Aubrey Huff has "earned consideration" for a new contract, Brian Sabean told Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News (Twitter link). However, Sabean added that the Giants won't discuss Huff's potential future in San Francisco until after the season.
The 33-year-old has been one of baseball's best bargains, hitting .294/.380/.548 with 17 home runs while earning $3MM on a one-year contract. With Pablo Sandoval posting a career-low .710 OPS so far, Huff has assumed the role of the team's top middle-of-the-order bat. Still, Sabean says the team won't negotiate contract extensions for any player during the season, Huff included, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter).
Sabean also told Schulman that, although the Giants' GM has explored possible deals with 20 teams, Huff is unlikely to be a trade chip this year. As Schulman tweets, the Giants would like Huff to return in 2011, so they'd be reluctant to move him to another club even if they slipped out of playoff contention before the trade deadline.
