With the increasingly likely possibility of a MLB lockout next month, teams could be scrambling in the near future getting free agents to put pen to paper.
The Giants aren’t alone there. They aren’t a franchise looking to sit and wait. They want to start getting contracts on the books.
General manager Scott Harris made that clear Wednesday on KNBR.
“This time of year, the ratio of calls to deals is generally pretty high,” Harris said to Kerry Crowley. “So we’re working through that call log right now. But we’re hopeful we’ll be able to push one or two of those deals across the finish line in the next week or so.”
In recent days, the Giants have been connected to Marcus Semien and Nick Castellanos, two bats that would greatly improve their offense. But that side of the ball isn’t the Giants’ biggest priority right now.
Their starting rotation consists of one pitcher — Logan Webb. While that’s a great start, it’s an empty shelf waiting to be filled.
“We need some pitching,” Harris said. “If you look at our roster right now, we have several open spots in our rotation. We are on the phone all day, every day, trying to improve our team.
“Now that we have Brandon [Belt] back in the fold, we’re focused on filling out our rotation.”
Several big-name pitchers already are off the board. Justin Verlander is going back to the Houston Astros, Jose Berrios will be a Blue Jay a lot longer, Noah Syndergaard is going to the Los Angeles Angels and the Detroit Tigers have begun spending by giving Eduardo Rodriguez $77 million.
Even the Giants’ rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, have been in on the action. They signed lefty Andrew Heaney to a one-year, $8.5 million contract.
There still are plenty of viable options left on the open market, though. AL Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray is a free agent, as are Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Marcus Stroman and more. That doesn’t even include the Giants’ own free agents in Kevin Gausman, Alex Wood and Anthony DeSclafani.
“Every single organization needs pitching right now,” Harris said. “When you get that kind of market dynamic, you sometimes see some very aggressive bidding wars on players in free agency. I think we’re seeing that right now.”
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There’s also the chance the Giants explore the trade market, too.
“It’s important to remember that free agency isn’t the only market,” Harris said. “We’re actively talking to GMs every day about potential trades that could make us better, and that’s an avenue we’re going to fully explore this winter as well.”
