San Francisco Giants

The Chicago Cubs continued their fire sale by reportedly trading third baseman Kris Bryant to the San Francisco Giants on Friday, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.  

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported on the return heading back to Chicago:

Cubs receive OF Alexander Canario (No. 9 SF prospect per @MLBPipeline) and RHP Caleb Killian (No. 30) from the Giants for Kris Bryant, per source.

— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) July 30, 2021

Bryant emerged as one of the best players in baseball from his debut season in 2015 through 2017. His 20.7 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) over that span ranked third in MLB behind only the Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout (25.8) and Toronto Blue Jays' Josh Donaldson (21.4), per FanGraphs.

He's a three-time All-Star selection, won the National League MVP in 2016 and was named the NL's Rookie of the Year in 2015. He also helped lead Chicago to the 2016 World Series title.

The 29-year-old Las Vegas native rebounded in 2019 following an injury-plagued 2018 campaign. He posted a solid .272/.374/.460 triple-slash line across 102 appearances in 2018, but his .834 OPS represented a career low, and he slugged just 13 homers.

Bryant played in 147 games in 2019, putting up a .282/.382/.521 slash line and 31 homers over 543 at-bats.

Injuries once again plagued Bryant during the 60-game 2020 campaign. He set career lows across the board for batting average (.206), on-base percentage (.293) and slugging percentage (.351) with four homers in 34 games. 

Bryant has returned to his All-Star level this season with a 133 OPS+ and .267/.358/.503 slash line with 18 homers in 93 games. 

The Cubs were still willing to move on after also dealing away big names like Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez and Craig Kimbrel.

The talented and versatile star should immediately slot into the middle of the Giants' order alongside Buster Posey and Brandon Crawford among others. At 64-38, San Francisco already has the best record in the majors but the latest addition showed the organization is ready to compete for a World Series title.

The trade market for Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story "has become more active in last 24 hours," according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi.

Morosi added the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants are among the teams interested in Story prior to Friday's 4 p.m. ET deadline.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported the Oakland Athletics are acquiring Starling Marte from the Miami Marlins for Jesus Luzardo. With Marte off the board, Story is arguably the best position player available.

However, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported some around MLB "are alarmed by his poor throwing." His throws from short have less velocity compared to years past, and his six throwing errors are one away from tying a career high.

The 28-year-old went on the injured list with right elbow inflammation in late May. While he was back on the field by June 10, it's fair to wonder whether his elbow is still causing him trouble.

Story's struggles aren't limited to defense. Through 87 games, he's batting .240 with a .733 OPS.

According to FanGraphs, his strikeout rate (23.8 percent) is on pace to be a personal best, so it isn't a simple case of whiffing more frequently. For whatever reason, the power isn't there—a .182 isolated power—relative to his usual production.

Rosenthal went on to say the Rockies may hold on to Story through the deadline so they can receive a compensatory draft pick after they extend a qualifying offer in the offseason and he presumably signs elsewhere. Colorado would be willing to take that step rather than agree to what the front office believes would be a lackluster return.

Perhaps that's a way to drive up the price for Story, since the Rockies have seen his value continue to fall as the season unfolds. 

The Athletic's Nick Groke argued that a missed opportunity to trade Story would be a "significant failure" given that the organization would not have anything to show for what was once a prized asset.

The San Francisco Giants have jumped into the Kris Bryant Sweepstakes in a big way, reportedly offering the team's No. 2 ranked prospect, catcher Joey Bart, in exchange for Bryant and his expiring contract. 

According to MLB Network's Jon Morosi, the Giants would be willing to part with Bart—who's slashing .310/.372/.532 with nine home runs and 38 RBI over 44 games in Triple-A this season—as long as the Cubs are willing to provide more than just Bryant in return.

Bart, the former No. 2 overall pick, likely would be available only in a deal that involves players in addition to Bryant, a free agent after this year. Bryant would have great value to the Giants, with whom he could play 1B, 3B, and LF. @MLBNetwork @MLB

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 28, 2021

The Cubs' left fielder and third baseman is batting .269/.356/.500 with 17 home runs in a resurgent season for the 2016 NL MVP. 

Bart was selected No. 2 overall in 2018 and is projected to become an everyday Major Leaguer by the end of 2021. MLB Pipeline graded his hitting and power at 50 and 60, respectively, on a scale of 20-80:

Bart's bat speed, strength and the leverage in his 6-foot-2 frame give him well above-average raw pop, more than most catchers possess. The right-handed hitter didn't do much damage in his big league debut, however, as he got too pull-conscious and aggressive and didn't catch up to quality fastballs while posting alarming strikeout (37 percent) and walk (3 percent) rates in 111 plate appearances. He had more success in the Minors when he displayed more patience and let his power, which plays to all fields, come naturally." 

The catcher is ranked No. 17 in Pipeline's Top 100 and would provide an immediate long-term solution for the Cubs at the position. Chicago could then pair Bart with Willson Contreras, who holds another year of club control, or look to move Contreras and his final year of arbitration eligibility. 

The Cubs appear to have entered tear-down mode with shortstop Javier Baez, first baseman Anthony Rizzo and closer Craig Kimbrel among the most desired assets on the trade market. It's unclear how many of the team's core players could depart before Friday's MLB trade deadline. 

It's also unclear if the Giants are expecting to receive any of the aforementioned stars alongside Bryant in exchange for Bart. 

In the meantime, the Giants' prospect becomes one of the more intriguing players dangled over the Cubs and presents the franchise with a legitimate trade partner. 

   

  

As Major League Baseball's July 30 trade deadline inches closer, there's major potential for an arms race between the three leading contenders in the National League West.

Ironically, the leader of that particular pack might also be the underdog to win said arms race.

In San Diego, it's little secret (i.e., here and here) that Padres general manager A.J. Preller isn't afraid of making blockbuster deals. And in spite of the team's third-place standing at 56-42, ESPN's Jeff Passan reports that the Padres are willing to aim high for impact players even if it means surpassing the $210 million luxury-tax threshold.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, the defending World Series champion Dodgers are in second place at 59-38 and haven't been in first place since all the way back on April 28. Yet they're determined to bolster their chances by adding to their depleted starting rotation.

As Mark Feinsand of MLB.com wrote on Monday: "I could see just about any available starting pitcher winding up with the Dodgers. There’s urgency there."

As for the San Francisco Giants, well, they've shocked just about every preseason prognosticator by going 60-35 to rise to the top of the NL West and all of Major League Baseball. Per conventional wisdom, that should have them adopting John Hammond's motto ahead of the deadline: spare no expense.

Whether they will, though, is just as fascinating a question as whether they should.

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The Giants Have Tons of Trade Capital...If They Want to Use It

If we can grant that there is such a thing as a "perfect" trade deadline buyer, it's one that:

• A. Has prospects to deal
• B. Has room to add payroll
• C. Has more than one incentive to win now

The Dodgers and the Padres certainly have that third box checked, but there's room for debate with regard to the other two. 

Though the Padres' farm system checks in at No. 8 in B/R's rankings, its actual depth doesn't look so great while left-hander MacKenzie Gore is saddled with a 5.85 ERA at Triple-A and shortstop CJ Abrams is done for the year with a leg injury. And even if they're indeed open to going over the luxury-tax threshold, the resulting penalties are surely a disincentive to do so.

For their part, the Dodgers' estimated $262 million luxury-tax payroll already puts them well over the threshold and therefore in line to pay especially heavy penalties. Even if they disregard that in trade talks, there's perhaps some question as to whether they have enough in their 11th-ranked farm system to go after the truly big fish on the trade market.

The Giants, by contrast, check all three of those boxes with aplomb.

Headlined by shortstop Marco Luciano, catcher Joey Bart, outfielder Heliot Ramos and left-hander Kyle Harrison, the Giants have a strong contingent of Tier-1 talents in baseball's ninth-best farm system. And we might even be underrating left-hander Seth Corry, who ranks at No. 84 in MLB.com's top 100.

At $158.8 million, the Giants also have a luxury-tax payroll that's nowhere even close to the $210 million threshold. And since they opened with a $200 million payroll just three years ago, they almost certainly can spend more.

Lastly, the Giants' win-now incentives are twofold. For one, they are winning now. For two, there's a ticking clock at play with starters Kevin Gausman and Anthony DeSclafani and veteran hitters Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt all due for free agency at the end of the season.

At least on paper, the Giants thus look like a team that can and surely can't wait to make a blockbuster deal or two. But in actuality, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi indicated to Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area that his approach will be of the restrained variety:

We feel really good about the way we're playing. If there's the right opportunity to add to this team, I think we have a little bit of a different mindset than we did in 2019. But I think we're still going to be careful with anything that's involving our long-term plans and some of the younger guys we have coming up that we're really excited about.

Because the Giants are looking at not only making the playoffs for the first time since 2016 but also playing deep into October for the first time since they won their third World Series in five years in 2014, this probably isn't what their fans want to hear right now.

One way or another, however, Zaidi may have the right idea.

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How Good Are the Giants, Really?

To be sure, the Giants' chances of snapping their five-year playoff drought must be taken seriously. FanGraphs, for example, put those chances at just 5.7 percent back on Opening Day. They're now at 94.7 percent.

There is a difference, however, between a team merely making the playoffs and winning its division. The latter is where the Giants still only have a 17.3 percent chance of finishing ahead of the Dodgers and Padres, so the road they're on most likely leads to a do-or-die showdown in the National League Wild Card Game.

Accordingly, the Giants' chances of going deep in the playoffs aren't great. Their chances of going to the World Series are about 8 percent. Of winning it? Only about 3 percent.

Obviously, these numbers aren't gospel. And yet they do create a sense that the Giants are playing above their heads, which works as a sort of justification for Zaidi's reluctance to put all his chips on 2021. He would run the risk of having misread his team's tea leaves and thereby destroying a future that he's been cultivating since he got the job in 2018.

Unless, of course, his public reluctance to go big at the deadline is actually a smokescreen meant to disguise how much he actually believes in his team.

To this end, Exhibit A that the belief in these Giants is indeed warranted is an offense that's produced a league-high 144 home runs and which has actually upped its collective OPS on a monthly basis.

This is impressive stuff for an offense that doesn't even have the benefit of the designated hitter, much less one that's currently without Crawford (oblique), Belt (knee) and Evan Longoria (shoulder) because of injuries. The first two should be back in a matter of weeks, while Longoria will hopefully be back by September.

On the other side of the ball, the Giants pitching staff is perhaps less than the sum of so many parts that have thus far added up to a 3.26 ERA. Yet they have both a genuine No. 1 in Gausman, who has a 1.84 ERA, and a genuine No. 2 in DeSclafani, whose ERA is at 2.78.

Whereas projections and playoff odds can only see the Giants for what they might be, what they actually are is an undeniably great team. It's not just their record. It's also their plus-121 run differential and their solid 23-17 record against winning clubs.

If this is the reality that the Giants ultimately choose to lean into at the trade deadline, they may well walk away with some of the market's top prizes.

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There's Good Stuff Out There for the Giants

Though Zaidi unsurprisingly wasn't making any promises when he spoke with reporters in early July, he nonetheless hinted that starting pitching would be his priority in trade talks:

Farhan Zaidi met with beat writers, said starting pitching depth remains biggest concern rest of season. Said Giants will have different deadline mindset than in past, but he really likes this roster & "we're still going to be careful with anything that impacts long-term plan."

— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) July 10, 2021

Because the Giants don't necessarily need another top-of-the-rotation arm to complement Gausman and DeSclafani, this is one area where they might actually get what they want without having to sacrifice significant prospect or payroll capital.

But if they do want to go for broke, there are aces out there for the taking.

Atop the list of those likely to be moved is Texas Rangers All-Star Kyle Gibson, who ought to be well within even the Giants' most extreme price range. Though they're less likely to get traded, San Francisco could also potentially afford underrated Colorado Rockies right-hander German Marquez, Atlanta veteran Charlie Morton, Minnesota Twins ace Jose Berrios and even Max Scherzer, the Washington Nationals' three-time Cy Young Award winner.

Yet as Will Smith reminded the Giants with his walk-off home run on Tuesday, the club's biggest need is actually in a bullpen that lacks a true closer. That's where they might have a shot at Pittsburgh Pirates righty Richard Rodriguez or, even better, Chicago Cubs eight-time All-Star Craig Kimbrel.

On the position player side, the Giants don't necessarily need to add to the core they already have. Yet they might do it anyway because A) they might not want to take anything for granted with the health of Crawford, Belt, Longoria and other 30-somethings like Buster Posey and Donovan Solano and B) because more is always better.

Which is to say that there may be something to a report from Craig Mish of the Miami Herald that the Giants are a team to watch in the sweepstakes for Marlins center fielder Starling Marte. They're even a potential fit for Rangers slugger Joey Gallo, who would equip their lineup with even more power and Gold Glove-winning defense in right field.

Any one of these players would put the Giants that much closer to capping their surprising season in style. Accordingly, any combination of them would practically put that outcome within reach.

Since it's not a question of whether they can be, it's really one of just how bold the Giants want to be over the next nine days.

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Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.

The San Francisco Giants aren't letting Danny Duffy's placement on the Injured List scare them out of inquiring about the Kansas City Royals veteran. 

According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Giants may have to part with "fewer or lesser" prospects to land Duffy as he works through a left flexor tendon strain that's expected to keep him sidelined until early August. 

Through 12 starts, the 32-year-old lefty has a 2.51 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 65 strikeouts on 22 walks in 61 innings. 

Fellow National League West contenders—the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres—are reportedly in the mix for Duffy as well. The California native can add plenty of depth to any of the three NL West teams and carries a World Series pedigree after helping the Royals capture the title in 2015. 

Per Slusser:

Though the Giants also are expected to look at the first-base and outfield markets, a starter remains a priority, and as The Chronicle previously reported, the Rangers scouted the team’s series at St. Louis. The Cardinals are among the teams scouting the series in Los Angeles, and Adam Wainwright is a target for teams seeking rotation help, but St. Louis has not determined yet whether it will be a seller. Texas has an All-Star, Kyle Gibson, to dangle, along with outfielder Joey Gallo, and either would require a substantial return. Minnesota starter Jose Berrios is a hot commodity, but also will be pricey.

Even with MLB's trade deadline set for 4 p.m. ET on July 30, there hasn't been the flurry of deals that typically begin to pick up at this time of year. Instead, with a few teams still deciding whether to buy or sell, the market seems to be at a steady simmer. 

ESPN's Jeff Passan expects that to remain the status quo a bit longer, reporting that many executives believe movement around the league will be scarce until right before the deadline. That could give the Royals a bit more time increase Duffy's trade value by helping him get healthy.

   

  

San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford is out of the lineup because of an oblique injury.

Per The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly, Crawford has been placed on the injured list with an oblique strain.

Baggarly noted Crawford is expected to miss 10-14 days. Jason Vosler is being recalled to take his spot on the 26-man roster.

Even though the loss of Crawford does sting, the Giants did receive some good news on the injury front Monday. Buster Posey was activated off the IL and will play in the series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Crawford has been one of MLB's best shortstops over the past five seasons. The three-time Gold Glove winner ranked second among NL shortstops in FanGraphs wins above replacement from 2015-18 (13.5), trailing only Corey Seager of the Los Angeles Dodgers (14.9).

Things didn't go as smoothly for Crawford from 2019-20, though he's been fantastic so far this season. He's hitting .286/.363/.546 with 18 homers in 82 appearances.

San Francisco seemed to be in a difficult position of trying to contend with an older roster when the season began, though it currently leads the NL West with a 58-34 record. The team still has a small margin for error in the same division as the Dodgers and San Diego Padres.

San Francisco Giants prospect Drew Robinson is retiring from professional baseball and will join the franchise's front office to continue his work as a mental health advocate, the 29-year-old announced Friday. 

pic.twitter.com/oxr5mpYke4

— Drew Robinson (@Drewrobbb) July 16, 2021

Robinson, who's attempted suicide in April 2020 and return to baseball the following year was chronicled by ESPN's Jeff Passan, spent the start of the 2021 season with the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats. In 35 games following the loss of his right eye, Robinson slashed .128/.240/.267 with three doubles, eight RBI and 12 walks on 53 strikeouts. 

He will play his final games this weekend.

"I couldn't be more excited to remain in the game that saved my life," Robinson wrote. "I remember the day after my suicide attempt, the first thought I had toward choosing to live came from thinking about playing baseball again. I did that, with one eye, and I'm grateful for my time with the River Cats and the 11 incredible years I spent with the [Texas] Rangers and [St. Louis] Cardinals."

Per Passan:

Robinson, 29, has spent the past 2½ months with the Giants' Triple-A affiliate in Sacramento, returning to the game against long odds. In April 2020, Robinson shot himself in the head and survived 20 hours before calling 911. The idea of playing baseball again prompted Robinson to place the call, and while damage from the gunshot forced doctors to remove his right eye, he attempted a comeback nevertheless.

After getting an opportunity with the Giants and signing a minor league deal at the start of the season, ESPN reported Robinson began discussing a job with San Francisco's front office as he continued to struggle on the field with Sacramento.

Now, he'll get the chance to remain in baseball and focus on improving the mental health of players.

Robinson wrote that in his new role with the Giants he'll be able to help players address their emotional well-being and called the last 15 months indescribable. The Nevada native thanked his fans, coaches, trainers and teammates for treating him like family and noted the inspiration he received along the way helped him on his journey. 

Robinson finishes his career with 100 MLB games between the Rangers and Cardinals. He holds a career .202/.296/.359 slash line with nine home runs, 22 RBI and 30 walks on 102 strikeouts. 

    

The San Francisco Giants announced Friday that catcher Buster Posey has been placed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to Tuesday with a left thumb contusion.

Right-handed pitcher Logan Webb has been reinstated from the injured list in a corresponding move. 

Posey, 34, will enter the All-Star break with a .328/.421/.547 slash line with 12 home runs and 28 RBI. 

Curt Casali should receive the lion's share of the playing time behind the plate for the Giants during the three-time World Series champion's absence. Chadwick Tromp moves into the backup role.

Posey is such a crucial cog in the middle of the San Francisco offense that any type of extended stint on the injured list would limit the club's offensive upside during the 2021 season. His impact handling the pitching staff behind the plate would also be missed.

Call it the Curse of the Faux-Hitter.

On April 25, Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner tossed a complete game without allowing a hit against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Yet because the outing came in a league-mandated seven-inning doubleheader, Major League Baseball didn't classify the 7-0 victory as a no-hitter.

The Diamondbacks haven't won on the road since.

The D-backs lost 13-7 Wednesday night in San Francisco for their 22nd straight road loss. That ties the MLB record for consecutive road losses, an ignominious mark shared by the 1943 Philadelphia Athletics and 1963 New York Mets.

Pain. pic.twitter.com/uWAuk5lxDz

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) June 17, 2021

The loss dropped Arizona to 20-49 on the year, the fewest wins of any team.

Despite taking a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, starter Merrill Kelly gave up four runs in the bottom half of the frame as Arizona quickly fell behind 13-2 by the fifth inning. A five-run top of the sixth narrowed the gap, but not enough for a D-backs comeback against their division rival.

Entering Wednesday, Arizona had been outscored 114-50 in road games since April 25 with just nine home wins sprinkled in.

The Diamondbacks have now lost 22 straight road games, tying the longest streak in the modern era (1943 A's, 1963 Mets).

Arizona is 5-36 in its last 41 games overall, the worst mark by an NL team in any 41-game span since the 1909 Boston Doves (also 5-36).

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) June 17, 2021

Good and bad teams alike have found success when the D-backs have paid a visit, with Arizona dropping games to the Miami Marlins, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Colorado Rockies, Milwaukee Brewers and Oakland Athletics during the losing streak.

Yet, Tuesday's loss at the Giants may have been the most difficult to stomach.

The Diamondbacks held an 8-3 lead after five innings only to have Mike Yastrzemski launch a go-ahead grand slam into McCovey Cove in the bottom of the eighth inning off Humberto Castellanos on a 1-2 pitch with two outs in an eventual 9-8 loss.

Arizona will look to avoid a record 23rd straight road loss when it closes out a four-game series in San Francisco on Thursday afternoon. Zac Gallen returns to the mound for the D-backs after spraining his UCL, and he will face likely All-Star Kevin Gausman.

San Francisco Giants third baseman Evan Longoria will miss the next four to six weeks with a sprained left shoulder he suffered against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.

Longoria collided with his teammate, shortstop Brandon Crawford, when both players attempted to grab a ground ball hit by Anthony Rizzo in the top of the ninth inning. Longoria sat on the ground after the collision and exited the field after he was assessed by training staff (and assessed an error on the play). 

Scary collision between Evan Longoria and Brandon Crawford while going for a ground ball. pic.twitter.com/hB86pr7b8M

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) June 6, 2021

The Giants ended up defeating the Cubs 4-3. Mauricio Dubon replaced Longoria at third base for the rest of the game. 

Longoria is hitting .280/.376/.516 with 30 RBI and nine home runs for the Giants, who lead the NL West at 37-21. 

His last lengthy absence came in 2018, when he had hand surgery.

"It's going to be a major challenge to fill [Longoria's] shoes," manager Gabe Kapler told reporters Sunday. "I'm not sure we're going to have anybody be able to step right in and do what he was doing. At the same time, we have to turn the page and get ready to compete, and that's what we're going to do."

The Giants called up infielder Thairo Estrada from their Triple-A affiliate, and Wilmer Flores and Jason Vosler are players that Kapler said would step up to fill the hole.

The Giants will finish their series against the Cubs on Sunday before hitting the road for a two-game series against the Texas Rangers.