The Giants have placed closer Mark Melancon on the 10-day DL, per a club announcement. He is dealing with the same pronator issue that forced him out earlier this year. Dan Slania will take the open roster spot.
Melancon, 32, has not quite looked himself since joining the Giants on a four-year, $62MM deal over the winter. Through 20 2/3 innings on the year, he has allowed ten earned runs on 25 hits. Though he still maintains typically strong strikeout and walk numbers — 8.3 K/9 against 1.3 BB/9 — the veteran has also coughed up three long balls and seen his groundball rate drop to 50.8% with his swinging-strike rate falling to 9.7% (both far lower than in recent seasons).
Despite enduring a bit of a rough stretch, Melancon could still feature as a trade candidate over the summer. That all depends upon just how interested the Giants are in shedding from future salary — while also embarking upon another search for a closer. (Interestingly, recently acquired righty Sam Dyson will take over closing duties for the time being after washing out of that role with the Rangers.) Though San Francisco is buried in the standings, the organization still has an extensive array of high-priced veteran players and seems likely to attempt to contend again in 2018.
The injury, though, functions as a major bit of uncertainty. It’s still possible that he could be dealt if he’s able to return and pitch effectively before the deadline. And Melancon’s contract is big enough that he could also be moved in August. But the forearm certainly enhances the risk in the hefty remaining value on the deal, particularly in the case of an older relief pitcher.
Annnnnnd the injury bug bites again. At least MadBum is in Sacramento Friday
Unfortunately the Giants have less DL days than two teams in their own division. I think the problem might be elsewhere.
Yeah. They can’t hit. Always have been a bad hitting team. At some point you have to wonder if it’s the hitting coach considering the players change, coach stays the same and they still don’t hit. Yeah there’s park factors but still, SF has consistently been a terrible hitting team.
Practically zero chance anyone saves the Giants from their Melancon overpay and risk getting stuck with a lesser version for over three more seasons.
May be a silver lining if Dyson is at all effective in Melancon’s absence.
The contract in and of itself actually isn’t bad at all. The huge bonus they paid out made it look unappealing. But if Robertson is tradeable then a healthy Melancon upon his return is definitely tradeable. A team will definitely take a chance and the Giants might have to only a little of it. He’ll be tradeable yest but might not require a bevy in return.
In the first year of a four-year contract it’s difficult to imagine why anyone is talking about trade value.
My skepticism about Melancon may just stem what to me is a confusing premise, that a team could sign anyone to a 4-year deal and even consider taking that player out into the trade market in Year One.
You’re 100% correct agentx. Melancon has zero trade value. SF would have to pick up so much of that contract to get anything of value it becomes pointless. He’s got 2 for years at $19m for his 33 and 34 year old seasons. For an average to slightly above average RHP that is not going to work for any club
I think agentx and I are saying something quite different. I know I am. Melancon wasn’t signed to be a slightly above average pitcher, he was signed as one of the top three closers available last year. The fact that he’s underperforming in the first year of his contract (on a really weak team) does not change the value proposition for the Giants. Unless the Giants are thinking they need to go into complete teardown mode, then they are going to hold onto their longterm controlled assets. I don’t see the Giants going into teardown mode, do you?
Except there is an assumption that he’s a clubhouse fit. As been reported the clubhouse isn’t status quo. When your GM comes out and say he has only has three untouchable players, but he’d probably be willing to deal it usually means there might be a retool in the works, not necessarily a rebuild. So consider age, payroll, potential impact of the farm system, it’s pretty clear that its probably best to take that course of action. The Rockies/Dbacks have taken steps forward and the Dodgers infusion of youth and more to come have made it hard to see a future staying the course for SF. The speculation involving a potential impact closer isn’t really far fetched, due to the considerable need of every playoff team to add more bullpen help and quite frankly little need for a rebuilding team or 2 year retooling team to hold onto a closer.
Did Evans say that somewhere? Serious question – I’d like to know if he did. I see Morosi reporting that “industry sources believe” there are 3 untouchable players. It’s an important difference.
No I screwed that that up copy and paste fail. It was supposed to say isn’t status quo, and it’s been reported there are only three untouchable players. The GM part was about Rizzo’s comments and the Nats need for a closer/bp help.
This is one of those “some say” arguments. Some say virtually anything and everything, but does what they say pass the smell test? The Giants have lots of problems but then they also are not a poverty case team, so they can afford to throw money at them. If they are instead in total teardown mode, then competition is more than two years off, and not one player should be classified as untouchable.
I honestly don’t know why you guys think Melancon is a trade chip. No one offered him more than the Giants in free agency and since then he hasn’t done anything to suggest that those other teams made a bad decision in not outbidding the Giants.
And then there’s the “no trade clause” in his contract that he’d have to waive.
And then there’s him being in the first year of a four-year contract. So unless the Giants are assuming they (1) will not competitive again in that window, and/or (2) concluded that he’s a total loss after one subpar year and are willing to part with him for pennies on the dollar, then the trade talk is kind of silly.
That picture is great
No one lives and learns anymore with these ungodly FA signings. Hope they had an injury clause
That didn’t take long, he has his first major league homer already
Wrong section
That has to be the most unflattering picture in all of baseball, I love it.
Given the vacuum in the Nats closer role so far this season, Giants should at least approach WAS to explore possibilities. At some point Nats will stop screwing around with retreads like KRod and deal for an effective closer.
Giants will have to eat some of his contract and take back like a AAAA reliever. If they want an actual prospect return they will have to eat even more of his contract. Nats had the right to pay Melancon all that money in the offseason and they said no. It might be different if Melancon were outperforming his contract but he isn’t so it isn’t.
He looks like such a tool in that picture
Hahaha. Isn’t this what Grumpy Cat would look like if he pitched?
“Though San Francisco is buried in the standings, the organization seems set up to return to contention next year.” What? How?
Hello? Even year? #believen
Well, I didn’t mean to suggest so much that they will compete so much as that they will try to. So many veteran contracts, same core, etc.
But I will edit that.
Dat face though
Maybe if he did not cancel the stretching for relievers he could stay healthy.