The Giants have reportedly entered the mix for star free agent Bryce Harper. Randy Miller of NJ.com tweeted the connection, with Jon Heyman of MLB Network adding on Twitter that the club has recently met with Harper.
It is not yet clear how serious the interest is on behalf of the San Francisco organization, which is already dealing with quite a few large contract entanglements and recently turned over its baseball operations to Farhan Zaidi. Still, it’s intriguing to hear the connection. Zaidi was joined by owner Larry Baer and skipper Bruce Bochy in the sit-down, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports notes in a tweet.
Harper was already known to have met recently with the NL West rival Padres. Heyman suggests that multiple new organizations have entered the picture of late, which certainly could suggest that agent Scott Boras has sought to expand the pool of possibilities. Just what that suggests about Harper’s market and asking price isn’t clear.
It had long seemed that the Giants would be a leading potential landing spot for Harper, due to the team’s obvious need for youthful stars — particularly in the outfield — and history of maintaining high payrolls. But with the organization engineering a baseball ops shake-up after a pair of disappointing seasons, the match became much less certain.
Zaidi made his name finding value for the A’s and then scaling that process up as GM of the Dodgers. Plunking down huge dollars over long terms has not been a signature tenet of his approach as an executive. And the Giants are already loaded with underperforming contracts, some worse than others, that have left the organization with relatively little wiggle room beneath the competitive balance tax threshold.
That’s not to say that the San Francisco organization doesn’t make any sense as a Harper suitor. Even if immediate contention isn’t completely reasonable, the club has plenty of high-quality veteran players. With some creativity, the luxury tax barrier could also be dealt with. Zaidi noted at the outset of his tenure that he expects the organization’s decisions on premium talent to be “driven more by baseball need and opportunity than kind of working backwards from a payroll.” He cast doubt then on pursuit of a star free agent, but did not rule out the concept entirely.
LOL!
Good lord, will someone please just sign him! This is getting ridiculous now.
It really is. Totally within his and his agent’s rights of course but totally lame.
Harper starting a new league in China. Trump adding export tax on players to pay for wall.
If the Giants are in play, does this mean that Boras’ “ask” for Harper has dropped, or at least, that the Giants think it has?
I’m surprised Boras hasn’t made the accusation of collusion yet.
Given how rule changes to possible DH in NL, this could def justify going 7-10 years for Dodgers.
When I saw that post about potential rule changes I immediately thought NL payrolls were going to go up. I completely agree with you on this making sense for the Dodgers as a gamble on that.
For that matter, it makes sense for many NL teams, though few are likely willing to fork over the money.
Should a DH ever be the highest paid player on a team?
The Dodgers are one NL that already has DH candidates. Muncy to DH, Bellinger to 1B, Verdugo as full-time RF. Improved both offensively and defensively.
Btw, no one would be signing Machado or Harper to be full-time DH. They are too young and talented to be relegated to not playing defense. Later in the contract might be a different story.
Not $300M+ for him. He’s clearly not worth what he’s asking. If he was, someone would have jumped at $325 for 10-12 when he rejected the Washington offer.
An exceptionally well-placed question.
“Should a DH ever be the highest paid player on a team?”
How about we NOT hearing anything else about Machado and Harper until the DAY THEY SIGN?!?!? Heck……are the Cooter Wildcats in on both of them now too!
Someone hurry up and spend a quarter billion on this dude. I’m tired of looking to see who he signed him.
Zero chance this happens! ZERO! Makes absolutely no sense to either party!
I just hope he signs somewhere before I die.
lol
Not sure that’s going to happen (and I’m assuming you’re in your early 20s).
What makes you assume he’s in his “early 20s”?
Mid 40s is probably a better bet on this site
I’d guess from reading for awhile somewhere between 50-60 isn’t too far off.
I’m 15 and I’m guessing Xabial isn’t much older.
My name is a coincidence by the way 15 is my favourite number.
lmao I’m 43. I didn’t know this site was a mid 40s thing.
I’m 31. It isn’t that this site is a mid 40’s thing, it’s that baseball is a mid 40s and up thing
Im 6 years old. Y’all wildin
Goo goo gaga?
K
McCovey Cove kayakers are loving this!
Wow. He’s better off in Philly.
i hope he thinks otherwise…
I still think Philly is blowing smoke and wants to hold on a couple years for its hometown boy, Trout.
i really hope so. id much rather wait for either him or Betts.
Betts would look pretty good in a Braves uni. From TN, so sure he’d love to play close to home. Price tag’s gonna be insane.
“so sure he’d love to play close to home” You’re basing this off a personal or what?
*personal relationship*
Sure, but once Harper and Machado set the bar for contracts, the Angels can then sign him to an extension.
But why would he want to sign an extension with the angels? They aren’t going anywhere as far as contending and he can get the same money from a contender
Trout grew up part of his life in Millville Mass(they retired his baseball jersey there), does that mean he’ll go to the Redsox? Not…..he’ll sign with the angels, I never see him leaving LA.
Hahahaha. Millville, Mass??? He grew up in Millville, NJ! You seriously must not watch baseball. How does anyone who watches baseball not know he’s from New Jersey? Come on man, it’s as easy as a quick google search. SMH
Trigger warning: New Jersey residents do NOT like when you get things confused.
i cant tell if your being sarcastic or not but if not, then lay off the sauce man and ease up on that guy. is that really where you draw the line to make a “you must never watch baseball”? i dont care if you can name 10 players from every team in baseball, if you cant tell me where mike trout grewup then your an idiot. hell, he even got the city correct
russshackle, you must be a lot of fun to be around. i can just see you going off on someone at starbucks if they spell your name with one S instead of 2
Isn’t New Jersey a suburb of New York City? It’s where the New York Jets and Giants play … so it must be.
Sarcasm. People on the internet are so sensitive
Shut up….
Ouch
This has to be a Boras planted story unless SF confirms.
Logic please. How can this be a Boras plant? If it was then any interest would be floated as a rumor. But since Baer, Zaidi, and Bochy all sat down with Harper it obviously isn’t. It’s one thing to float a rumor that a team has interest, but it’s another to flat out lie in a made up story that any of 3 different people could, and probably would, refute.
I agree that it’s not a Boras plant. However this is text book Boras. He has the Padres interested. He wants the Dodgers to get more interested. What better way to put ‘pressure’ on both clubs than by arranging a meeting with a rival team in the same state.
It’s his job to get as many teams interested in his clients as possible. But I seriously doubt that the Giant’s Brass would play along to that extent if they had no interest. What goes around comes around, and teams would remember a dirty trick like that meant to drive up the price.
It’s pretty much what Jeff Todd stated in his write up; “…Scott Boras has sought to expand the pool of possibilities.”
Go get him, FZ! He’s worth it! Please, please go get him
owner and manager are undoubtedly way more interested than he is. hes dumb enough to buy into the cheap is good narrative. $ wins
How’s the $ win for SF last year?
hey guess what. Boston LA NY. Where’d they finish? postseason including the 2 finalists
He was part of that LA front office moron
he wasn’t in charge . his friend Friedman isnt much better but will occasionally spend
why would the Giants want Harper? their outfield is set with Duggar, Slater, and Williamson…
El Oh El
This has to be posturing on the part of Boras and/or Zaidi. No way on God’s green earth can SF make this work unless they first dump all their bad contracts which isn’t happening any time soon.
Boras just posturing, but S.F. can afford him. They have the richest owners in baseball.
antibelt…I doubt that
They do have the richest owner and honestly it’s not even close. Along with their real estate venture right next to the park they’re swimming in cash. It’s the one thing they have, might as well use it.
According to a Forbes article in October, Charles Johnson is the richest owner in baseball. He ranks just slightly ahead of Ted Lerner of the Washington Nationals. Charles is just 1 of the Giant’s ownership group.
No one, including Boras, is going to make up a lie about a meeting between the Giants and Harper. If it was just posturing he would have done that by rumor.
3yrs with op out after one, maybe 25 million a yr. He is a gamble! and some what clownish!
Why can’t they make this work? One of the richest teams in sports
SF has the richest owner in baseball
So, he’s going to pay Harper out of his own checking account?
Yea, that’s how owners work.
“So, he’s going to pay Harper out of his own checking account?”
Maybe not from their personal checking accounts, but it’s been known to happen with owner’s assets.. George Steinbrenner supplemented the Yankees from his ship-building business. Mike Illitch used his wealth from Little Ceasars Pizza to sign guys like Miguel Cabrera, and Prince Fielder. Owner’s wealth, as well as the team’s, are a factor.
I don’t want to hear about money and budget when it comes to the Giants.
They just got a reported $200mm-$350mm from Oracle for naming rights for the next 20 years.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/01/09/oracle-inks-stadium-naming-rights-deal-with-san-francisco-giants/
Have the mission rock project with an insane revenue stream for the team.
https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/SF-supervisors-give-Giants-Mission-Rock-12611890.php
And have the superstar Golden State Warriors moving in down the street next year and will compete for the fans money and attention.
The Giants need a Superstar they can market. Bryce Harper is THE MOST marketable player in all of baseball. If done correctly, I would say he could be in the top 5 in all American sports (just behind LeBron, Tiger, Brady).
They should get crazy. 10 years $335mm, with an opt out after year 3 and year 6
they met with him so it’s not Boras blowing smoke.
The Giants just got under the luxury tax in 2018, which reset the penalties. They have the money to do just about whatever they want.
I don’t get why people think they can’t afford Harper.
Should they spend the money is a different conversation.
keep in mind, there isnt a salary cap in baseball, just penalties if you go over a certain limit. so they dont really need to “make it work” if they are willing to pay those penalties
Yeah, I smell Boras running out more rumors in an attempt to raise his value.
Of course. The smart teams though are probably catching on. It’d be fun to have Harper sit out the year. Downside though is he’d produce another offseason like this one.
Tigers bout to be in the mix at this pace
Since when did Zaidi say he’s waiting in a slow moving market for the big names to sign turn into them entering the arena for Harper?
I wish I had an eye roll-GIF.
He’ll be able to afford a nice 2 bed 2 bath house in SF with his next contract.
In the Sunset.
in the tenderloin
With a couple roommates.
And possibly running water
Fit right into daily!
One of them being Machado.
Basement inlaw unit
Hey they can invest the money the make off the Raiders playing in their stadium into like a third of a year of Harper
Didn’t the 49ers say they won’t waive territorial rights?
Yep
Even Mayor Breed said SF doesn’t need more homeless in the city!
Stadiums do not make much money off bringing in a NFL team. Oakland lost money with the raiders and Davis wanted only to pay $2 million to play there. Do the giants want to ruin their field and stadium for a few million? No that is why the giants are backing down on bring them in. Its looking more like they will be playing in Santa Clara.
Stupid. They let CAL play there for over a season. It’s been done before.
arc89. Did you make that up? Did you read the articles on the Raiders playing at the SF Giants stadium.
Yes i did and also how the raiders for years wouldn’t pay the city of Oakland the money they owed them. Oakland had to sue for their money. Raiders hid money from Oakland and lost the suit. It also said the NFL was against the deal. even the mayor is not in favor of it. If you are a giants fan you should not be for it. Not only does it drain resources the city of San Fran needs like police but also brings a bad element to the city. last time i went to a raider game a fight broke out about every 10 minutes and watching people puke from drinking to much. This is a completely different crowd than goes to Giant games.
Probably gonna sign him to be the DH for the 2019 season.
Free agency is far too long. A shorter free agency should be in the new MLB rules.
That would significantly benefit the owners
It would kinda screw over the 2nd and 3rd tier players because the Harpers would still drag it out to the very end and GMs wouldn’t want to sign someone else until they knew they couldn’t get the big name. Leaving average guys in Limbo.
I think there should be an auction on the first day of the winter meetings where you go through every FA and bid. The players say how many years they want and then the GMs and owners bid. Highest bidder gets him. They could even break into 2 or 3 nights just to televise it. Wouldn’t you love to see rapid style auctions on Harper or Machado with television breakdowns? Then we can move on to the big trades in January with no hold ups waiting to see where the FAs land.
When free agency began in the 70s, teams had to formally name in a draft which free agents that they would go after before the negotiation period began.
You may be to something…. I don’t hate that premise
Why? So internet commenters can find something else to be mad about instead?
Seriously, what benefit would this be to eithet the teams or the players? Spring training still starts the same day…
But why? To make things more exciting for impatient MLBTR readers? Big players sign eventually, try not to live your life around such transactions and you won’t get so worked up over it
You never know which rumors are true, but the Giants have room under the CBT and it is close to home and they tried to get Stanton last year.
Tomorrow Bryce is meeting with the Indians brass, they have been one of the mystery teams….I almost kept a straight face till the third word
Friday I think he’s meeting with the Marlins. The whole reason they are traded Realmuto is to stay under the luxury tax when Harper signs LOL.
No it’s the Rays that have been building towards Harper’s free agency for years. They are ready to pounce. Haha
Billy beane is fielding a one man roster of only Bryce Harper. They’re trading everyone for salary relief and baseballs.
There are still plenty of potential suitors in the Nippon Professional Baseball league.
Harper doesn’t seem to be a SF type of fella. But who really knows other than his close associates.
Seems like he enjoys his visits to SF quite a bit, judging by his social media posts:
https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/giants/bryce-harpers-social-posts-about-san-francisco-show-giants-might-have-shot
@Wolf
Whatever the hell you mean by that….?
Means he’s a bigot
Means who is a bigot?
Expos
Now this is getting stupid! Chances the Giants sign this guy is 1/1000 lol! They would have to backload this contract until Joey Bart, and Ramos are ready to enter the show. I really don’t believe this is true. Haven’t heard of a meeting between the two sides!
Ok, I stand corrected, Larry Bear was in Nevada, and they actually did meet. I love that everyone thinks that the Giants are just to old to compete. With Harper, Posey, Longo, Belt, Crawford, Panik and hopefuls Shaw, Duggar, and Williamson, All I can say is don’t let them in the playoffs! Go ahead, bet against them. You did in 10, 12, and 14! How did that work out for ya! Lol!!!
1/1024 Giant
But his grandpappy has high cheekbones!
Hahaha!
Chesteraarthur… thought your troll butt retired from this site. Time for u to move on
I figured it would be Heyman doing his boss’s bidding.
Maybe Boras has more than one mouthpiece.
Giants… where does all this money come from and why are y’all so free with it
Giants have deep pockets my man! The money isn’t an issue.
I envy this as a braves fan
I envy the Braves farm system as a Giants fan…
They have the richest owner in baseball, Oracle just handed them 200 million to just change some signs, they have a real estate venture called mission rock which is going to net them oodles of cash, they own their stadium fully, should I go on? Needless to say they’re swimming in cash
They could even offer him a piece of that development they’re working on to sweeten the deal.
Isn’t that type of thing against the rules of MLB?
well, its pretty similar to what LA offers players. im sure they dont say hey lebron “sign with us and we will land you a couple tv deals, a dozen commercials and a role in a movie” but its sort of implied that those roles are available to him. same thing with bay area, you sign in the bay area and your gonna make some friends in the tech industry who might help you make more money investing than you do playing. i believe andre iguadola has already and kevin durant has gotten involved as well.
D
Good question, I know Giants commentators kicked the bucket on this and never mentioned it was against policy to do that.
* kicked the tires …
“Kicked the bucket” means something else entirely.
Oh, PA-lease…… (insert eye roll gif here)….
Harper to the Expos.
There are folks in Washington (e.g. Washington Post sports columnist Tom Boswell) who think Harper falling to the Nats is a significant possibility.
Hard as can be to hit homers in whatever the Giants are now calling their ballpark.
The reason Bryce is still unsigned. He is over selling himself. Basically what he is trying to tell everybody is, for 10 years he’s never going to be on the disabled list and he is always going to hit above 300. He needs to lower his expectations and go with a three-year contract for a fraction of what he’s asking for. And after three years the team can make a decision on his performance if they want to re-sign him or not.
GIants are foolish enough to do this. But seriously, Harper is going to want to come here and play alongside this old fading crew?
Harper isn’t signing anywhere. He’s gonna host the Oscars instead.
This would be crazy if they pull this off!
duh
Idiot.
Giants payroll is at $168.5
Add $35 for Harper
Total $203.5
2018 payroll for Giants
$203
That’s almost $4 million a win!
They will be pooping in the streets of SF if they sign Harper.
What do you mean “will be”?
YES!
Yomiuri Giants?
“Not those Giants.”
Save everyone the time of a lame comment, X’s prediction is still Harper to the Yankees on a “discount” deal, and Machado to the Phils. Blah, not!
X is in middle school. Give him a break.
This makes the most sense.
Casey! this is baseball! not about making sence just cents! Your brocrash seems silly.
The local Tampa Bay paper had an article saying that the Rays should try a one yr deal at $35 to $40 mil. It only gets crazier.
as much as i dont want my team (PHI) sign Harper, i would actually love a one year deal. i dont like his inconsistent levels of production, but he could turn in some value on a prove-it deal after an uneaven 2018. after seeing his flailing market this offseason, perhaps that may light a fire under him to make sure no one can regret giving him a record deal.
I can’t see this happening but if they do get him I’ll be one pissed off Dodgers fan lol. Really crazy that we are this far along in free agency and all these big names are still out there. Haven’t even gotten the hint that they are close to signing either.
Is anyone ever noticed teams that sign these big contracts never really panned out. It’s your low-key low budget teams that seem to do very well. I just wish the Dodgers would wake up and understand this theory.
You mean like how the Red Sox had the highest salary last season and won the World Series?
High budgets usually produce more wins. It’s just that the dodgers are chokers
I agree. They failed when it really counts. But every player wants to be a dodger at some point in their life.
My 6 year old wants a time machine.
I have some doritos for it!
Jon Heyman is now reporting that the fictional basketball team the “MonStars” are interested in Harper on a long-term deal.
Also a handful of Mystery KBO (Korean) teams have expressed interest in Harper if his market does the unthinkable and falls below $500 Mil.
The A’s will be next to show interest.
My money is on the Ray’s signing him 🙂
baltimore makes the most sense
Harper .167 career hitting in SF. Maybe it’s the allure of playing alongside Venditte…hahahaha
Outside of NL East ballparks, I wouldn’t put much stock in Harper’s ballpark splits. Hardly enough plate appearances to predict anything.
Giants have said they want to get younger, they have said they will get outfielders from the free agent market, they have also said there has been no limit for spending placed on them from ownership, Harper has said publicly how much he likes San Francisco, the ballpark and all the fans that come out and support each game. If they cannot get a Harper type of player then yes they will try and stay under cap just like last year when they tried for Stanton. It is never like the Giants to not go for a young star.
Almost every team can be described as in the mix or checking in for Harper/Machado until the agents get serious about upward negotiating with clubs that have made the most serious offers to date. They just set the total contract guaranteed $ they want too high. No club seems to be that desperate. No matter how excellent an individual player is (even Trout), it’s baseball where you need a fair number of not so cheap other players to fit under the luxury tax and consistently win. 30mil+ AAV for one player is hard to pull off for more than a few years even with a promising rebuilder that has to inevitably plug holes where certain high end prospects don’t meet the hype.
LOL
Guys, I got a leak that the Washington Senators are looking into Harper.
How about the Sugarland Skeeters of independent ball?
I said that the other day! good thinking.
Still think he ends up back with the Nats! Boras is trying to squeeze every last dollar from them.
Harper be hitting Bonds type moonshots into McCovey Cove!
It’s just Borass bait. The Giants are more than one Bryce away from contending and aren’t otherwise on the upswing. They can’t be that foolish again, can they? I think it’s just Borass trying to get the real contenders for Bryce’s services off their duff by thinking another suitor is preparing to swoop in.
Is it just boras doing this when Baer, Zaidi and bochy all flew out to Nevada and met with Harper?
Was just a good excuse for them to get out and hit the slots.
Why would it be foolish to sign him? He’d put fans in the seats and presumably be around long enough until they have adequately retooled. Makes sense for any team with deep pockets and outfield vacancies.
When will this long national nightmare end?
This does not make sense for the Giants at all. The only way they come out of their poor outlook right now is to hold of making any serious financial commitments until they move all of the poor-value large deals they are already stuck in.
Why? They have plenty of money and they reset the luxury tax. Perfect time to sign a young star player. They only lose like the 50 draft pick.
The giants are printing money at this point
Another Boras ploy to expand the number of teams to compete for Harper. Zaidi better make sure he isn’t being used as a pawn and suckered into something he may regret.
Don’t let Boras say another MYSTERY TEAM {GIANTS} is interested in Harper.
If Harper truly wants to be with the Giants then publicly come out and say so!
Harper would definitely be an upgrade for the Giants, but only if he truly wants to be in San Francisco.
Have you seen his comments on social media about his San Francisco feelings
He doesn’t. His numbers will take a big hit. It’s all he cares about.
How much insurance money are they getting back from cueto missing all of 2019.
The whole years salary I think
2/3 for disability
Most often, the insurance tops out at 70% of the year’s salary.
They didn’t get rid of Hunter Strickland for nothing!
Giants are in a world of hurt.
This is not Smoke,keep saying it,he’s going West! The longer this goes the more teams will be involved,if he wanted to go east this would be over already. Harper is 26,not near his prime and sells Tickets so he makes sense for any team that needs Outfield help Rebuilding or not
sf rumors trying to drive san diego’s offer up.
Harper to the diamondbacks. makes up for the loss of goldschmidt and the field is a good offensive wise park.
None of that makes any sense except that Chase is a good hitter’s park.
harper replaces goldschmidt on offense. goldschmidt was traded. its a bit of an upgrade over arizona’s current rf who was inconsistent last year.
Teams block other teams trades all the time on the waiver wire in August.
sf is possibly posturing so san diego or the sox or arizona have to pay more, which will drive their payroll up and be handcuffed after harper stops preforming at a great level in 6 years of a ten year contract..
Sure, based on that, in pure baseball terms, Harper makes sense for a ton of teams. But because most teams, which includes the D’backs, can’t afford to sign him he doesn’t make any sense at all for them. The D’backs do not have the revenue to pay even half of Harper’s salary. They’re trying to shed payroll, not add.
Yes, teams do block other teams trades, and wire claims which is fully within the rules. That’s totally different from a dirty trick which would involve the Giant’s brass pretending to be interested in Harper, and actually going as far as meeting with him, when they really had no interest. That does not happen, teams would resent it, and payback would be forthcoming at the first opportunity. Not to mention that it could be subject to penalty from the league.
So yes, your post makes zero sense.
What about the loss of Corbin and pollock?
Man, do I hope the Giants sign Harper.
Can Harper be signed already? I would like to see Harper playing for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Yeah, my preference*, in rank order would be:
1. Giants
2. Padres
3. Rockies
4. Diamondbacks
*assuming a deal of 7+ years.
If Dodgers can get him for 5 or fewer years, I’d be fine with that too.
Go SF, make a splash!
In my mind, the # 1 reason why this is probably just posturing (on both sides) is that Harper has made it clear in the past, that he wants to finish his career as one of baseball’s all-time-greatest record-setting sluggers – and, obviously, SF”s ballyard is not at all conducive to that – especially for LH hitters. SF could afford to outbid the field if they were determined to get him, but I think they have to know that he really doesn’t want to play half of his games at Oracle (previously ATT) for most (or all) of his remaining career. I’m guessing that Boras is just trying everything to bid-up the field for his client. And the Giants would like to get him of course – the need is great – but they also figure they can at least demonstrate to their fans that they’re willing to shell-out for the big star slugger, even if they can’t land him.
You sound like you know him personally. Bonds hit well there, why couldn’t he if he really wants to be labeled a great, go to the yard where the greatest hitter of all time played and hit bombs!
Without debating the details – I’d say Bonds was in his own singular category when it comes to hitting bombs vs. ATT park’s RF/CF.
But c’mon now, I don’t know Harper – I was referring to reporting I’d read about his ultimate career goals, which led me to be very skeptical that he would play for SF. I’m GUESSING about it – based on what little I’ve read about it – isn’t that the general idea here? My first words were, “In my mind…” I don’t know if they’ll swing a deal – maybe they will – I’m just saying I’m skeptical and I’m saying why.
BTW, I hope my guess is wrong!
I get it, and in some parts I agree, but if he really wants to play somewhere the ballpark is the least of his worries, I’m assuming he wants the cash, and no one knows who’s going to spit out the most for his services.
I think you’re 100% right @goob. Sabean has said many times that they need to overpay for hitters to come to SF. A player like Harper isn’t just any hitter, he’s a great hitter and he’s competitive and to me I feel like he would be competitive about not just his salary, but also his legacy (i.e. stats).
I cannot see Harper wanting to play half his games in SF if he cares about his all time stats.
But I also think it’s smart to keep SF in the bidding because it can potentially bring the asking price up and he can just go to a park he wants to play in and tell them to match SFs offer.
**His stats at AT&T (Now Oracle) are not great. In 19 games he’s hit .164/.305/.284 with 2 home runs.
Note 1: I very much hope I’m wrong.
Note 2: While I cannot see a simple way to do it, *IF* somehow SF agreed to make it easier for a LH hitter to hit home runs at that park, that could all change.
k
I coach high school baseball in Nova Scotia and my team, too, has now “entered the mix” for Bryce Harper. I wouldn’t say talks are “advanced,” but we are “approaching” and “proceeding” with cautious optimism. We are offering a 10-year deal, $15 a game, free haircuts, and an opt-out on the third Sunday of every month. We are also “closing in” on a deal for JT Realmuto. We are not bidding on Manny Machado, however, as that would be unrealistic.
Offer Bryce exclusive rights to the entire backrow on bus trips, and you may be on to something.
The Giants !!?? LOL !! No way Harper goes there !! He wants to go to a winning team !! Not a “has been” team that has finished in 4th place the last 2 years !!!!!
wanna use any more exclamation points?
Come on GIANTS, sign Harper !!
Just to piss off the Dodger Fans.
It would be worth the money just to do that.
I wont get pissed. Let them add another huge contract. More fuel to the fire
Trust me. Harper going to the Giants would not piss me off. You guys can have him . I hope the Dodgers don’t sign him. He’s a waste of money he’s a waste of time. And one guy would not bring a team to the World Series. Haven’t you ever heard the old saying there is no I in the word team
Actually, I’ve been hoping the Dodgers sign him so I can laugh at Dodger fans when he busts. I highly doubt either team signs him. Both GMs are notoriously frugal when signing players. I don’t think the Dodgers have signed anyone to a $100 million contract since Matt Kemp.
Dodgers signed Zack Greinke for $147M over 6 years, but with a player opt-out halfway through.
Boras got another reporter to believe another team is interested in Harper.
This isn’t ten years ago, for the most part, today GMs are smarter than Boras. No one other than Giant’s fans and reporters believe this.
Umm actually Larry beer was just in Nevada meeting with harper
So? The plane ride is less than an hour. It’s not a big deal.
Boras has done this time and time again. GMs today are a lot smarter than their GM counterparts of ten years ago.
And by the way, if he really was interested, the Giants would have kept it quiet. The noise only benefits Harper and Boras.
it takes longer to drive to San Jose from San Francisco than to fly to Las Vegas…
“Giant enter the mix”. Hey Bryce, how does a 30 year,$300 million contract sound? Wish we could offer more AAV, but our hands are tied.
It’s ok to sign with the Giants Bryce, since you’re bff Strickland is gone.
Boras dials Farhan’s number…
Zaidi: “Hello?”
Boras: “Hi Farhan, it’s Scott. Theoretically if Bryce were to parachute in during a game, land in right field with a glove on, could he play RF?”
Zaidi: “Um, I guess, uh, yeah … Theoretically.”
Boras: “Jenny, inform the media I’m in discussions right now with the Giants.”
This is simply to drive the price up on SD and keep him out of the division. Still think he heads to Philly… too much $$$ to leave on table.
Zaidi, Baer, and Bochy don’t sit down with Boras and Harper simply to drive the price up for a rival team.
Exactly. The Giants sent a contingent to meet with Stanton when they were seriously pursuing him last year, and they did the same thing with Jon Lester a few years earlier. Though both of those attempts ultimately failed, it wasn’t from a lack of interest or a competitive offer. Bryce is a west coast guy, and his only other option in the area at this point is a Padres team with a decent farm system and little else. The Giants have the money, and they have had some success in the recent past. It wouldn’t be shocking to see him in SF for a press conference by the end of the week…
SF can certainly get in on the bidding… But teams like Phils and ChiSox can just about outbid everyone because of their already low payroll. WSH, LA, SF, NYY have payrolls that are already VERY high.. Very hard to outbid.
Are the Phils still throwing stupid money around that nobody wants
you sure about that?
I’m selfish. I’d like to see Machado signed so we don’t have to hear about his personal issues anymore. And I’d like to see Harper signed so we don’t have to hear Heyman talking about yet another suitor entering feverish bidding for another Boras client.
Sign them…..!!!
Giants and Padres fans just eat up BS like it’s filet mignon.
you’ve never even had any.
Lamest comeback ever.
Asa life long suffering Mets fan I just want him out of the NL East.
Let’s go Mets
I think its gonna happen. So ridiculous how no one has faith in the Giants. This is the TEAM that proved this decade how to creatively win with a mix, not just a bunch of 20 year olds – which only the Cubs and Astros did. Everyone else who has won the World Series this decade has been a rich mix of good vets, great pitching, awesome young talent, and exceptional coaching.
The Giants were alot better last year than everyone gives them credit for. They were only 5 games out of WC contention in September, which was a phenomenal improvement from were the team was in 2017. 15 games in fact. Thats awesome!
You add Harper to this mix, and suddenly they start hovering around the Danger Zone. Hey no one believed in our team in 2014, even many Giants fans, Godbless em. No secret how Harper feels about SF, and the org. Close to his home.
WE can rebuild around Harper and the pitching with some great, proven vets to mentor from. This team is getting younger
Wishful thinking guy. The only reason they were that close in 2017 was all the other teams in West had a down year. Giants will finish LAST in NL West in 2019. You can book it !!
Convoluted logic dude. So despite multiple key injuries, the Giants played over their heads, while the Dodgers, D’backs, and Rockies all played below their abilities. Right.
I agree. Add in some veteran OF and we’ve got a team!
“Only 5 games out of the wild card in september”. Wow that screams contender
Not to defend the guy, but all you gotta do is get into the playoffs. Then it’s the hot team at the moment. The Giants were Wild Card winners in 2014 when they won the World Series.
Problem is there were so many teams they were competing with. 5 games out is a lot diffrent when you have 2 NL west teams, Phillies, Nationals, Pirates, Cardinals, and the Cubs/Brewers all ahead of you
That just shows how ridiculously weak the NL is. One thing we know for certain is the Dodgers won’t win even if they make it. Other teams, who knows? But the NL has been a joke for two years in a row. I don’t think it will continue for long. Dodgers window of no NL competition will be over soon.
Just because the NL doesn’t have three 100 win teams, doesn’t make it weak. You act like the Dodgers beat the Orioles to make the world series. Cubs were supposed to be a dynasty and gods gift to baseball. Brewers had the best bullpen in the sport. There are no weak teams in the LCS.
The AL had multiple 100+ win teams because of poor parity across the league and not because of superiority. The NL has more parity where teams are more matched up, but Cubs and Brewers tied for the central division with 95 wins and LAD tied with Roxs with 91. Let’s not discount what the Dodgers did by crapping on the league. YES, Hou, Bos, and NY were really good teams, but they still had more teams to beat up on than LA, Chi or Mill.
At this point, Harper might just be as likely to be fighting hams for Hokkaido in the Nippon Pacific league if he still wants a contract over $325 mil.
Wishful thinking guy. The only reason they were that close in 2017 was all the other teams in West had a down year. Giants will finish LAST in NL West in 2019. You can book it !!
The NL altogether is a joke. Bad teams are in the playoffs in the NL. Then all you have to do is get hot for a month to make it to the show. Did you forget how terrible the Dodgers were last year and still got just hot enough to make it into the playoffs? Lol. Guess you forgot last year. Lol
10 years regardless of the age of a player is ridiculous.
8 years is the max any team should be willing to go.
If you get the Harper of ’18 instead of prior you will be regretting it if you give him a 10 year contract.
Giants need to make this happen. People seem to forget that this team was contending before the all star break last year. Mix in a 5 win September when they were literally rolling out a Triple-A team and we look like one of the worst teams in baseball. They are closer than people think and if you can put Harper in the middle of the lineup all of a sudden Panik, Posey, Belt, Longo, Crawford all get better. Feel like we already have the starting pitching/bullpen, a healthier Posey hopefully, and if they can add someone that can make AT&T (damn Oracle now lol) look small they should. Haven’t had that since Bonds and I can just see Harper flipping HR’s into McCovey cove. Make it happen!
Baer and Bochy don’t go to meetings outside of the GM and Winter meetings just to drive up the price for an agent’s benefit. If all three of them made a special trip to meet with Harper and Boras, then this was real tire-kicking. As the off-season went on, Zaidi said they would circle back to FA’s previously thought to be unattainable, and this is what they are doing. If Baer is there, you can also assume that non-baseball business opportunities were talked about as well, something the Giants can offer more than other teams.
Will it eventually happen? Probably not; just don’t dismiss it out of hand.
Wouldn’t Harper to the Giants feel kind of anti-climactic?
The Giants are not a small market team. They’re a large market team. They can go well above the luxury tax threshold and not miss a beat.
Signing Harper isn’t the whole answer to their problems but it covers quite a bit. Adding some veterans to the outfield (Maybin, Adam Jones, etc) would help ease in Duggar and Shaw.
Not a bad team and not terribly expensive. Let’s go!
As much as it’s fun to speculate, this is just due diligence. I’m sure every major team with a need met with him. It’s only an hour flight to Las Vegas from SFO. It’s not like Bryce flew to SF and toured the facilities and was taken to The Slanted Door for dinner.
The Hunter Strickland move makes way more sense now.
This is just a combination of the Giants doing their due diligence and Boras introducing more competition and higher offers for his client.
IF ( a big if), Harper signed with the Giants, he’d be in it for a long term play – their ace in Bumgarner has been injured or is on the decline, they’ve got ineffective or injured pitchers in the rotation, their hoping Crawford and Belt rebound from relative down years, Longoria is precipitously declining, they don’t have a passable 2nd baseman unless they expect Joe Panik to come around and the overall outfield is a mess. Oh, and the farm system is in the bottom half of MLB.
So if Bryce is content collecting $350M to $400M over 9/10yrs from a currently bottom-feeding team that doesn’t have the logistics to get to the World Series in the next 5 yrs, that’s his mentality. But I doubt that’s his mentality. Also, the Giants extracted Farhan Zaidi from the Dodgers and I also doubt that his first offseason will be branded with the richest contract in MLB history.
Interesting. If SF ownership is okay with blowing past the luxury tax, they could field a competitive team, as long as a few players bounce back.
Isn’t everyone “in the mix” for this circus st this point? Big question is why we all still care. 20th best RF in baseball according to WAR last year. Not sure why that commands the most lucrative contract in history.
In the history of the game 6 players have been as good as Harper through age 25, 5 are in the HOF. Trout is still playing. If you are trying to say that Harper is not worth every penny he is asking for because of one season you are missing the point. Position players peak from age 26-30 and if Harper never improves on the 27.4 WAR he has had so far, even if he only averages the 5+ WAR average that Pecota projects for the next 10 seasons, he will have been worth much more than the contracts that are rumored.
Oh Mr Boras is at it again. Padres, Giants, who’s next?
The Bulls are also meeting with Harper. Not going to sign him. They are just meeting.
TMZ is reporting The Dodgers will sign him. Magic Johnson will then offer him to the Pelicans straight up for Butler.
Robbie Grossman will sign before Harper.
Correction Magic is flipping Bryce Harper for Anthony Davis.
I’m literally praying to the Big Dodger in the Sky for the Giants to get tangled up in a huge long term albatross contract with Harper.
You should be praying they don’t lose another WS. Three-peat!
Your mom is interested in Bryce Harper.
YOUR Mom wants Manny
Team ’em up & we got two ninths of a great team…in the field
My Mom is interested in Bryce Harper
He needs to go a team that actually has a good hitters ballpark
Please no
Rather be bad than have to root for him or manny
Yawn.
They failed to mention Zaidi, Baer, and Bochy all flew to Vegas to meet with Harper. Those who think SF FO would make the reveared future HOF Manager (with health issues) get on a plane just for the heck of it are trippin. Seems to me like SF just became legitimate players for Harper. No doubt a higher AAV with less years. Personally, I’d rather rebuild-retool and wait for Trout. Or stay away from the massive contracts all together.
I predict Trout will retire as an Angel.
If the Giants pursue Harper they way the pursued Stanton, they have a shot at landing him. The Giants were willing to take on Stanton’s entire contract! Plus Harper is known to like the bay area.
I hope both Harper and Machado go unsigned (aka unemployed) into April, so we can watch them, and their greedy agents, squirm.
Neither one of them is worth the deal they’re talking about.
I you one of those people who love watching greedy owners count money the players put in their pockets?
I don’t really care about the owner too much. They don’t play the game. As far as how much they make, at least they are running a business.
Papa burns that would be funny, i agree I think it’s getting ridiculous. Players just aren’t going to receive contracts above $250 million anymore I think those days are over. Machado turned down 7 years and $175 million.
Papabueno*
I think you’re right about the FA market. The days of owners handing out big long-term deals may be over.
People don’t realize how much having paid off the ballpark last season means to a franchise. Unlike many franchises, the Giants now own Pac Bell Park (or Oracle Park, or whatever it’s called now). outright. That is now a massive influx of revenue for the team and the horizon the Giants have been shooting for since the private financing of the park oh so many years ago. The house that Bonds built is now ready to fully realize its potential and really enable the Giants to take on the 500 lb gorilla that is the Dodgers.. I predicted at the outset of the offseason that San Francisco would (and should) be a major player for Bryce Harper. Now is the time for the Giants to pounce and give Harper a monster contract.
Dont forget about the development projects the ownership group invested in near the park. The ownership is swimming in cash and major assets.
Early in the offseason I would have said the Giants were the favorites to land Harper. They have a serious need for OF and he would be the star attraction they need to fill seats.
After all that we have learned about their finances, I am not so sure he is a good fit now. If they can clear some payroll room this season I could see him being a great fit and in 2020 they will have $20+ million coming off the books and another $45 million coming off in 2021.
They have so much money it’s ridiculous. Oracle just gave them 300 million to change some signs. Mission rock, owning stadium, etc along with being under the tax right now gives them tons of options. They can sign Harper without breaking a sweat, they just need to choose whether they are or not
This seems confusing to me. What direction are the Giants going? They dumped McCutchen’s contract, they still have Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samarjza signed to multi year deals. Posey and Belt are also signed for along time. Longoria is owed 70 million for the next four years.