Free agency is not at the forefront of baseball fans’ minds right now, but there’s still at least one rather talented player without a job. That’s 29-year-old outfielder Yasiel Puig, who – despite a mostly solid career of production – has encountered a tepid market since last season ended. Puig did reportedly turn down a one-year, $10MM offer from a National League team in recent months, but it’s unclear which club presented that proposal to Puig. The belief, however, is that the Marlins made him an offer at some point, Jon Heyman of MLB Network said on the latest edition of the Big Time Baseball Podcast.
While the Marlins may have tried to sign Puig during the winter, it appears they’re out on him now after adding fellow veteran OFer Corey Dickerson on a two-year, $17.5MM contract back in December. Nevertheless, all hope isn’t necessarily lost for Puig, whom some teams are still considering, Heyman says. The Giants are among the clubs on the list, reports Heyman, who expects Puig to sign somewhere this month (Heyman stated that before the coronavirus forced MLB to temporarily shut down operations Thursday, so it could affect Puig’s chances).
This is not the first time there has been a Puig-Giants connection since last season concluded. As of February, though, negotiations between the two sides had reportedly died down after the Giants brought back old pal Hunter Pence. He’s now set to team with Mike Yastrzemski and Alex Dickerson as the Giants’ top corner outfield choices, though those two can’t match Puig in overall track record, nor do they hit from the same side (Puig’s a righty, while Yastrzemski and Dickerson are lefties). Pence, also a righty, outhit Puig last year, but he may be more of a reserve now that he’s back in the DH-less National League.
Should an agreement between Puig and the Giants eventually come together, he’d reunite with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and new manager Gabe Kapler. Both Zaidi and Kapler were Dodgers employees during part of Puig’s run in Los Angeles from 2013-18. Puig was largely a productive (albeit polarizing) Dodger, though his output at the plate dropped off last year between the Reds and Indians, which is one reason he remains without a team as we approach the middle of March.
Sounds like he “shoulda took the money toons” now hes in a cage.
I had to show some Riddick love to this comment..since nobody else has..
Maybe Puig will wake up and reevaluate his behavior.
He will sign on a team in Asia.
Are we completely sure there are any of those left these days???
He’s much better than a large number of OF on rosters currently in MLB, definitely not Asia bound.
he was fine in ohio
not going to lie, I actually do want Puig on the Rockies and was kinda mad over that rumour being shot down
That would be an interesting place for Puig to play.
He’s still plenty strong. I imagine he could do some serious damage at Coors field.
He batting average would blossom in Colorado and he has a cannon for an arm!! He has slowed his behavior down since he got married and has two kids!!
I want him on the Rockies too. Keep him away from the Bay Area.
The San Francisco Giants. Lol
And their 3 WS titles this century?
I know, pretty cool!
World Series ? Lol. Yeah, a half a decade ago.
The San Antonio Spurs were the NBA champions the last time San Francisco played in a World Series
Franchise is terrible now. embarking on their 4th consecutive losing below .500 season.
Do you laugh at every ball club that hasn’t been to the World Series in the past six years? How bout them Yankees? How bout every ball club out there? You sound like an ignorant kid. Giants played better ball the past ten years then any team in baseball. 3 rings prove it hater! Move along troll
Do you’re homework on MLB win totals The Giants have NOT played better baseball than any other team in MLB the last 10 year’s…Lol
lastly, I laugh because they’re terrible and irrelevant
Actually while you can’t deny the rings, the giants hardly played great ball that decade. One if the winners was a solid team, the other two just got hit at the right time.
If you’re trying to make a point other than just opening your trap – have some backup to it.
I know most Giants fans would react with a Vader-esque “NOOOOO!” but he’s mellowed over the years. Lots of guys were dumber at 23 than they are at 29.
So he is just an older dumb person
Is that better than being a dumber old person?
Mellowed over the years ? He tried taking on the whole Pittsburgh Pirate team last year. The guy is nuttier than a cup of “coffee” sampled by Austin Powers
Nah that was Amir Garret.
But you do have a point that he is still as fiery as before. I believe he is a better teammate than he was before, though.
ya they had it coming for years.
Puig probably wouldn’t be a terrible get for the Giants. Farhan’s familiarity with him could only help and the Giants seem to lack “exciting” players these days.
If the Giants hire Puig it would feel like a big FU to the fan base. Zaidi would be disregarding us for a slight upgrade (if that) in outfield. I hope he doesn’t make that mistake. Rebuild year crowds would get even thinner.
Many Giants fans need to seriously grow up.
Signed, a Giants fan.
No thanks. I’d prefer players with class. Even if it costs us a few wins.
he plays harder than half the super stars
completely agree with you my friend
(Eating a watercress sandwich in the garden during the game) “Ooh did they say puig was up to bat?? Grrr I’d totally go boo him but I wanted to bowl a few frames here first”
I have to say, Puig would be a terrible idea for the Giants despite their weak roster. In fact, I think Darin Ruf is a shoe-in to make the team (assuming there’s a season). So with Yaz, Dickerson, Pence, Ruf and Dubon playing the outfield sometimes—with Slater, Davis and the others headed back to AAA—the Giants will be okay without the headaches and the fan outcry Puig would bring. He makes more sense in Colorado.
Then we just need a new fan base
Giants…hmm, it might be fun to see him hit a few bombs off the invincible Dodgers.
I’d like to see him in Texas instead, he could mess with Grienke a bit. Giants won’t contend, Texas will be competitive. That might motivate him.
Yeah, thought the same thing with Cleveland last year. Both bombs were fun…2 dingers in 207 PAs :/
Greinke could run psychological circles around Puig.
the guy with all kinds of anxiety problems. don’t think so
Bombs did disappear 2nd half (hidden injury maybe?), but he got his doubles, and still nearly 25/20 HR/SB for the year. And you can overlay his numbers from the last 3 seasons, except for the outlier slugging % dip due to last year’s 2nd half, very consistent overall production. And he got into Greinke’s head while they were teammates. No matter about that – broken jaw in Texas gives Puig an opening. If he produces, they keep him or flip at deadline for bullpen help.
If you think Greinke is not intelligent because he had an issue with anxiety, you are very ignorant. Please let us know if you do not know the difference between ignorance and stupidity. You can do that in a number of ways. Nevertheless, all signs point to Greinke being very intelligent. Puig….not as much.. I am not saying Puig is stupid, just not likely as intelligent as Greinke. Likely not even close.
You said psychological, nothing about intelligence. Now you’re putting words in jtvincent’s mouth. His comeback was actually clever. Your rebuttal wasn’t, because you changed the narrative.
Greinke is known for his high intellect. What that has to do with social anxiety ( controlled or not ) is beyond me. Greinke dominates hitters like Puig. He’d probably love having him in the division.
as a giants fan I don’t want his personality on the team – but it would be interesting when the giants play the dbacks and puig has to face bumgarner as a giant
Giants need offense, Puig needs a place to play. A familiar ballpark and the added motivation of the Giants/Dodgers rivalry could be the spark Puig needs to get his bat going again.
A right-handed corner outfielder with power. Literally exactly what the Giants have been seeking for more than a decade. Best laid plans, he signs cheap, takes offensive advantage of a relatively fair left field, minds his P’s and Q’s, and the Giants flip him at the deadline.
No team is going to sign him now to sit at home while covid-19 shuts down league’s around the world. I’d say he’s in limbo for a few months.
True. He really should have taken that 1-year, 10 mil offer and tried to raise his stock during that contracted season.
Living in Central Missouri m, there’s about a 50/50 split of Royals and Cardinals fans. My friends who happen to be Cardinals fans want Puig in St. Louis.
I feel like there’s a bunch of AL teams that should take a hard look at a 2-3 year deal. Could play corner OF and DH and he’d add lineup depth to almost any batting order.
No need on 2-3 year deal unless it’s very cheap. Won’t take more than a one year deal at this point.
Come to the Royals Puig
No
Outright waive Alford and Fisher, Blue Jays should sign Puig to a 1 year plus an option, $9-mil base with incentives pushing to $13-mil and an option at $12-mil. Potential for $25-mil over 2 years. An OF of Gurriel, Grichuk and Puig. Good corner OF arms.
Much has been said about the Giants need for OFs, however the city by the arch is in a similar situation. Yeah, the Cardinals have about a half dozen guys running around in the outfield, but none of them are better than average and a few (Thomas, Carlson) are unproven.
Cards should sign Puig, put him in LF everyday and let him do his Marcel Ozuna impersonation.
If Carpenter bounces back and can handle 3B, that would free up Edman for a spot in the OF. .Fowler is dead wood IMO, but Cards are stuck with him. Not expecting much from Bader or O’Neill. They both strike out way too much.
He does not have a multi year offer for 1 reason and 1 reason only …. last year during spring training in an interview he said the following “ this is a contract year I have to play hard this year “ he is not a smart man to make a comment like that …. so here we sit and apparently I wasn’t the only one that heard the interview as he sits lonesome. He told everyone in the world that he plans to play hard in contract years. Why on earth would anyone sign him longer than 1 year
Yes, and in a contract year and pennant race he didn’t exactly bring it.
The Giants do not need Puig. Nor do they need a Zaidi – Kapler – Puig reunion.
with all the wife beater and cheats in ball he can’t be that bad. better than anyone on Huston
Last season Puig was suspended twice for fighting and had a dugout argument with two Indians players after not running out a ground ball.
Hes hardly matured.
He also wont..or cant…hit a cutoff man.
Over the last five seasons he has put up at least 2.0 fWAR only once. And as a RH bat has opposite splits.
Aa bad as the Indians outfield was last year, they had four outfielders who were more productive over the course of the entire season than Puig.
Puig did not play the whole season for Cleveland and was hurt if I recall
If not for Mattingly, Puig would’ve been a really nice fit for Miami and their efforts to be relevant again. However, Puig to the Rangers on a two year deal seems like a good alternative. I get that Puig is always capable of being problematic, but there’s no doubt he’d help them catch up to Oakland and Houston. I understand Guzman still has potential at 1B, but I feel that trading Guzman for pitching and moving Gallo to 1B to make room for Puig is a worthwhile gamble.
If Mattingly was some sort of veto against Puig playing in Miami then I don’t think the Marlins would have been connected to him in the first place. More likely they just didn’t want to pay his asking price.
I’m thinking it’s Puig who doesn’t want to play for Mattingly more than the reverse. Maybe that’s why he turned down the one year offer?
I dunno. Because his agent told him he could get something better?
Excellent Idea. Puig > Guzman by a mile. Gallo stays healthy at 1st base. Cmon Man!
Regardless of his clubhouse presence, he’ll still make plays at times like a little leaguer, which will drive hometown fans crazy… still like him though…
Puig will realize all other sports are a lost cause for right now and instead bide his time in an underground boxing ring.
If I’m a guy looking to rebound my value the last place I’d want to go is San Francisco. Terrible hitters park, and the an awful lineup around him. Good luck with that.
Actually, Oracle Park would be an excellent one for Puig. But we don’t want him.
Way too many drawbacks for league average production. Minor league deal but a hard pass is probably best.
The Puig hate has always been puzzling. Sure he’s eccentric but he makes plays few in baseball have ever been able to make, and he is just plain fun to watch. Infuriating sometimes too, but always entertaining. Maybe because I’m old enough to remember Bill Lee I don’t hold Puig’s sometimes odd behavior against him. So lay off Puig already. Players with personalty add interest to the game, especially if they can play it.
Call it what it is – a lot of fans are still racist and Puig is both black and latino and a show off on the field. All things racists can’t stand, no matter that Puig would be automatically the best OF the giants have had since the best year of pence, and before that maybe bonds.
But SF fans would rather cheer for dugger and Mac Williamson types for obvious reasons.
Tigers should sign this guy.
Tigers fans appreciate eccentric players like Mark the Bird Fidrych.
Team is rebuilding and could use some drama and personality to fill the seats etc..
Tigers could use another OF. in LF or RF..Puig would be an upgrade..
If he produces, then they could flip Puig to a contender at the trade deadline.
As a die hard Giants fan, I would much rather have on the active roster Puig instead of Pence!!
Puig wouldn take the pressure off Belt Posey and Longo to perform.
He would, sorry. Sign him up!