It’s old news, but I missed it a few days ago. Ken Rosenthal reported that the Padres are talking to the Braves about Marcus Giles. San Diego would use Giles as a third baseman, a position at which Giles has played nine games in his Major League career. But hey, it’s creative. Rumor has it the Braves might pursue a good reliever in return.
From the Fielding Bible, I learned that Giles has good range and hands but is much better on plays to his right than his left. Not good for third base, I would think.
Baseball Prospectus’s Marc Normandin did a player profile on Giles in September. Normandin concluded:
"If the Braves do indeed move Giles this winter, as has been whispered, then some new team might have themselves a second baseman who is still within his peak productivity, and may even get him at bargain-basement pricing, considering his ’off’ year. Considering this winter’s weak free agent class, adding a player of Giles’ caliber would be a serious upgrade in a market that doesn’t offer very many of those."
