Giants Rumors

Mets, Giants Swap J.D. Davis For Darin Ruf

By Tim Dierkes | August 2, 2022 at 2:41pm CDT

The Mets have acquired first baseman/left fielder Darin Ruf from the Giants for third baseman J.D. Davis according to SNY’s Andy Martino. According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Giants also picked up southpaw Thomas Szapucki and A-ball pitchers Nick Zwack and Carson Seymour in the trade.

At the risk of stating the obvious, the trade suggests the Mets think Ruf can help them more this year than Davis, as both are bat-first right-handed hitters. Ruf, who recently turned 36, continues to serve as a lefty-masher this year. He’s got a 155 wRC+ in 337 plate appearances against southpaws since returning from KBO in 2020, which ranks fourth in all of MLB. Ruf actually succeeded against righties as well in 2020-21, but has struggled against them this year. He’s earning $3MM on the season, of which about $1MM remains. He also has a $3.5MM club option for 2022 with a $250K buyout. Ruf and fellow new acquisition Daniel Vogelbach make for an excellent platoon at designated hitter for the Mets.

Davis, 29, is under team control as an arbitration eligible player for both the 2023 and ’24 seasons. Though not known for his glove, unlike Ruf, Davis is capable of playing third base. Since coming over from the Astros in a January 2019 trade, Davis has posted a 125 wRC+ for the Mets in 1,100 plate appearances. He hasn’t shown a significant platoon split in that period, and has flashed eye-popping Statcast metrics at times. This year, however, Davis has posted just a 102 wRC+ for the Mets in 207 plate appearances and hasn’t been drawing many starts of late. Davis became particularly expendable with the Mets’ signing of Eduardo Escobar back in November plus the acquisition of Vogelbach. Davis played in 140 games for the Mets in 2019, but has played in only 195 games since 2020 due to injuries.

In Szapucki, the Giants get a lefty with a pair of big league appearances to his name. Szapucki has mostly operated as a starter in the minors, posting a strong 21.6 K-BB% in 64 Triple-A innings this year. Prior to last season, Baseball America rated him as a 45-grade prospect, saying he can “land three pitches for strikes,” and needed to recover his velocity after spending 2020 at the Mets’ alternate site. Szapucki has indeed done so, working at 90.9 miles per hour in his lone 2021 MLB appearance but pitching at 95.1 in a brutal May 25th outing at San Francisco in which he surrendered nine earned runs while recording only four outs. Apparently Giants brass liked what they saw in that outing, despite their hitters beating up on Szapucki with four home runs.

Zwack, a 24-year-old southpaw, moved to High-A in May and has excelled with a 22.8 K-BB%. A 17th round pick in 2021 out of Xavier University, it remains to be seen if Zwack can sustain his success when facing opponents closer to his own age. Seymour, a 23-year-old righty, moved into the Brooklyn Cyclones’ rotation around the same time as Zwack. With a 25.0 K-BB% rate, he’s been successful as well aside from the longball. Seymour was drafted by the Mets in the sixth round in 2021 out of Kansas State.

Giants Designate Kervin Castro For Assignment

By Anthony Franco | August 2, 2022 at 12:55am CDT

The Giants announced tonight they’ve designated reliever Kervin Castro for assignment. The move clears a 40-man roster spot for minor league catcher Ford Proctor, who was acquired in a trade with the Rays.

Castro, 23, has reached the majors in each of the past two seasons. He made ten appearances with the big league club last year and two more this season, working a combined 15 innings. He’s allowed six runs (five earned) over that stretch, striking out a solid 25.4% of batters faced on a lofty 13.9% swinging strike rate. Despite showing some promise in his limited big league time, he’s had a much tougher go of things in Triple-A Sacramento this year.

Through 32 1/3 frames at the minors top level, the righty owns a 5.57 ERA. His strikeout rate is down a few points relative to his big league mark, but the more concerning aspect is that he’s doled out free passes at a massive 15.9% clip. Those control issues eventually squeezed Castro off the roster entirely.

San Francisco can trade him over the next few hours, but the likelier outcome is he winds up on waivers. Between his pair of remaining minor league option years and mid-90s fastball, it stands to reason another club might roll the dice in hopes of adding an effective bullpen depth piece. Baseball America recently rated Castro as the #22 prospect in the San Francisco farm system, praising the downhill action on his low-80s curveball.

Rays, Giants Swap Ford Proctor For Jeremy Walker

By Mark Polishuk | August 1, 2022 at 8:58pm CDT

The Rays and Giants have combined on a trade of minor leaguers, with right-hander Jeremy Walker heading to Tampa Bay and catcher/infielder Ford Proctor going to the Giants. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that Proctor had been dealt, while The Houston Chronicle’s Chandler Rome reported Walker’s involvement in the trade.

Walker’s MLB experience consists of 9 1/3 innings with the Braves in 2019, and the righty has a 3.91 ERA over 439 2/3 minor league innings since Atlanta made him a fifth-round pick in the 2016 draft. Working mostly as a starter in his first three pro seasons, Walker made a successful transition to relief pitching in 2019 that resulted in his first Major League call-up. However, he didn’t pitch at all in 2020-21 due to the canceled minor league season and a shoulder impingement.

There is clearly some rust still to be worked off after Walker’s long layoff, as he has struggled to a 6.99 ERA over 37 1/3 combined innings (35 1/3 in Triple-A, two in Double-A) in 2022. While his 23.2% strikeout rate and 9.1% walk rate are nothing special, Walker has been allowing a ton of hits, and a .390 BABIP indicates some level of bad luck for the 27-year-old.

Given Tampa Bay’s successes in pitching development, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Walker get back on track in a new organization. In exchange, the Rays are giving up a third-rounder from the 2018 draft in Proctor, who was ranked 19th on MLB Pipeline’s list of the top 30 prospects in Tampa’s farm system. Dealing Proctor also opens up a spot on the Rays’ 40-man roster, which hints at future moves to come before tomorrow’s trade deadline.

Proctor hit well in A-ball in 2019 and at Double-A in 2021, and also posted some good numbers in the Australian Baseball League and in indy ball in 2020 in lieu of a proper minor league season. In 2022, however, Proctor has hit a modest .213/.329/.306 over 317 PA at Triple-A Durham, his first taste of Triple-A pitching.

Perhaps best known for his unusual defensive profile, Proctor was drafted an infielder but started catching in 2020. Proctor has started 52 games behind the plate for Durham this season while also making 10 starts as a third baseman, one start as a shortstop, and four appearances as a second baseman. The Giants are known to prize defensive versatility, and Proctor’s ability to act as more than just a traditional backup catcher could allow him to carve out a path to a spot on a big league roster.

Giants Acquire Dixon Machado From Cubs

By Mark Polishuk | July 31, 2022 at 10:55pm CDT

3:15PM: The Giants announced the trade to reporters, including Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area, with minor league righty Raynel Espinal going the other way. The 30-year-old made his MLB debut last year, logging just two innings for the Red Sox. The Giants signed him to a minor league deal for this year, with Espinal working as a starter in Triple-A. In 19 games, he has thrown 81 1/3 innings with a 5.29 ERA. He has an impressive 27.6% strikeout rate for the year but below-average walk and ground ball rates of 10.3% and 39%.

As expected, Thairo Estrada was placed on the concussion IL to make room for Machado on the active roster, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com was among those to relay. To make room on the 40-man roster, righty Tobias Myers was designated for assignment. Myers began the season with the Guardians but went to the Giants in a trade earlier this month. Between the two clubs, he’s thrown 63 innings in Triple-A this year with a 6.14 ERA.

2:42PM: The Giants have officially acquired Machado, Morosi reports. ESPN’s Jesse Rogers adds the interesting detail that Machado requested a trade, likely in order to land on a team that could offer him big league playing time.

2:09PM: The Giants are looking to acquire infielder Dixon Machado from the Cubs, as MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (Twitter link) reports that the two sides are in talks. It isn’t known if this could be part of a larger multi-player swap, or if Machado would be the primary player involved.

It is quite possible it could be a cash-considerations type of minor move, as Machado hasn’t played in the big leagues since 2018. The Giants are also in particular need of shortstop help, as injuries have drastically thinned out their shortstop depth chart at both the Major and minor league levels. Brandon Crawford is on the 10-day injured list recovering from a knee injury, while Thairo Estrada was hit in the head by a pitch yesterday and is expected to be placed on the seven-day concussion IL.

After appearing in 172 games with the Tigers from 2015-18, Machado has since played with the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate in both 2019 and 2022, with two seasons with the KBO League’s Lotte Giants sandwiched in between. Over those four years, Machado posted some solid averages and developed a knack for getting on base, even if his power was sporadic at best (though he did hit 17 home runs during the homer-happy 2019 Triple-A season).

This year at Triple-A Iowa, Machado has hit .312/.402/.394 with two homers and 10 steals (in 13 chances) over 391 plate appearances. While Machado has played as a shortstop for the vast majority of his pro career, the 30-year-old has also seen some action at second and third base, making him a good fit for the Giants’ preferred model of versatile players.

NL West Notes: Estrada, Blackmon, Dodgers, Peralta, Ohtani

By Mark Polishuk | July 31, 2022 at 11:56am CDT

Giants infielder Thairo Estrada is likely going to be placed on the seven-day concussion injured list after he was hit in the head by a Mark Leiter Jr. pitch in last night’s game. Estrada was able to leave the field under his own power, after initially spending time on the ground being evaluated by team medical staff. Estrada has hit .262/.316/.406 over 342 plate appearances this season, a step behind his solid numbers from 2021 but still good for an above-average 106 wRC+.

Between this respectable bat and his defensive versatility, Estrada has been a valuable member of San Francisco’s roster, but his likely absence will leave the Giants quite thin at shortstop. With Brandon Crawford on the 10-day IL and yet to begin a rehab assignment, Jason Vosler is the only player on the active roster with any time at shortstop this season. It seems likely that one of Isan Diaz or Donovan Walton will need to be called up from Triple-A to fill that void, unless the Giants make another move in advance of the trade deadline. Since the Giants could be sellers at the deadline, Estrada’s injury probably ensures that he’ll remain in San Francisco beyond August 2, though his team control through the 2026 season already made him one of the Giants players less likely to be moved.

Giants “Listening” To Trade Offers For Veteran Players

By Mark Polishuk | July 30, 2022 at 9:19pm CDT

9:19PM: “Pretty much anyone not Logan Webb” could be discussed by the Giants in trade talks, as per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

8:17PM: The Giants have gone 11-22 over their last 33 games, dropping them below the .500 mark and putting them four games outside of the NL wild card race. While the club was reportedly resistant on being deadline sellers as recently as three days ago, the Giants “now listening on their veterans” in trade talks, according to the New York Post’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand also tweeted that according to a rival executive, San Francisco was seemingly “ready to sell.”

Assuming that the Giants are indeed poised to become sellers to some extent, they immediately become an intriguing team to watch prior to Tuesday’s 5pm CT trade deadline. President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has taken a measured approach to selloffs in the past, even during the 2019 and 2020 deadlines when the Giants had a lot more impetus to fully tear down an aging and expensive roster. A major overhaul certainly doesn’t seem in the works this time around, as since the Giants are less than a season removed from winning 107 games, Zaidi certainly must feel his group can return to contention in 2023 (or could even regroup for a late playoff push this year).

Pending free agents are the most obvious trade candidates, and Carlos Rodon would immediately be a major new entry in the pitching market if the Giants made him available. The left-hander is in the midst of an outstanding season, and recently unlocked a vesting option that allows Rodon to opt out of his contract following the season. Rodon is owed $22.5MM in 2023, but since he can surely land a much more lucrative and longer-term pact in free agency, he looks like a sure bet to exercise his opt-out clause.

The White Sox decided against issuing a qualifying offer to Rodon last winter, and thus he is still eligible for the QO tag this offseason now that we know the qualifying offer system will still be in place. The Giants can recoup a compensatory draft pick in exchange for Rodon’s services if he does sign elsewhere, and thus if any rivals teams are interested in Rodon at the deadline, they’ll have to offer San Francisco something of greater value than that compensatory pick. Speculatively, that could be a player closer to the big leagues, since someone who can provide more immediate help might be preferable for a Giants team that plans to win next year.

As for other free agents, Wilmer Flores, Dominic Leone, and Joc Pederson would all garner interest, though Pederson was just placed on the seven-day concussion IL. A team would be taking some risk in acquiring Pederson given the unpredictable nature of concussion-related symptoms, and of course the Giants’ return in a Pederson trade would be impacted by this uncertainty.

Evan Longoria is also on the injured list, as a right hamstring strain has continued an injury-plagued year for the veteran third baseman. The Giants hold a $13MM club option on Longoria for 2023 that doesn’t look too likely to be exercised at this point, though Longoria has also stated that he might retire after the season. Since Longoria has already started fielding drills is expected back in the first week or two of August, another team could take a flier on a veteran who has still quite well when healthy. Longtime Giant Brandon Belt is also a free agent after the year, though a trade doesn’t seem too likely since Belt has also battled injuries and is having only an okay year at the plate. Belt can also decline any trade due to his rights as a 10-and-5 veteran.

Draft Signings: Rays, Giants, Cubs, Brewers, Red Sox

By Anthony Franco | July 29, 2022 at 9:18pm CDT

With three days left for teams to sign draftees, agreements continue to trickle in. Here’s the latest notable news on that front:

The Rays have agreed to terms with first-round selection Xavier Isaac. Jim Callis of MLB.com reports (on Twitter) he’ll receive a $2.5489MM bonus that matches the pick’s slot value. The lefty-hitting high schooler is something of a sleeper target for Tampa Bay, as he’d placed just 92nd on the pre-draft ranking at Baseball America. A 6’4″ prep first baseman from North Carolina, Isaac has huge power potential, although BA suggests his hit tool has proven a bit more divisive. The Rays are clearly confident Isaac’s a good enough hitter to clear the high bar associated with the position, paying him first-round money to forego a commitment to the University of Florida.
The Giants are in agreement with their first-rounder, as Callis reports they’ve come to terms with Reggie Crawford on a $2.2975MM deal (Twitter link). That’s a touch below the $2.49MM slot value that accompanies the #30 overall pick. Crawford is one of the more intriguing players in the class. A first baseman for much of his early time at the University of Connecticut, the left-hander made just 14 pitching appearances between 2020-21. He ran his fastball into the upper-90s and showed a plus slider during his limited mound work, but a Tommy John surgery dashed the Huskies’ chances of getting him into the rotation this spring. Callis notes that Crawford, who has big raw power upside as a hitter, is likely to both pitch and hit during his early minor league career. Baseball America, which placed him as the #59 prospect in the class, suggests he’s more highly-regarded as a pitcher than as a first baseman.
The Cubs agreed to terms with second-round pick Jackson Ferris on an overslot $3.005MM bonus, Callis reports (Twitter link). The slot value for the #47 pick was around $1.67MM. It’s a typical overslot deal for a high school pitcher whom some evaluators viewed as a first-round talent. The left-hander runs his fastball into the mid-90s, and both BA and Callis praise his curveball and changeup. Baseball America expressed some concerns about his delivery and control, but he owns an impressive enough repertoire the Cubs will buy him out of a commitment to Ole Miss.
The Brewers have also gone well overslot in the second round, with Callis reporting (on Twitter) they’ve agreed to a $2.35MM bonus for Jacob Misiorowski. The slot value associated with the #63 selection checks in at $1.1MM. Misiorowski, a right-hander from Crowder junior college in Missouri, had been set to attend LSU next year. He checked in 67th in the class according to BA, with a fastball that sometimes clocks triple-digits and a possible plus slider. The 6’7″ hurler has questions about his control and the quality of his third pitch, but Milwaukee is clearly intrigued by his high-powered top two offerings.
The Red Sox also went well above slot on a mid-round player, as Callis reports they’ve agreed to a $2.5MM bonus with supplemental 2nd-rounder Roman Anthony (Twitter link). The 79th selection comes with a slot value of $820.4K. Anthony, a 6’3″ prep outfielder out of Florida, is credited by both Callis and BA with big left-handed power projection. He has some swing-and-miss concerns and BA suggests he’s likely to move to the corner outfield in pro ball. An Ole Miss commit, Anthony was BA’s #72 prospect.

Latest On Juan Soto’s Trade Market

By Anthony Franco | July 29, 2022 at 7:43pm CDT

With four days to go until Tuesday evening’s trade deadline, the floodgates of activity have yet to really open. There’s nevertheless been plenty of chatter about the game’s top trade candidate, Juan Soto. The Nationals superstar will continue to be the talk of the summer market until the club either pulls the trigger on a deal or the deadline passes.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post wrote last night that the Cardinals, Padres, Dodgers and Rangers are among the teams generally viewed as those best positioned to pull off the blockbuster. That wasn’t a comprehensive list of clubs with interest, although Jim Bowden of the Athletic tweets this evening that only four clubs remain in the market. Bowden adds that the Padres and Cardinals are among that group of four, but the identities of the other two teams remain unknown. To be clear, it’s not a certainty that no one besides St. Louis, San Diego, Los Angeles and Texas is still in the mix.

Previous reports have tied the Mariners, Giants, Mets and Yankees to Soto, but the general belief is the Nats aren’t interested in dealing him within the NL East. Meanwhile, Heyman wrote last night the Nats “seem focused” on teams other than the Yankees. That’s not to say the Yankees are out, as Heyman unsurprisingly notes they’re still interested in Soto after acquiring Andrew Benintendi from the Royals.

The Cardinals, Padres and Dodgers are obvious entrants into the Soto bidding. They’re each 2022 contenders with a robust collection of young major league and/or farm talent, and all three have proven bold enough to trade for star players in recent years. The Rangers are perhaps a more surprising entrant into the market since they’re not in the playoff mix this year, but Texas has long maintained they expect to compete in earnest by next season. With Soto controllable for an additional two seasons, the Rangers could enter the fray with an eye towards adding another star to the 2023-24 rosters after big free agent pickups of Corey Seager and Marcus Semien.

Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News wrote yesterday that Texas has indeed been in contact with the Washington front office and continues to monitor the market. Whether they’ll be willing to meet the Nationals’ understandably astronomical asking price — and top the offers of clubs that are eyeing Soto as a target to improve their 2022 odds as well — remains to be seen. Grant suggests the Rangers may prefer to focus their resources, both financial and in terms of prospect capital, on their efforts to add talent to the starting rotation. Meanwhile, Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic noted last night in an appearance on Fox Sports that the general expectation is that Texas will be outbid by a more motivated club (Twitter link).

There’ll be more clarity on the Soto negotiations over the next few days. One thing that does not appear to be under consideration: the sides reopening extension talks before the trade deadline. Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post hears the Nats aren’t planning to make another extension offer (Twitter link). General manager Mike Rizzo has confirmed that Washington made a 15-year, $440MM proposal that Soto rejected a few weeks ago. That apparently marked the final extent to which the Nationals were willing to go, at least this summer. That’s not to say the Nats have to force a trade imminently, since his remaining arbitration eligibility would allow them to revisit extension and/or trade talks next offseason if he’s not dealt before Tuesday.

Giants Place Joc Pederson On Injured List

By Anthony Franco | July 29, 2022 at 6:16pm CDT

The Giants have placed outfielder Joc Pederson on the seven-day injured list, which is specific to concussion-like symptoms. Infielder Jason Vosler has been recalled from Triple-A Sacramento to take his active roster spot.

Pederson has been one of the Giants more productive hitters this season. Signed to a $6MM deal over the winter, he’s hit 17 home runs in only 285 plate appearances. Pederson has a .242/.319/.492 line, splitting his time between the corner outfield and designated hitter. It’s something of a bounceback showing for the 30-year-old, who posted below-average offensive numbers between 2020-21 after a generally strong run with the Dodgers.

While Pederson could return to the lineup within a week, his trip to the IL comes at an interesting time for the Giants. San Francisco enters play tonight with a 49-50 record, placing them three games back in the NL Wild Card race. The next few days could prove pivotal towards determining how president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and his staff approach the deadline. They’ll have to navigate the next few games without one of their better left-handed bats.

If the Giants did decide to sell, Pederson would be an interesting trade candidate himself. He’s an affordable platoon bat who’d certainly appeal to contenders searching for that kind of player. As an impending free agent, Pederson would be among the likeliest players the Giants could deal if they moved anyone. He checked in 22nd on MLBTR’s list of the top 60 deadline trade candidates this afternoon. Players on the IL can still be traded, so the Giants could move Pederson before next Tuesday’s deadline if other clubs continue to express interest despite the concussion symptoms.

NL West Notes: Ohtani, Padres, Walker, Rodon, Giants, Bard

By Mark Polishuk | July 28, 2022 at 3:18pm CDT

The Angels reportedly don’t have any interest in trading Shohei Ohtani, but that hasn’t stopped the team from at least listening to offers out of due diligence, Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman of the New York Post write. The Padres are one of those teams who have called about Ohtani, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, who adds that this is the type of aggressive move that has become typical of San Diego president of baseball operations A.J. Preller. There doesn’t seem to be any indication that the Padres have caught the Halos’ attention, except in the broader sense that the Padres have the depth of premium young talent that the Angels would undoubtedly want if they actually did considering sending Ohtani elsewhere.

Frankie Montas and Luis Castillo have also been linked to the Padres in trade rumors, and as Rosenthal notes, it is noteworthy in itself that San Diego is looking at pitchers despite having plenty of rotation depth on paper. However, MacKenzie Gore was recently placed on the injured list, Sean Manaea has struggled as of late, and the Padres could be trying to land a pitcher controlled through at least 2023 considering that Manaea, Joe Musgrove, Mike Clevinger, and Nick Martinez could all potentially enter the free agent market this winter. Furthermore, someone like Blake Snell could be dealt to try and stay under the luxury tax threshold, as avoiding another tax payment is another consideration for Preller to manage as the deadline approaches.

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