- Giants president of baseball operations Brian Sabean discusses some of the organization’s young players with Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area on his podcast. It’s an interesting chat for fans that wish to understand how the top brass sees the farm and player development. The veteran executive also touches upon the team’s increasing incorporation of sabermetrics.
Giants Rumors
Giants Notes: Power, Defense, Evans, Span, Pence
- Power and outfield defense are both needs for the Giants this winter, though as team executives told reporters (including Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle and MLB.com’s Jonathan Hawthorne) today, the team won’t sacrifice the latter for the sake of the former. “We don’t want to get too far away from our game,” GM Bobby Evans said. “We’re a pitching and defense team. If we compromise too much in the area of power and give up to much defensively, that can hurt us as much as the benefit of adding the power.” A younger and more athletic outfield seems like a priority, and Schulman feels this might rule out a run at 31-year-old free agent Lorenzo Cain. In my view, Cain’s excellent glove would seem to make a good fit for the Giants, though his defensive metrics did decline (from great to “merely” quite good) in 2017.
- The Giants will look to add at all three outfield positions, as incumbent outfielders Denard Span and Hunter Pence could be in line for position changes. Span, according to manager Bruce Bochy, is “all in” about moving from center to left field. This wouldn’t seem to leave much room for Pence to move from right field, though Schulman suggests that Span and Pence could both share a position. That would be a very expensive solution considering that Span and Pence will combine to earn $30.5MM in 2018, though since both also have notable injury histories, a time-share could help keep both players healthy.
Giants Notes: Cueto, Hundler
Following his final start of the season, Giants right-hander Johnny Cueto wouldn’t tip his hand regarding his opt-out decision when asked by reporters (link via Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area). It seems unfathomable that Cueto will opt out of the remaining $84MM on his deal on the heels of the worst season of his big league career, and Cueto suggested that he’s enjoyed his time as a Giant and believes there’s a winning core in place. Backstop Nick Hundley also told the media that he “loves” San Francisco and his teammates, Pavlovic continues. His declined to elaborate on the opportunity to pursue a larger deal in free agency this winter or a potential starting role but certainly sounded open to a return.
Giants, Nick Hundley Have Mutual Interest In New Contract
- There is mutual interest between the Giants and Nick Hundley in a new contract, though Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle observes that it might hinge on how much playing time Hundley is able to find elsewhere from a catching-needy team. Obviously, anything more than a backup role isn’t an option in San Francisco with Buster Posey locked in as the regular catcher. Hundley hit .246/.276/.425 over 296 PA with the Giants while becoming a big voice in the team’s clubhouse.
Managerial Notes: Mets, Phillies, Klentak, Bochy, Guillen
David Wright and Jacob deGrom were two of several Mets players who weren’t pleased by the teammates who anonymously criticized manager Terry Collins in a recent piece by Newsday’s Marc Carig. “It was cowardly, in my opinion,” Wright told Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News. “I have been very fortunate in my career. I haven’t had too many gripes, but when I did, I went and talked to Terry or whoever the manager is. His door has always been open and he’s always listened.” It seems a foregone conclusion that Collins won’t return to manage the Mets in 2018, and the manager himself didn’t want to comment on many of items in Carig’s piece, other than to take exception to the idea that his usage of Jeurys Familia contributed to the reliever’s surgery to address an arterial clot in his right shoulder.
Some more managerial notes from around baseball…
- “In my mind, we have reached a turning point in this rebuild,” Phillies GM Matt Klentak told reporters (including PhillyVoice.com’s Ryan Lawrence) about why Pete Mackanin was moved to a front office position rather than manage the Phils next season. “We see our roster right now is littered with young players who look to have a very, very bright future. It’s time to look forward. That’s the message today: it’s time to look forward.” In Lawrence’s view, Klentak’s answers were somewhat indirect, especially since Mackanin was just given a contract extension in May. Both Lawrence and Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer believe Klentak is now taking a larger role in the Phillies’ rebuild, given that several of the team’s top young talents were brought into the organization by previous (since fired) front office personnel. Brookover figures the new skipper will be younger and more analytically-minded, and he cites Dusty Wathan as “the smart choice” for the job since Wathan is so familiar with Philadelphia’s young players. Wathan has managed in the Phillies’ farm system for the last decade, including managing the Triple-A affiliate in 2017.
- Sources close to Giants manager Bruce Bochy believe he’ll certainly stay on until his contract is up after the 2019 season, CSNBayArea.com’s Alex Pavlovic writes. Despite the Giants’ dreadful season, there is no danger of Bochy being fired, and though the manager has undergone some health issues in recent years, Bochy is intent on righting the ship next year. “I want to leave the Giants organization better than when I came here and I want to get this team back on track. This is my passion,” Bochy said.
- Ozzie Guillen hasn’t received an interview request since being fired by Miami four years ago, but the former Marlins and White Sox manager is still hopeful of another chance at managing a big league team, he tells Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. Fenech believes Guillen would be an interesting candidate for the Tigers job as the club embarks on a rebuilding process, though it isn’t clear whether Guillen is one of the names under consideration for the job.
Phil Nevin "Strong Candidate" To Become Tigers' Next Manager
- Giants third base coach Phil Nevin is a “strong candidate” to take over for Brad Ausmus as the Tigers’ manager, according to Heyman. Nevin played with the Tigers from 1996-97 and managed at their Double-A and Triple-A levels from 2010-13. Thanks to his work in the latter capacity, he’s already familiar with Tigers general manager Al Avila.
[SOURCE LINK]
Matt Cain To Retire
Matt Cain will retire at the end of the season, the longtime Giants right-hander told reporters (including CSNBayArea.com’s Alex Pavlovic). Cain will make one final start, the 331st of his 13-year career, on Saturday at AT&T Park against the Padres.
Cain informed his teammates of his decision before addressing the media, saying “I think Saturday will be the last time I put on the Giants uniform, and I can’t see myself going to play somewhere else.” (hat tip to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle) The Giants held a $21MM club option on Cain’s services for the 2018 season, though it was a foregone conclusion that the option would instead be bought out (for $7.5MM) given Cain’s struggles and injury problems over the last three years.
“Matt is one of the most accomplished right-handed pitchers in Giants history and has made a tremendous impact both on and off the field within our organization,” Giants President/CEO Larry Baer said in a statement. “His play on the field and community service exemplifies what a true big leaguer should be and he will definitely be missed. On behalf of the Giants, I congratulate Matt on an outstanding career and wish him and his family all the best. He’ll forever be a Giant.”
Originally taken by the Giants with the 25th overall pick of the 2002 draft, Cain developed into one of the key figures in the franchise’s return to championship prominence this decade. From 2006-12, Cain posted a 3.30 ERA, 7.5 K/9, 2.47 K/9 and averaged 213 innings per season, racking up three All-Star appearances and three top-12 finishes in NL Cy Young Award voting. Cain joined Tim Lincecum and then Madison Bumgarner as the aces of San Francisco’s staff that helped the Giants win three World Series titles from 2010-14.
Elbow and ankle problems kept Cain from contributing to that 2014 championship team, though he’d already proven his postseason bonafides in the Giants’ previous two title runs. Cain owned a sterling 2.10 ERA over 51 1/3 playoff innings, including 21 1/3 shutout innings over the entirety of his work in the 2010 postseason.
Cain’s success led to a notable contract extension signed in April 2012 — a six-year/$127.5MM deal that was, at the time, the largest contract ever signed by a right-handed pitcher. 2012 was a thoroughly notable year for Cain given his extension, the Giants winning another World Series and the perfect game authored by Cain on June 13. It was the 22nd perfect game in MLB history and the first in the history of the Giants franchise.
Injuries hampered the final few years of Cain’s career and forced him into an early exit from the game (he turns 33 on Sunday). Still, Cain will long be remembered by Giants fans for his durability and clutch October performances, and Saturday’s start will no doubt be a special day at AT&T Park. We at MLBTR wish Cain all the best in his post-playing career.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Nick Hundley Would Like To Return To Giants
- Veteran backstop Nick Hundley says he’d like to return to the Giants, as Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reports. Skipper Bruce Bochy says he’ll “sit down” with the catcher about the future, noting that he expects Hundley to “have some choices” in free agency. Hundley slashed .252/.281/.434 with nine home runs in 290 plate appearances, with the on-base struggles offsetting his pop. And he doesn’t rate well as a framer. Still, the Giants seem to feel they have received good value on their $2MM investment; Baggarly documents Hundley’s work with the pitching staff and positive clubhouse presence. “I love it here,” said Hundley, adding that he “can’t imagine how much better it’d be if we were winning more games.”
Matt Cain Uncertain About Continuing Career
The Pirates controversially parted with reliever Juan Nicasio in a money-saving move last month, but the now-Cardinal and impending free agent would be open to an offseason return to the Bucs, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports. “Yes, I would consider it. I liked it there a lot,” said Nicasio, who joined Pittsburgh prior to the 2016 season. It’s unclear whether the Pirates will pursue Nicasio over the winter, but he has put himself in position to secure a nice deal from them or someone else with his output this year. In 69 innings divided among Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and St. Louis, the 31-year-old has posted a 2.74 ERA with 8.74 K/9, 2.35 BB/9 and a 45.9 percent groundball rate.
More from Pittsburgh and two other NL cities:
- The Nationals plan to activate right fielder Bryce Harper for their series opener against the Phillies on Monday, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post tweets. Harper left the Nats’ game against San Francisco on Aug. 12 after suffering a gruesome-looking knee injury, thus derailing an MVP-caliber campaign, but he’ll have a chance to be a major factor in October for the World Series hopefuls.
- Giants right-hander Matt Cain sounded uncertain on Saturday when discussing whether he plans to continue his career in 2018, Chris Haft of MLB.com writes. What’s clear is that the Giants will buy out the former front-line starter’s $21MM club option in favor of a $7.5MM buyout in the offseason, ending a fruitful tenure in the Bay Area. While the 32-year-old Cain is in the midst of a fourth straight rough season, he has been outstanding for the majority of his career in San Francisco, where he has won three World Series and earned three All-Star nods since debuting in 2005.
- Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang won’t need to come off the restricted list to participate in the Dominic Winter League, general manager Neal Huntington told Adam Berry of MLB.com and other reporters Sunday (Twitter link). Kang is already in the Dominican Republic and working out with his winter ball team, per Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Their season begins Oct. 20, and playing for them will represent his first game action since the 2016 major league season. Kang hasn’t been able to secure a U.S. work visa since earning his third DUI charge in his native South Korea last winter. The Pirates will set an offseason deadline to decide whether they can count on Kang for 2018, according to Huntington. “We’ll get to a point in time where, if we still don’t know, we’ll plan as if he’s not going to be here,” he said. “If he is able to secure a visa to get into the country, we’ll have an extra really good player.”
Giants Likely To Keep Pablo Sandoval Into Next Spring
Third baseman Pablo Sandoval’s reunion with the Giants this season has been a disaster from a statistical standpoint, as the former franchise linchpin has batted just .213/.253/.346 in 146 plate appearances in his return to the Bay Area. Nevertheless, the Giants seem primed to keep Sandoval on their 40-man roster into next spring, Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reports. Factors working in Sandoval’s favor include his inexpensive price tag – the 31-year-old has a club option for 2018 worth the league minimum – and manager Bruce Bochy’s favorable opinion of him. Bochy said Saturday that the Sandoval experiment has “gone well,” and he praised the former member of the Red Sox for his defensive work at both corner infield positions. Because injuries frequently kept Sandoval out of action during his nightmarish stint in Boston from 2015-17, he’ll play winter ball during the upcoming offseason in an effort to make up for some of the missed time. After that, it appears he’ll have an opportunity in spring training to earn a spot on San Francisco’s 25-man roster.
