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MLBTR Podcast: The Mets Sign Jorge Polanco, And The Braves, Blue Jays And Royals Make Moves

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Check out our past episodes!

  • Winter Meetings Recap – listen here
  • An Agent’s Perspective with B.B. Abbott – Also, Cease, Williams, Helsley, And Gray – listen here
  • Some “Classic Baseball Trades,” Nimmo For Semien, And Ward For Rodriguez – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro, Imagn Images

Braves Sign Mike Yastrzemski

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The Braves announced a two-year, $23MM contract with outfielder Mike Yastrzemski. He’ll make $9MM in 2016 and $10MM in 2027 and is guaranteed a $4MM buyout on a 2028 club option valued at $7MM. Yastrzemski is represented by Jack Toffey Sports Management. Atlanta designated outfielder Michael Siani for assignment in a corresponding move.

Atlanta hadn’t waded too far into the free agent market outside of re-signing closer Raisel Iglesias. The club now improves its outfield/DH mix by bringing in Yastrzemski. The lefty-swinging veteran finished last season with the Royals after getting dealt by the Giants at the trade deadline. After spending his first six seasons in San Francisco, Yastrzemski will now be on his third team in the calendar year.

Before the move, the Braves were looking at a pair of speed-first options in holdover Eli White and waiver claim Siani as their bench outfielders behind the trio of Ronald Acuna Jr., Michael Harris II, and Jurickson Profar. Yastrzemski gives them a more viable offensive contributor as the fourth outfielder. Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos recently mentioned he preferred to leave the DH spot open and split the duties between multiple players. Yastrzemski figures to factor into that equation against right-handed pitching, grabbing left field reps with Profar moving to DH.

Yastrzemski was having one of his weakest offensive campaigns with the Giants prior to getting traded. He had managed just eight home runs and a career-low .355 SLG across 97 games. The move to Kansas City flipped his season, as he quickly emerged as a crucial top-of-the-order contributor. Yastrzemski slugged nine home runs in 50 games with the Royals, while walking more than he struck out. He capped off his season with a two-homer game against the Athletics.

The 35-year-old Yastrzemski didn’t reach the big leagues until age 28. He immediately made an impact in the power department, swatting 21 home runs in 411 plate appearances as a rookie. Yastrzemski earned near-regular playing time over the next five seasons, providing solid production against righties while typically sitting against lefties. He tended to strike out at an above-average rate, but still finished with a wRC+ of at least 106 in all but one season with the Giants.

Yastrzemski has spent the majority of his time in right field, though he has experience at all three outfield spots. He made six starts in left field, five starts in center field, and 29 starts in right field during his brief stint with the Royals. Yastrzemski graded out as a neutral fielder by Outs Above Average. His range received poor marks, but he offered value with his arm, per Statcast.

Kansas City was reportedly interested in a Yastrzemski reunion. Given his strong two months for the team, it made sense the Royals would look to bring him back. The club is currently short on proven outfielders, with Jac Caglianone, Kyle Isbel, and John Rave penciled in as starters. Considering that the trio is entirely left-handed, targeting a righty bat might be a better fit for Kansas City.

Robert Murray of FanSided first reported the Braves were nearing a deal with Yastrzemski. Jon Heyman of The New York Post first had the two-year, $23MM guarantee and the option.

Royals Interested In Re-Signing Mike Yastrzemski, Adam Frazier

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After doing some light buying at the trade deadline over the summer in order to keep themselves in contention, the Royals have some interest in reuniting with two of the rental bats they brought on board back in July. According to a report from Jaylon Thompson of The Kansas City Star, the club has interest in reunions with both outfielder Mike Yastrzemski and second baseman Adam Frazier.

That the Royals would want to bring Yastrzemski back into the fold is hardly a surprise. The 35-year-old veteran was a late bloomer with the Giants who didn’t debut in the majors until his age-28 season, but he’s been a consistently above-average hitter in seven seasons since then. Over the past three years, Yastrzemski is a .232/.322/.426 (107 wRC+) hitter with a 23.4% strikeout rate against an excellent 11.0% walk rate. He’s a consistent source of decent power as well, typically offering 15 to 20 homers and 20 to 30 doubles in a given season.

All of that already points to Yastrzemski offering a solid floor for an outfield that desperately needs stability, but Yastrzemski also impressed in a big way after being dealt from San Francisco to Kansas City down the stretch last year. While the team wasn’t able to squeak into the playoffs, Yastrzemski delivered a phenomenal performance with nine home runs and a 127 wRC+ in 50 games for the Royals while also walking (13.4%) more often than he struck out (11.8%). All of this occurred in a small sample of just 186 plate appearances, but if Yastrzemski could turn in a performance even close to that in 2026 he’d surely be one of the biggest bargains in this winter’s free agent class.

As for Frazier, a reunion for the 2026 campaign would mark the soon to be 34-year-old’s third stint in Kansas City across three seasons. Frazier struggled badly as a Royal in 2024, posting a wRC+ of 65 across 104 games in a part-time role. He rejoined the team in a trade with the Pirates at this summer’s deadline, however, and turned in a much more respectable performance. In 197 plate appearances with the Royals, Frazier slashed .283/.320/.402 with a wRC+ of 98 to lift his season-long figure across 134 games to 89. Frazier lacks the track record of consistent above-average offensive that Yastrzemski offers but would help back up Michael Massey and Jonathan India at second base, which proved to be a major hole for the Royals last season.

Neither player’s contract figures to break the bank, which is surely part of why Kansas City is interested in re-upping with both players. Club payroll isn’t expected to go up much in 2026 if it does at all, and with the team already projected by RosterResource for $139MM in payroll ($1MM more than last season) the Royals find themselves in a bit of a financial bind as they look to reshape their offense. They’ve already expressed a willingness to deal from their rotation mix in order to bring in offense, but with holes all over the outfield and on the bench they’ll surely need to add more than one bat if they hope to improve their offense in 2026. That’s where a cheaper free agent addition like Yastrzemski or Frazier could come in, providing roughly average production at an affordable rate.

Royals Acquire Mike Yastrzemski

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The Royals have acquired outfielder Mike Yastrzemski from the Giants in a last-minute deadline swap. In exchange, the Giants will receive right-handed pitching prospect Yunior Marte. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com was the first to report that Yastrzemski was headed to Kansas City.  The deal is now official.

Yastrzemski, 34, has slipped to a 97 wRC+ in 372 plate appearances for the Giants this year in his seventh season with the club.  From 2023-24, he’d managed a 109 mark.  A left-handed hitter, Yaz has always excelled against right-handed pitching, including a 118 wRC+ this year.

Yastrzemski, who has primarily played right field in the Majors, joins a 54-55 Royals team that nonetheless sits three games back in the Wild Card race.  He’s a perfect pairing with the newly-acquired Randal Grichuk, a right-handed hitter.  Rookie Jac Caglianone, who had spent time in right field, is on the IL with a hamstring strain.  Yastrzemski, famously the grandson of Hall of Famer Carl, will be eligible for free agency after the season.

As Justice delos Santos of the San Jose Mercury News notes, “With Yastrzemski gone, the door is open for Luis Matos to step into a starting role [for the Giants]. It’s very possible Grant McCray and Marco Luciano see some time in right field as well.”

In parting with their longtime right fielder for the next few months, the Giants add Marte.  The 21-year-old has spent the season in A ball, posting a 2.74 ERA and 18.4 K-BB% in 19 starts.  Baseball America assigned him a 50 high risk grade, noting that he “features two above-average pitches in his arsenal.”

Giants, Mike Yastrzemski Avoid Arbitration

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The Giants and outfielder Mike Yastrzemski have avoided arbitration, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com on X. He will make $9.25MM in his final season before he is slated to become a free agent. That’s narrowly below the $9.5MM salary projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

Yastrzemski, 34, was a borderline non-tender candidate. That’s not so much a reflection of poor play on his part, simply that his salary had climbed to roughly match his value. The Giants could have considered moving on, using the savings to pursue marquee players, with the ability to sign someone roughly around Yastrzemski’s level later in the winter if they missed on the big guys.

But instead, they will stick with the proverbial bird in the hand, keeping Yas for one more go. Over the past six years, he has proven to be a fairly consistently above-average player, even if he’s something below a true star. In 694 contests, he has slashed .239/.322/.457 for a wRC+ of 112. In each full season, his wRC+ finished somewhere between 99 and 120. His home run total has always been between 15 and 25 in those full campaigns.

On top of that, his defense has been pretty steadily better than par. When combined with his solid work at the plate, he has been worth between 1.5 and 2.5 wins above replacement in each season of his career, per the calculations of FanGraphs.

A solid two-WAR player for $9.25MM is neither a bargain nor an egregious overpay. The Giants are evidently content with that equal value proposition, so Yastrzemski will stick around for one more year, barring a trade. The Giants are reportedly open to a swap, though the return won’t be massive with his salary roughly matching his expected production.

The club has Jung Hoo Lee and Heliot Ramos likely to be in the other two outfield slots next year, with Grant McCray, Jerar Encarnación, Marco Luciano, Blake Sabol, Wade Meckler and Luis Matos also in the mix. Perhaps they will pursue other players in the offseason who could make a Yastrzemski seem more possible, or perhaps the club will want to make room some of those incumbent players.

Giants Could Listen To Offers On LaMonte Wade Jr.

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There are likely to be some trades amidst an interesting offseason in San Francisco. As Buster Posey looks to put his stamp on the roster, a few veterans could find themselves in trade rumors. Jeff Passan of ESPN wrote this morning that the Giants are making LaMonte Wade Jr. and Mike Yastrzemski available. The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly similarly wrote last week that Wade, Yastrzemski, and former closer Camilo Doval could be in play on the trade market.

All three players stand as logical trade candidates. The hitters are headed into their final seasons of arbitration and are one year from free agency. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Wade for a $4.7MM salary, while Yastrzemski is projected for a lofty $9.5MM sum. Doval is projected at $4.6MM for his first of three arbitration seasons. Dealing him would be selling low on a talented arm, but the righty pitched himself off the MLB roster in the second half. If he doesn’t rebound next season, he’d be a non-tender candidate going into 2026. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle recently reported that the Giants had received interest from multiple teams on Doval.

Of the two hitters, Wade would have greater appeal. The 30-year-old first baseman is more affordable than Yastrzemski and gets on base much more consistently. Wade is coming off a .260/.380/.381 showing through 401 plate appearances. He has a .258/.376/.401 slash over the past two seasons. The lefty-hitting Wade has posted plus OBP marks against left-handed and righty pitching alike.

Few players draw more walks or get on base as consistently. While there’s value in that plate discipline, Wade doesn’t have the power associated with most first basemen. He hasn’t topped 18 home runs in a season and hit just eight longballs this year. Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area writes that some within the organization view first base as an area for upgrade. They’d presumably look for a more traditional power bat.

It’s a solid free agent class for first basemen. Pete Alonso and Christian Walker headline the group. They’d certainly add power, but both players would require draft pick and international signing bonus forfeitures as qualifying offer recipients. Alonso and Walker are on track for multi-year deals — potentially five or six years in Alonso’s case — which doesn’t fit well for San Francisco. The Giants’ top prospect, Bryce Eldridge, reached Triple-A before his 20th birthday and could get to the majors by the end of next season. Signing one of Alonso or Walker would lock up designated hitter once Eldridge arrives.

If San Francisco wanted a short-term stopgap, Paul Goldschmidt or Carlos Santana are one-year options. Goldschmidt is coming off a middling offensive season. Santana had a nice year for the Twins but has some similarities to Wade as a first baseman without massive power. Josh Naylor, Ryan Mountcastle, Nathaniel Lowe and Yandy Díaz are potential trade candidates who are down to their final year or two of club control.

The Pirates, Astros, Yankees, Reds and Nationals are some of the teams that could gauge Wade’s availability. San Francisco should be able to net a mid-level prospect if they move him. They might have a harder time matching up on a Yastrzemski deal. The left-handed outfielder could just as easily be a non-tender candidate before next Friday’s deadline.

Yastrzemski hit 18 homers with a .231/.302/.437 slash through 474 plate appearances this year. It was the fourth straight season in which he was around league average offensively. He grades as a solid right field defender but is stretched in center. Yastrzemski is a reasonably productive player, but there might not be much of a market for an arbitration salary pushing $10MM in his age-34 season. The Giants wouldn’t get much in return if they did find a team willing to tender him a contract.

Trading or non-tendering Wade and Yastrzemski would knock around $14MM off next year’s payroll projection. A Doval trade could push that to roughly $19MM. Baggarly reported last week that the Giants planned to reduce payroll after exceeding the luxury tax threshold in 2024. They can do that without trading any of their arbitration-eligible players. RosterResource calculates their tax number (including arbitration estimates) around $183MM, nearly $60MM shy of this year’s spending level. A few trades would create more room for free agent strikes for a shortstop and potentially top-end starting pitching.

At shortstop, San Francisco has already been connected to Ha-Seong Kim and is one of the best on-paper fits for Willy Adames. They haven’t been closely connected to any pitchers, though Passan suggests they’re likely to be in the mix for Max Fried. San Francisco has been loosely floated as a potential suitor for Juan Soto, but Jayson Stark of the Athletic reports (on X) that they’re not among the teams that currently have a meeting scheduled with the market’s top free agent.

Giants Notes: Snell, Yastrzemski, Conforto

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The Giants already extended one potential free agent by when they inked third baseman Matt Chapman to a six-year, $151MM contract that overrode the remaining two years and $34MM on his previous pact and negated the opt-out clause he was sure to exercise. Now, the recruiting pitch for another likely opt-out candidate is on. Giants righty Logan Webb appeared on Chris Rose’s podcast this week and suggested he’s doing everything he can to convince Blake Snell to re-sign on a longer-term deal and plant roots in the Bay Area (YouTube link, with Snell talk beginning at the 18:15 mark). Asked by Rose how he can help make sure Snell is back with the Giants in 2025, Webb replied:

I’m going to do everything [I can]. I don’t know how that’s all going to work out. I kind of hope they do what they did with Chappy — start conversations now, so we’re not bidding against other teams. I’m sure there’s teams in our division that are going to try hard to get him. Teams need good starting pitching, and he’s been the best in baseball since the beginning of July. It’s been awesome to watch, and he’s one of my favorite teammates. Hopefully we do everything we can to get him back.

He didn’t have a spring training, right? … He was kind of scuffling. I think he was doubting himself a little bit. And then, all of a sudden, look what happens when he gains some confidence. He’s back to Blake Snell. He’s a two-time Cy Young Award winner. Not many guys are two-time Cy Young Award winners, and you can see it when he throws. He’s throwing pellets. It’s unbelievable, as a lefty. I don’t know how anybody hits this. We’ve got to do everything we can to get him back. I do think he should be a big part of our future going forward.

Webb noted to Rose that he doesn’t plan to campaign to the front office in unprompted manner — though public-facing comments of this nature are in a way indirectly doing so — but would offer his opinions and any feedback if asked. It’s clear that Webb, a perennial Cy Young candidate himself, values Snell’s on-field contributions as well as the left-hander’s presence in the clubhouse.

The assertion that Snell has been baseball’s best arm dating back to early July is hard to argue, too. Snell’s no-hitter gained plenty of attention, but as I explored in a piece for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers a couple weeks ago, Snell has picked up his annual second-half momentum and looks to be back in Cy Young form. He obviously won’t win the award this season after a dismal start to the season that included him twice landing on the injured list, but since returning from his latest IL stint on July 9, Snell has a 1.45 ERA in 68 1/3 innings. He’s punched out a gaudy 36.5% of his opponents, offsetting a higher-than-average 10.5% walk rate, and allowed two or fewer runs in 11 of his 12 starts (the exception being a three-run, six-inning quality start on Aug. 7).

That run of dominance makes Snell’s opt-out an easy call — the alternative would be a $30MM player option for the 2025 season — but it’s not clear whether the front office has engaged with agent Scott Boras (who also reps Chapman). The Giants have been reluctant to make weighty long-term offers to free agent pitchers under the current front office regime. Webb’s five-year, $90MM extension is the largest contract the Giants have given to a pitcher under president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi in both years and dollars. They haven’t signed a free agent for more than three years (Anthony DeSclafani’s $36MM deal) or for more than a total of $44MM (Carlos Rodon’s two-year deal). Snell should breeze past both marks.

Snell isn’t the only Giant whose future is uncertain, of course. The Giants have a wide slate of potential free agents but also some borderline arbitration calls. Outfielder Mike Yastrzemski spoke with Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle about his own status. The 34-year-old is owed a raise on his $7.9MM salary this offseason and has turned in a fairly typical season by his standards, slashing .237/.310/.441 with 15 home runs and quality defense in right field.

Yastrzemski has been a fine value at his current salary, but an arb raise could push him north of $10MM. For a player in his mid-30s who’s unlikely to return to his standout 2019-20 form, that could be present a difficult decision as the non-tender deadline approaches in November — particularly since the Giants have a number of younger outfield options. Heliot Ramos has solidified himself in the 2025 outfield, and center fielder Jung Hoo Lee will be back next year after undergoing shoulder surgery that ended his season back in May. Grant McCray, 23, has looked a bit over his head in 85 plate appearances so far (.247 OBP, 41% strikeout rate), but he had a decent showing in Triple-A this year. He and/or Luis Matos could push into the picture next season.

Perhaps there’s a scenario where Yastrzemski is more of a part-time player, but his salary could be steep for that role. He made clear to Slusser he hopes to be back, however, even mentioning a willingness to sign a two-year deal that’d lower his contract’s average annual value. We don’t typically see players heading into their final arbitration season voice willingness to sign for only two years, but Yastrzemski is older than most players with five-plus years of service and also spoke of how he’s “grown so in love with” the organization, the stadium, the clubhouse and the city itself.

Slusser also adds that outfielder Michael Conforto, a free agent at season’s end, is hoping to return to San Francisco. It’s difficult to envision a scenario where both Yastrzemski and Conforto are back next year, however, as the Giants will want to earmark playing time for Ramos and Lee and surely want to leave the door open for at-bats for younger outfielders like McCray and Matos. One of Conforto or Yastrzemski, at most, seems feasible.

The 31-year-old Conforto has never regained his star-level form after undergoing shoulder surgery two years ago, but he’s popped 16 homers for the Giants this season while batting .229/.307/.430. He’s been about 7% better than average after weighting for his home park, by measure of wRC+, but he’s also sitting on the lowest full-season walk rate of his career (9.3%) and his highest strikeout rate (25%) since 2017.

Conforto likely won’t come close to the two-year, $36MM contract he received from the Giants two offseasons ago this time around. Familiarity with the player could prompt some interest in a reunion from the San Francisco front office, but he hasn’t been a handily above-average bat since 2020 at this point. A modest one- or two-year deal could be the outcome this offseason, and a Giants club hoping to establish more of an offensive identity moving forward might prefer to shuffle the lineup rather than largely maintain the status quo.

Blake Snell Among Giants Drawing Trade Interest

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8:46pm: Jon Heyman of the New York Post tweets that five teams have shown some amount of interest in Snell.

10:22 am: The Giants have hovered around the National League Wild Card race for most of the year but slipped back recently, which could lead to them deciding to sell prior to Tuesday’s trade deadline. Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic took a look at some possible trade candidates, reporting that left-hander Blake Snell is drawing significant trade interest. Earlier this week, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic listed Michael Conforto, Mike Yastrzemski and Wilmer Flores as bats that are available around the league. Baggarly also mentions right-hander Alex Cobb and lefty Taylor Rogers as candidates to be moved in the coming days.

San Francisco is currently 49-55, which only puts them 5.5 games back of the nearest playoff spot, but they would have to pull away from the Cubs and then pass the Reds, Pirates, Diamondbacks, Cardinals and Padres in order to get into postseason position. They’re not totally buried but the Playoff Odds at FanGraphs give them just an 11.5% shot of getting in while the PECOTA Standings at Baseball Prospectus are even less optimistic at 5.6%. With that kind of Hail Mary window, it’s logical that the Giants would look into shifting their priorities to optimizing next year’s team, which would mean making some players available now.

It’s unsurprising that Snell would draw significant trade interest, though his trade candidacy would have complications. He’s one of the top pitchers in baseball when at his best, which is why he has two Cy Young awards on his mantel. That includes getting last year’s National League trophy when he posted a 2.25 earned run average over 32 starts with the Padres.

But 2024 has been far less smooth. Despite his excellent 2023 campaign, he lingered in free agency for a long time and didn’t sign with the Giants until the middle of March. After a quick ramp-up, he made three rough starts before landing on the injured list with a left adductor strain. He returned from the IL and had three more bad outings before returning to the IL in early June with a left groin strain. At that time, he had an ERA of 9.51 in those six starts.

He has since returned and been in much better form. He shut out the Blue Jays and then the Twins before allowing two earned runs against the Dodgers. Those three better starts have reduced his ERA to 5.83 for the year.

Despite the inconsistent results this year, some clubs would surely be willing to bank on his track record and recent return to form. However, his contract adds another layer of complication. He signed a two-year, $62MM deal with the Giants that allows him to opt-out at season’s end.

Trading players with such provisions is usually a tricky proposition, something that MLBTR’s Anthony Franco recently explored in a piece for Front Office subscribers and it’s a situation that Giant fans are likely familiar with from the Carlos Rodón saga from a few years ago. Despite having a dominant season for a middling Giants club, Rodón wasn’t moved at the deadline as he had an upcoming opt-out that seemed to ward off potential buyers.

Players in such situations are mostly downside for the acquiring club. If the player performs well, they will leave, making them a rental in a best-case scenario. If they perform poorly or get hurt, they will stick around and keep their notable salary on the books. Surrendering notable prospects for such an arrangement is often an unattractive proposition and the selling club might not want to give up a star player for an uninspiring return.

Snell’s contract consists of a $15MM salary this year and a $17MM signing bonus that Baggarly notes is not transferable to a trade partner. There’s a $30MM player option for 2025 that Snell could trigger if he finishes the season poorly or is injured, but he could also opt-out if he finishes strong. Those complications might soften the offers but demand for pitching is expected to outstrip supply, especially in terms of front-of-the-rotation type arms, so perhaps the Giants will get some intriguing calls.

It makes sense that the Giants would listen to offers to see if they could get that contract off their books while also recouping some younger talent. Even without Snell, next year’s rotation could consist of Logan Webb, Kyle Harrison, Robbie Ray and Jordan Hicks, with Tristan Beck and Keaton Winn perhaps back in the mix if their health allows. Prospect Carson Whisenhunt has reached Triple-A while the club also has Mason Black, Hayden Birdsong, Landen Roupp and Kai-Wei Teng on the 40-man roster.

Sticking with the rotation, Cobb is a more straightforward trade candidate in the sense that he’s an impending free agent. Even though he underwent hip surgery in October, the Giants picked up his $10MM option for this year in the hopes that he wouldn’t miss that much time. Unfortunately, his return has been slowed by some elbow and shoulder issues and still hasn’t pitched in the majors this season.

He has been rehabbing of late and tossed five shutout innings at the Triple-A level on Saturday. Baggarly notes that he could be reinstated and pitch for the Giants on Sunday, which would essentially be a pre-deadline showcase for interested clubs. The injury issues from this year will likely give clubs some hesitation but Cobb is an established veteran with a 3.85 ERA over 230 career starts. As recently as last year, he was able to toss 151 1/3 innings with a 3.87 ERA.

As for the bats, Rosenthal mentioned Flores as a trade candidate on Wednesday but the Giants put him on the IL the next day due to right knee tendonitis. Players on the IL can still be traded but he is also having a down season, hitting .206/.277/.318 for a wRC+ of 71. He’s making $6.5MM this year and then has a dual player/team option for 2025. He first has to decide on a $3.5MM player option and then, if he declines, the team would have an $8.5MM option available. Given his down season, he might be inclined to pick up his end of the deal rather than going to free agency.

Conforto is a straightforward trade candidate since he’s an impending free agent. He signed a two-year, $36MM deal going into 2023 and then declined to opt out after hitting a league-average .239/.334/.384 last year. He started out well this year but has tapered off. He was hitting .280/.331/.490 when he landed on the IL on May 12 due to a right hamstring strain. Since coming off the IL in early June, he’s hitting .165/.262/.331.

Yastrzemski can be retained via arbitration through next year, but there’s logic in considering trades now. He’ll turn 34 next month and is making $7.9MM, meaning he could be looking for an eight-figure salary in arbitration next year. He’s been a consistently solid player during his career on both sides of the ball. He has hit .241/.326/.458 for a wRC+ of 114 while racking up 35 Defensive Runs Saved and seven Outs Above Average. Per FanGraphs, he’s been worth at least 1.6 wins above replacement in every previous season of his career and is currently at 1.3 fWAR this year.

Even without Conforto and Yastrzemski, the Giants could go into next year with an outfield mix consisting of Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos and Luis Matos with guys like Derek Hill, Tyler Fitzgerald and Wade Meckler also in the mix.

As for Rogers, he’s in the second season of a three-year, $33MM deal he signed with the Giants. He has continued to pitch well and the Giants could keep him for next year, but moving now might also make sense. He has a 2.27 ERA this year but that’s largely propped up by an unsustainable 84.1% strand rate. His 25.6% strikeout rate is his worst since 2017 and he’ll be turning 34 this winter.

Teams generally sign free agents looking for most production in the beginning of the deal, with the later years a pill they swallow as the price of doing business. If there’s a way for them to wriggle out of the last season of the Rogers pact, they might consider taking it. Such a move could potentially free up some cash, bring back some young talent or both. It would create a hole in next year’s bullpen but relievers are often viewed as volatile and fairly replaceable.

All together, the Giants make for an interesting late entry into a market that has been perceived to have a lack of sellers. As laid out by Baggarly, the club could try to duck under the competitive balance tax in the days to come but it would be difficult to do. RosterResource estimates they are currently just above $253MM, more than $16MM above the $237MM base threshold. They would effectively have to find takers for all the money owed to Snell, Rogers, Conforto, Yastrzemski and Cobb to dip under and therefore might be focused on prospect capital between now and the July 30 deadline.

Giants Claim Kolton Ingram From Cardinals

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The Giants have claimed lefty reliever Kolton Ingram off waivers from the Cardinals and optioned him to Double-A Richmond, the team announced. San Francisco also reinstated outfielder Mike Yastrzemski from the 10-day injured list and optioned right-hander Landon Roupp. The Giants had an opening on the 40-man roster after designating Spencer Howard for assignment over the weekend. St. Louis had DFA Ingram on Sunday.

So continues a nomadic year for Ingram, who hasn’t actually pitched in the majors this season. The 27-year-old southpaw has nevertheless been a part of six organizations this calendar year. Since being designated for assignment by the Angels when the Halos signed Aaron Hicks in January, he has gone to the Tigers, Mets, Rangers, Cardinals and now Giants via waivers.

Up to this point, Ingram has spent the entire season in Triple-A. He owns a 4.26 ERA across 25 1/3 innings. Teams have remained intrigued by him as a depth option despite a mediocre strikeout and walk profile. Ingram owns an average 22.8% strikeout percentage while walking a massive 16.7% of batters faced at the top minor league level this season.

The Giants will keep him out of the Pacific Coast League for the moment, sending him back to Double-A. Ingram has an excellent 2.46 earned run average in 102 1/3 career Double-A frames. He has a 3.66 mark over 59 innings in parts of three seasons in Triple-A. Ingram has only logged a cup of coffee in the big leagues, tossing 5 1/3 innings of seven-run ball with the Halos last year.

Taylor Rogers and Erik Miller are the lefty duo in Bob Melvin’s bullpen. The Giants briefly called up Raymond Burgos to make his MLB debut before sending him outright off the 40-man roster a few days ago. Ethan Small would occupy a 40-man spot when healthy, but he’s been on the injured list all season after suffering a Spring Training oblique strain.

Giants Place Keaton Winn, Mike Yastrzemski On Injured List

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The Giants announced some roster moves this morning, including the news that right-hander Keaton Winn and outfielder Mike Yastrzemski have both been sidelined with injuries.  Winn has been placed on the 15-day IL with inflammation in his throwing elbow, while Yastrzemski is headed to the 10-day IL with a left oblique strain.  Both placements are retroactive to June 21.  Outfielder Luis Matos and infielder David Villar were called up from Triple-A in corresponding moves, and the Giants also sent utilityman Tyler Fitzgerald to Triple-A.

Yastrzemski left Thursday’s game due to his strain, and while oblique problems are known to have fluid timelines, the outfielder told the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser (all links to X) that he doesn’t think he’ll miss much if any time beyond the minimum 10 days.  After a very slow start to his season, Yastrzemski’s bat has started to heat up over the last few weeks, bringing him to an above-average 104 wRC+ and a .224/.304/.406 slash line over 215 plate appearances.

Yaz has been the Giants’ regular right fielder when a right-handed pitcher is on the mound, but his absence will leave the team short on left-handed bats as a whole, with LaMonte Wade Jr. is also on the IL and Jung Ho Lee is gone for the season.  It isn’t an ideal situation for a team that likes to play matchups as much as the Giants, though Matos can help fill the void in the outfield overall, even though Matos is another right-handed hitter.

This is the second time Winn has visited the IL this season, as a forearm strain put him on the shelf for four weeks.  He had made three starts since his last activation from the 15-day, though the righty has struggled both before and after his IL stint, posting a 7.16 ERA across 55 1/3 innings.

As much as the Giants were hoping Winn could become a solid rotation piece in his first full Major League season, health is now the bigger question for the 26-year-old.  Winn missed the entire 2021 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, so a pair of injuries to his forearm/elbow area in quick succession certainly is a big cause for concern.  Past health history notwithstanding, it is also possible Winn’s current issue is just some basic soreness that can be cleared up with 15 days of rest and rehab.

Logan Webb and Jordan Hicks are now the only two healthy starters in San Francisco’s rotation, though both Blake Snell and Robbie Ray will pitch in rehab work for Triple-A Sacramento on Sunday.  Giants manager Bob Melvin told Slusser and other reporters that Snell might just need the one rehab start before being activated from the 15-day IL, if all goes well.  Kyle Harrison is rehabbing from a sprained ankle and might not need any rehab work after being placed on the IL last weekend with an ankle sprain.

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