Freddy Sanchez feels he has something to prove to Giants fans. Now he will get two seasons to do it.

The club agreed to a two-year, $12 million contract with the 2006 NL batting champion and three-time All-Star, who will return as their starting second baseman and likely No. 2 hitter. Sanchez, 32, will receive $6 million next year and in 2011.
“I try to be a loyal person,” said Sanchez, who was acquired July 29 from the Pittsburgh Pirates for well-regarded pitching prospect Tim Alderson. “And now, being part of the Giants’ family, hopefully I can do what they traded for me to do.”
Sanchez expressed regret that he was limited to 25 games after the trade because of a strained left shoulder and recurring knee problems. The Giants’ medical staff knew that Sanchez would require left-knee surgery before approving the deal but signed off because it believed it could keep him on the field.
Sanchez had arthroscopic surgery Sept. 30 to remove torn cartilage and said he already is feeling “like nothing ever happened.”
He is about to begin rehab work to strengthen his shoulder and expects to be unencumbered when he reports to spring training.
Sanchez didn’t have the pennant-race impact the Giants anticipated, but general manager Brian Sabean called the second baseman a “targeted player.”
“We did a lot of work this summer on whoever we were going to bring in,” Sabean said. “We were fortunate to swing a trade. ... When Freddy was able to be on the field, he played up to our scouting reports and expectations.”
The two parties ripped up an $8.1 million club option, which had a $600,000 buyout.
Sanchez isn’t a patient hitter, but manager Bruce Bochy said the player’s bat control should play well near the top of the lineup. He said Sanchez could hit third — presumably in front of Pablo Sandoval, should the Giants fail to acquire a bona fide cleanup hitter.
“Freddy is part of the solution,” Bochy said.
Sabean has contacted other impending free agents to express the club’s intentions. He would like to re-sign infielder Juan Uribe but expects him to test the market.
Sabean said it forecasts to be a slow-moving market, which should work to his team’s advantage.
In other news, the Giants will outright right-hander Justin Miller, who was eligible for arbitration, but they could make an attempt to re-sign him. It’s less likely they will come to an agreement with left-hander Noah Lowry after declining his $6.25 million option and outrighting him off the 40-man roster. Lowry hasn’t pitched since 2007, and his agent has accused the Giants’ medical staff of incompetence.