9:09am: The Twins and Giants haven’t held “high-level talks in recent weeks” regarding Bumgarner, Jeff Passan of ESPN hears. On the other hand, the Twins are interested in Giants closer Will Smith, per Passan. The 29-year-old Smith may be an even more enticing rental than Bumgarner. Not only is Smith on an appealing $4.23MM salary, but the southpaw has been one of the most dominant relievers in the game this season. Smith has registered a 1.95 ERA/2.01 FIP with 13.64 K/9 and 1.95 BB/9 across 32 1/3 innings, and has converted all 21 of his save opportunities.
8:15am: While Minnesota owns the American League’s best record at 51-27, it’s not resting on its laurels with the July 31 trade deadline approaching. The club has “strong interest” in Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports. The Twins are not on Bumgarner’s limited no-trade list, as Nightengale notes, so he wouldn’t be able to stand in the way of a deal.
The Twins’ starting staff has statistically been one of the most productive in the majors’ this year, having put together a 3.74 ERA/3.95 FIP with 8.27 K/9 against 2.36 BB/9. Jose Berrios and Jake Odorizzi have offered excellent production, while Kyle Gibson and Martin Perez have given the team a pair of fine complements. Perez has struggled of late, though, and while Michael Pineda hasn’t posted great aggregate production this year in his return from Tommy John surgery, he has picked it up since the start of May.
For the Twins, acquiring Bumgarner would likely mean sending one of Perez or Pineda into their bullpen. And landing Bumgarner would also keep him away from AL rivals, including the Yankees, who may pursue the three-time world champion in an effort to bolster their rotation. While the 29-year-old Bumgarner is no longer performing like the front-line starter he was during his halcyon days, he remains a quality option who will draw no shortage of interest over the next month-plus.
In his most recent start Tuesday, Bumgarner fired six innings of 11-strikeout ball in a win over the Rockies, who mustered three hits, three walks and two earned runs off him. Bumgarner has now pitched to a 4.21 ERA/4.16 FIP, which isn’t spectacular, though he has recorded 9.12 strikeouts per nine against 2.1 walks. He has also averaged six innings per start, having totaled 102 2/3 frames in 17 appearances, and maintained his normal velocity. It’s also worth noting Bumgarner has a reputation as one of the game’s elite playoff pitchers, though it’s unclear how much that will matter to modern front offices when it comes time to pony up for him via trade.
The Giants, for their part, don’t necessarily have to deal Bumgarner. While Bumgarner’s only under contract through this season, during which he’s earning $12MM, he’s a franchise icon they may try to extend. At the same time, though, the Giants aren’t contenders this year and seem unlikely to put together a playoff-caliber team by next season. Considering that and the Giants’ weak farm system, it’s likely they’ll cash Bumgarner in for prospects – perhaps at least one top 100 farmhand – in the coming weeks.
Can he defend at every position on the field?
Strange comment. Are you trying to say the twins are a terrible defensive team in every position? Because that’s not even remotely true. If it’s a comment about how he’ll lose his at bats by going to the AL it is a strange way to word it.
Maybe he’s just curious and was hoping someone reading would know the answer.
Can anyone? And if they can, is that more important than a shutdown starting pitcher with a history of basically winning a World Series by himself?
Astudillo probably can so yes, that is more valuable.
If that is your understanding of value, I really hope we are in direct competition one day. It’s just amazing how people think a utility player is more valuable than at least a solid #2 starting pitcher.
Astudillo>Scherzer
Blows my mind how easy that was for JD to troll you there. I don’t know how the hell you let that happen. That was an obvious joke from a mile away to everyone but Hiflew apparently.
Astudillo can play every position poorly, yes. So could Nelson Cruz.
Hflew wasn’t trolled, and nobody is certain JDGout wasn’t being serious to begin with. He wants validation and decided to play along with the “joke”.
It’s everybody’s favorite utility man! Sorry Hiflew just a joke.
Lmao
pablo could play every position though it might be comical to see him in cf
Bumgarner can throw a tantrum at every position on the field…
Seen this 100 times as a twins fan. He goes to Yankees or cubs or someone else and twins FO talks about how hard they tried by putting up the twins #20 prospect and they “felt close but couldn’t quite get it done”
No truer words were ever written!!
you may be right about the Twins sid of it, but he isn’t going to the Cubs
Yep, we Twins fans have learned not to get our hopes up. Maybe one day, but I don’t see this being that day.
Whys everyone down on the Twins. And when was last time they had the American League best record at this point of the season. There good.
Classic candidate to be a whole lot better once he switches to a contender. The guy should pitch well at Target Field. I am sure the twins love that he’s not on no-trade so they should be able to give up less in theory.
The Twins aren’t on his no-trade list, but do 10-and-5 rules apply for MadBum?
They don’t. Bumgarner hasn’t reached 10 years’ service yet.
His ten years is this Sept. 8th.
This is the occasion where the Twins should finally make the move, on paper it seems to be a nice fit. Could be a really nice addition, go all in and get Smith too.
Not familiar with the Twins pipeline. Do they have the goods to add both Bumgarner and Smith?
They have 5 top 100 players, but lewis one of the best SS prospects in all of baseball and isn’t going anywhere. They have a good farm, but don’t think it’ll take the top guys anyway to get this done. I could see Dee Gordon’s brother Nick leave in a deal though. Decent middle infield prospect.
But middle infielder you mean a good second baseman prospect. Though he can play short he doesn’t have the arm or range to stay there in the big.
Sure, but he’s played more SS than 2B this year, middle infield, as in can play SS or 2B is all I meant.
Gordon’s arm is solid. Not sure where you got your info from. It’s Polanco’s arm which doesn’t belong at SS.
If they want both, it’ll cost one of there top three prospects, and easily two of top ten. Not sure if Twins wants to go that route.
No it won’t, unless that’s the only significant player getting moved.
If they want both it’ll easily take 3 top prospects. A. You take away four of Bum’s poor starts and his ERA is around a low 3. B. Bum is the top starting pitcher available to trade for right now. C. His reputation for being a big game starter.
Now we look at Smith, he alone should bring a top 100 prospect i.e. Chapman a few years ago when traded to the Cubs. Depending on how many high quality relievers are available (Giants actually have two others that will probably be sought after) that will drive up the price too.
Anyone that thinks the Giants trade either of these guys without getting top prospects back doesnt know baseball history.
ha, yaz,Rodriguez, gonzales,arrenado, heyward… add gordon man!
AA and below, the Twins are LOADED. AAA Nick Gordon would also be an improvement in the infield for the Giants.
Of course the Twins are interested in Bumgarner. They should be. But I say he belongs in the NL. It’s too fun to watch him hit.
They can always opt out of the dh for his starts
Or they can let somebody that’s actually good at hitting take the DH spot and continue to rake as a team.
This is the problem with pitchers hitting. Somebody with a .536 career OPS is “fun” to watch and considered one of the best, if not the best at his position. Universal DH will be here soon.
Chris Davis, Kendrys Morales
I hate the DH, baseball started with pitchers that hit and should remain that way.
Yea I think I want madbum’s mid .600 ops bat instead of literally any DH out there
Pitchers hitting is far better game to watch than DH contests
This this make Giants fans excited.
Need to bolster that farm system, Twins have some really nice pieces. Don’t miss on a trade like this.
Giants DON’T need to “bolster their farm system”. They need MLB ready talent, not some Low A-Ball “prospect” that may or may not making to the bigs in 3-5 years.
Giants are not going to compete in the next 3 years. Why trade for a guy you are going to lose control of to soon.
Because Giants ownership is absolutely disconnected from the sport. They’re not interested in rebuilding, they want to be competitive again as soon as possible.
Unfortunately it looks like they won’t be competitive for a lot longer than 3 years. Dodgers aren’t going anywhere, Friars are one of the most intriguing young teams in the sport, the D-Backs are lurking in the shadows and have a lot of upside realistically, especially if they can stop paying Grienke, and the Rox try their best every year but just can’t get free agent pitchers. The Giants are going to be last my guess for at least 5 years with their awful contracts and lack luster farm system. These are the dark times for us SF fans
it should make fans excited, the Giants have turned into the Phillies from a couple years ago. rebuild!
I could see the Twins trading Nick Gordon and Gabriel Moya for Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith.
Moya was just dfa’d and hasn’t been effective. Gordon for sure though, Twins are fairly deep in IF (both current roster and minors).
Agreed. Moya has utterly no value. Gordon certainly does have solid value, but Smith is going to generate a lot of interest.
Both Smith and Bumgarner are rentals so I’d rather the Twins pursue somebody else with more control… since we have almost nobody committed to the rotation next year.
I could see SF telling the Twins to go fish after an offer like that.
I read these comments about all these dream trades where a fan thinks that their team is going to get quality without giving up quality. I don’t care how far you think Bumgarner has fallen, he will definitely bring in top prospects. Take away his for poorest starts this season and his ERA is much closer to a low 3. Until he gets to the playoffs and sucks he still has a reputation as a big game pitcher which if you’re trading for him you’re expecting that for the playoffs.
And compare Smith to Chapman a few years ago to look at the type of prospect the Giants will expect in a trade for him.
He’s still a summer rental. Nobody who wants to contend for more than one season is going to strip mine their farm system for a half season of a 4+ ERA pitcher.
Ridiculous – the Giants are in rough shape for sure, but they aren’t idiots
Well said.
I don’t think Dee Gordon’s little brother has a ton of value anymore. Especially since he profiles as an inferior Dee Gordon. That’s not enough for both of them.
This is typical of the Twins front office. Make a statement they’re really interested in player “x” but they’ve rarely actually put in any reasonable offer to sign or acquire the player.
In this case, MadBum probably isn’t significantly better than what the Twins already have since it’s not 2015 anymore. Hitters have a 47.1% hard hit rate against him so the home runs aren’t fluky.
As a Giants fan, I’d be happy to see Bumgarner go to Minnesota. I’d love to see him pitch playoff baseball once again, unfortunately that will not be happening anytime soon in SF.
Bumgarner is built for October and will give everything he has to win a ballgame. Would bring tremendous leadership to Minnesota’s pitching staff.
Might as well go get Will Smith too. Smith is a absolute stud. Reyes Moronta isn’t too shabby either.
Bumgarner thrives in pressure situations. The Giants haven’t played a meaningful game since 2016.
You sound like his agent, haha.
As a Royals fan, I want to see him in the postseason again too. Watching the clutch Royals and Bum as a playoff dominant pitcher felt like the ultimate World Series of intangibles
With that handle, it’s probably Bumgarner himself.
Deal Him. Sign him back. Retire a Giant…
Would Javier or Graterol be enough with a lower level piece. I don’t think there’s any way Lewis or Kirilloff can be included unless they’re getting a lot more back.
I’m not sure either team would do a graterol centered deal. He’s the Twin’s primary hope for a future top 3ish starter and the Giants would probably look at his injury history and be less than excited.
Graterol maybe too much, Javier makes some sense though with a couple others. Let’s not forget Mad Bum has a 4.22ERA/4.28 FIP and hasn’t had a FIP better than 3.95 in several years. He also doesn’t have the elite stuff he had when he dominated October.
Correction: His ERA is 4.21, and his FIP is 4.16, not 4.28. His stats for the last few years need to be mitigated somewhat since 2017 and 2018 were affected by injury. He’s been basically league average this season, but he also eats up innings, which will have value through August and September.
yeah, I don’t think Lewis or Kirilloff are going anywhere.
The only way the Twins are moving LEwis or Kiriloff is in a deal for someone like Bauer or Thor.
at this point i would have a lot more faith in madbum than thor.
Gaterol is OFF-LIMITS, especially for a 5th Starter Rental pitcher.
In my opinion, if Minnesota lands MadBum and Will Smith, they will have a great shot at winning the World Series this year.
Most likely the Dodgers will represent the NL, and MadBum has historically been great against them. Definitely worth the risk of losing prospects especially when your Farm is deep.
You’ve got a great shot at winning it all this year. Yankee fans should be stressed out right now.
Watch out for Houston or Atlanta too..
Trevor Larnach, Lewis Thorpe (Aussie :D) and Luis Arraez for MadBum and Watson, talk to me Twins fans
Doesn’t seem ridiculous, though it’d really blow to trade Larnach. The guy can apparently hit quite well.
4th best prospect in the organization, although that trade offer could work really well for both sides.
Not for Tony Watson. Will Smith, Sure
And the Giants say no to Bum and Smith for that package.
Solid offer, Larnarch would be the big get for the Giants but the Twins still have Kirilloff. Depending on if they’d want more MLB ready players (giants) maybe they’d want Gordon instead of Arraez and throw in Smeltzer who had a solid debut this year, MLB ready but not a top prospect and is having a really nice year in AAA.
That is TOO MUCH for what the Giants have to offer.
Asking too much?
Change that to madbum and Smith and I’d do it in a second
No way does Falvine deal Larnach and Arraez for rentals. However, any of Rooker, Cave, Gordon, Thorpe, Baddoo, and Javier sound much more realistic imo.
Like it, but would prefer Wil Smith instead of Watson…..Giants might be more interested if Twins replaced Arraez with Nick Gordon.
Good chat lads, as much as it would suck to trade MadBum, he could bring something of interest back and there’s interesting prospects in the Twins system. Seems to be a good wrap on this Larnach kid, he’d be the target, maybe add 1 more high upside arm and add Smith in and trade for all 3 left armers haha wouldn’t hurt, Twins would then surely be taken seriously against the likes of the Astros and Yankees which would be delightful to see
agreed that Larnach would be the centerpiece for the Gs if it is Bum and Smith. Don’t think the Twins will let go of any of the top 3. Gs need to get at least one close to ready impact player, and I think that is Larnach. If they plan on making a push to bring Bum back, then I think they go for another position player, probably Gordon — or Arraez if they think that Arraez can stick at 2B. If the Twins won’t go 2 positional players, then I would shoot for Duran.
That said, I would love for the Gs to make a run at the Rays’ Brujan.
Bumgarner going to the Braves.
Not sure about Smith but he’ll be really expensive is my guess.
Minnesota is the perfect fit for Bumgarner. Smith fits on any team. They need a guy capable of stealing one of the frat two games of the ALDS and if they go to a Game 5 Bumgarner is ready for whatever role he is asked to fulfill. This would change the AL landscape.
Would love seeing Bumgarner but we need Smith more, our bullpen has been up and down this season.
I don’t believe both players are dealt together. That would take a really big haul. Smith will ultimately go to highest bidder. He has nice numbers and peripherals. Additionally, his salary is ideal. I see him as a must for the Braves and they have the pieces to get it done. However, MadBum’s situation really depends on MadBum. The whole purpose of his no trade clause is to generate extra income. There are only contenders on his list with no geographical concerns. In another words, if the Yankees want him, they will likely have to meet Giants asking price and then MadBum’s to accept the trade. This could come in the form of an extension (not likely) or some type of incentive to agree to drop the no-trade clause. Not all teams will be held hostage. However, the Devil Rays nor Twins are on the list so I would propose they may get him for less than what the other teams would have to pay in that they don’t have to settle with two parties……
The Devil Rays? They haven’t had that name in over a decade…
Go get him Falvey
Yankees are on his no trade list.
As a Yankees fan, pretty resigned to the fact our front office does not prioritize starting pitching as highly as casual fans. Look at their last couple of off seasons and even their conduct with Keuchel. They obviously has a number in mind for how much a starting pitcher is worth. I don’t think Brian Cashman is going to start handing truckloads of assets to other teams for rentals. I think Twins are in good shape to acquire MadBum. The only thing I’d caution is not to bid against yourself because the Yankees aren’t going to compete hard to acquire Bumgarner.
basically everyone within an earshot of the wildcard is going to be in on both Bumgarner and Smith, everyone’s going to bid against themselves with those two…
You know, the twins have the prospects and payroll capacity to acquire Smith, Bumgarner AND Max Scherzer… if these players find their way to Minnesota, they may become AL favorites. This is coming from an Astros fan. I don’t see Scherzer being traded because the Nationals think they are close to contenting for the NL pennant (they aren’t and won’t be next year either) and their ask would probably include Lewis+. Which would be justified, but the + is what I would imagine where the Nats get a little unreasonable… twins are a solid team, I’m not convinced they are built for October quite yet though.
He’s still only 29 and although he has a healthy amt of mileage on that arm, he’s still a pretty strong pitcher. If the cost wasn’t going to be insane, I would want my braves to get him. Especially now that Folty is looking kinda like a bust this year.
Move him. Extending him would be GM Malpractice.
Giants ownership may not let Zaidi make that decision.
Madbum & Smith > Johan Duran,Trevor Larnach, and Griffin Jax.
That’d be a tough pill to swallow but probably around what it’d cost.
“The Twins and Giants haven’t held “high-level talks in recent weeks” regarding Bumgarner, Jeff Passan of ESPN hears. On the other hand, the Twins are interested in Giants closer Will Smith, per Passan.”
The fact that they haven’t recently held high level talks doesn’t mean that they are not interested in MB, which makes the “on the other hand” not make a lot of sense here.
Or….San Fran keeps Bumgarner and gives him a QO. I wouldn’t, but I wouldn’t be shocked.
Bumgarner would likely take the QO and try to rebuild value if his season continues like current.
RIght now, what would Bumgarner command on the free agency market? Way less Keutchel. Say 2-3yrs $24-36M? Something like that with a QO attached. The QO would be worth $19M-ish for one year?
Sorry, I was speaking from the Giants perspective where I would work on a deal.
Would Bumgarner take the QO? I’d say the amount will be in the mid-18 mil area. I’d strongly consider it if I am Madison Bumgarner. The stepback in overall numbers the last 2 seasons must scare front offices away from handing out a longterm deal. But, we’re still only halfway through the year, give or take. Lots could happen.
Somebody is going to give Madison Bumgarner more than 24-36 million. Whether Bumgarner’s future production will be worth more than that I don’t know. But there’s no way his best offer is 2/24 barring an absolute collapse.
Had Keuchel started his ask at 55-60 MM he would’ve been snapped up relatively quickly. If Bum takes Keuchel’s approach then he’s in trouble. If he realizes he’s a 40-50 MM kind of guy then he’ll be alright.
1 $ won’t be a factor SFG will pay down all the $ to get a better prospect return, MIN can’t cry poor
2 Smith and Bumgarner won’t be dealt together
3 MIN should look at other MLB depth pieces on the SFG roster, Sandoval, Vogt are interesting bench/depth options
4 Bum’s no trade list is there to pick up some extra $ on his way out the door, the teams listed are all presumed preseason contenders (ATL, BOS, CHI, HOU, MIL, NYY, PHI, STL) he has give no word that any destination is a no, obviously MIN is in an advantageous position.but still likely will need to beat the market.
5 Before everyone starts pulling out their prospect list for MIN to speculate on trades understand those lists are already stale dated. There’s been no indication what SFG seek in terms of ceilings, floors and how close to MLB, volume or a single headliner, Likely every system they evaluate will have it’s strengths/depth and they will seek in their evaluation “the best player(s)” return
SP market seems not very deep, more so for MIN especially when some of the potential arms are in the AL Central (Boyd, Cleveland guys IF they are shopped). and likely off limits to MIN. So then it’s Stroman or Bum, the former a higher prospect cost due to extra control..
Agree on some of these points. I don’t think Bum and Smith get moved together, because Zaidi knows the market is solid enough that he can get significant help in separate deals. Passan says they are more interested in Smith, but as you say, their actual SP options are down to Bum and Stroman. And Zaidi knows he already has several suitors for Smith that will offer a 50 or 55-scored prospect for a rental, so the Twins need to be ready to offer up Larnach and perhaps Duran for Smith. Is it a high price? Sure, but will Smith help them a good deal this year? Yup.
As for Bum, I suspect Zaidi will hope that Bum will have another good start coming up, and then make the move, before any possible setback can occur.
He had 11 strikeouts last night against the Rox,,,
The Giants don’t have to trade anyone if they don’t get who they want in return. Zaidi isn’t going to get fleeced and get some prospects unless it is an elite prospect. Whoever wants Bum , Smith etc… will need to give up a current MLB player or one who’s ready to debut. We can go round and round about Bums performance falling off. That being said. You want Bum pitching game 7 or some slap who doesn’t have his pedigree? Zaidi’s asking Price will be high and it should be. They are out of it and they do not have to trade anyone if these teams try to lowball. Run your 24 year old starter with no post season experience out there and see how that works out
That’s just not how the trade market works. They’ll offer him a QO and he may or may not take it, and they may or may not get a draft pick out of it. With him being an impending free agent, their “supply” end of what they are offering in the “supply/demand” curve is limited, even though he’s got great experience. Don’t expect a top 5 overall prospect in the game or anything like that to be coming back
I agree, not top 5 in total mlb but don’t take someone’s #10 prospect from their organization either. Got to get a known commodity for Bum and Smith, no 20 yr old lottery tickets. Unless he is a throw in
Absolutely spot on. There is no fire sale here. Zaidi will NOT get rid of Madison like it’s a yard sale weekend deal and he’s gotta go (or whatever he said). If the Giants don’t ever what they want and need, MadBum stays. And I hope and pray he does! Bud Black’s recent quote is right, “He’s probably as great a competitor as I’ve ever seen from the other dugout.” Any team would be crazy not to get him now if they are a contender! #butpleasedont
Can we get that young Buxton kid? I heard he’s a speedy little center fielder. I like speedy center fielders 😉
Cave might be available. Pretty speedy.
If smith gets acquired does he close or will it be comitee
My guess is Smith closes. He is much better than the Twin’s current closer.
Blake Parker: 4.10 ERA, 5.84 FIP, 111 ERA+
Will Smith: 1.95 ERA, 2.01 FIP, 219 ERA+
And meanwhile back in the bay, Boring Buster hits into a game ending double play! Can we include him in the trade for free?? Lol
He will also make a heck of a pinch hitter. He wants to be in the NL just for that reason. I hope the Twins get him.
Can definitely see Will Smith going to the Twins, with the Braves and Red Sox as other likely suitors. As far as a Bumgarner trade goes, no other team makes more sense than Milwaukee. Beacause of their place in the standings, and their need for an experienced lefty, this is already a done deal in my eyes. Look for a package of Corbin Burnes and Tristen Lutz as the return.
If the Twins really wanted to shoot for the “window of opportunity” for a World Series title now, and for the next 3 years….this is what they should be doing. Trade Gordon, Thorpe and Rooker to Nationals for Scherzer. Send Smeltzer, Duran, Wade and Baddoo to SF for MadBum and Will Smith. Then lock up both MB and Smith for 3-4 years each. They have both the current farm system and the money to afford all of this. And the reason I see for the other teams…
Nationals – the replace Dozier with Gordon (I would take that change right now), get some power that is almost MLB ready in Rooker, and get a Top 10 pitching prospect in Thorpe. Not only that, but a lot of money is freed up by trading Scherzer, so they can plug more gaps with that free money.
SF – They get a decent OF prospects in Wade Jr. and Baddoo., a MLB ready pitcher in Smeltzer and a Top 10 pitching prospect.. Looking at SF’s OF, it appears to be in need of some type of help. Not going to get the best haul, because most contenders are on MadBums no trade list, so they HAVE to give him more money (which a lot of teams probably are not going to do) to accept the trade.
The best case for the scenario is if they can actually protect their top 5 prospects, although I would be ok with losing either Graterol or Balazovic for Scherzer, instead of Thorpe. But I think then you would have to drop Gordon out of that trade and give someone like Jose Miranda instead.
Not getting both Smith and Bum for that package. No way the Twins get 2 valuable assets like them, rental or not, for a 45, and three 40 prospects. Maybe Duran and 1 of the other 3 for one of them. But this seems like a quantity for quality proposal.
More beyond reality is the other proposal. I think the Twins would jump at that deal for Scherzer, but the Nat’s not so much. Scherzer is not a rental. It would take a package headlined by Kiriloff, Graterol, or Larnach. The Nats aren’t trading Max for three 40s, even if Rooker is a 40+.
Not really sure where you are looking, but mlb.com has Rooker, Thorpe and Gordon as 50 level prospects. But to get Scherzer, I can them wanting Graterol or Balazovic, who are both 55 level prospects. But they wouldn’t get Rooker as well then. So something like Graterol (or Balazovic) with Thorpe and Celestino.
As for SF, again, mlb.com has Duran at 50, Baddoo at 50 and Wade Jr at 45. I have Smeltzer added in as he is basically major league ready. The Twins have a slight advantage here, because they aren’t on MadBum’s no trade list. So they have a fine line of not bidding over themselves.
Today we play Where is Buster?
Bochy keeps batting him in the 3 or 4 hole. What an embarrassment for Posey and Giant fans. Bochy a Hall of Fame Manager? Vogt should be starting at catcher.
1. Yasmani Grandal, MIL (3.0 fWAR)
2. J.T. Realmuto, PHI (2.5 fWAR)
3. Willson Contreras, CHC (2.2 fWAR)
4. James McCann, CWS (2.1 fWAR)
5. Christian Vazquez, BOS (2.0 fWAR)
6. Gary Sanchez, NYY (2.0 fWAR)
7. Mitch Garver, MIN (1.7 fWAR)
8. Tyler Flowers, ATL (1.7 fWAR)
9. Robinson Chirinos, HOU (1.6 fWAR)
10. Omar Narvaez, SEA (1.5 fWAR)
Where is Brandon Crawford? Out of shape? Has lost interest in the game? Donovan Solano is hitting 80 points higher than Crawford. Sitting on the front porch of the Bochy Nursing Home are three rockers. Bruce in the middle, Buster on the right. Brandon on the left.
1. Xander Bogaerts, BOS (3.5 fWAR)
2. Marcus Semien, OAK (3.0 fWAR)
3. Javier Baez, CHC (3.0 fWAR)
4. Paul DeJong, STL (2.9 fWAR)
5. Trevor Story, COL (2.9 fWAR)
6. Jorge Polanco, MIN (2.9 fWAR)
7. Gleyber Torres, NYY (2.2 fWAR)
8. Adalberto Mondesi, KCR (2.1 fWAR)
9. Elvis Andrus, TEX (2.0 fWAR)
10. Corey Seager, LAD (2.0 fWAR)
Some interesting dynamics of persuasion playing fiddle here on the MLBTR message board. I am guessing front office influences are intermingling with the fans, arm chair GM’s, and even agents’ minions stirring the pot.
For this long time Giants fan, I cannot fathom the thought of losing one of the most iconic, legendary franchise playoff pitcher I have ever seen play the game. He is my all time favorite! No way, Zaidi, don’t give up on #40; instead extend him $$$ and build your team around him.
Now trading Belt, Crawford, Posey, Longoria and Panik should be on the table for any playoff team out there. Nice to see Bedee finally coming around, keep him and Smith.
Show them we love #40. 6 for 90 MM would be a good starting point. A wise personnel solidification can be had for a reasonable offer; don’t let this one slip by Zaidi. Zaidi better be in top form because the big boss is back on 7/1.
And let us not forget the 100+ innings of 0.889 8win/ 3 SHO playoff baseball. Eh? In fact, I’d like to see another playoff run with #40. Let’s give him a chance at w200+/3k-k SFG career. and another SFG title. This guy could make the HOF. Zaidi/ Larry make it happen. 10 yrs 120 MM