have displaced him from the playoff rotation.

Zito held his own earlier this season. He went 7-4 with a 3.76 ERA before the All-Star break, then 2-10 with a 4.70 ERA afterward.

In his final 12 games, he went 1-8 with a 6.14 ERA. The Giants started him in their next-to-last gaem of the regular season, when they would have clinched the National League West with a victory; he walked home two runs and lasted three innings.

-- Bill Shaikin in Arlington, Texas