Five SF Giants veterans most likely to be traded at the deadline
The SF Giants are all-in on competing for a championship in 2023... at least, as all-in as a team can be when stacked with bright-eyed rookies and veterans on short-term contracts. All that means, though, is that instead of simply sending a boatload of prospects away in return for one mega-star, the Giants may choose to selectively trade away some of their players if the value is present. Even veterans that would normally be concerned about battling for starting vs. depth positions might be on the table.
With that said, here are five veterans that the Giants may consider trading away to help the team compete in 2023. None of these selections are based on substantiated rumors that team X is interested in player Y. They're simply based on present and future production, what teams are looking for in the free agent market, and how easy it would be to move each player.
SF Giants pitcher Jakob Junis throws a pitch against the Chicago Cubs. (2023)
Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
5. RHP Jakob Junis
2023 stats: 56.1 IP, 4.79 ERA, 66 K, 17 BB
2024 status: Free Agent
The strength of the 2023 Giants has been their pitching, and teams gearing up for a postseason run don't tend to subtract from their bullpens. So why deal Junis? For one thing, he's spent most of 2023 caught in the middle. His stuff isn't powerful enough to challenge Taylor Rogers or Scott Alexander for a 7th inning role, but he's not getting the chance to start, either.
That's left Junis in a tough spot. He's getting the inning count of a sixth reliever despite being about as effective as Anthony DeSclafani and Alex Wood. If the Giants are seriously looking into a rotation upgrade, that might make Junis expendable. The fact that Junis is on an expiring contract means he could be of interest to another team that wants to trial him as an affordable fifth starter. If Junis gets the chance to start elsewhere and the Giants get a decent prospect in return, this could be a win-win for everyone involved.
4. OF Luis González
2023 stats: 0 G
2024 status: Pre-arbitration
Remember Luis González? The lefty outfielder underwent a lower back surgery at the beginning of the year, but is nearing a return after appearing in AAA Sacramento last week for rehab games. The Giants planned on using him as key outfield depth going into the back half of the season, but that could change if the opportunity presents itself.
The Giants' outfield depth is, at present moment, fairly thin. Teams like the 2021 Braves have shown the upside of acquiring an impact bat in the outfield ahead of a postseason run. If the Giants splurge on someone like Cody Bellinger, then they might not need a corner outfielder with a career .684 OPS. But he'd still have value as a young, athletic depth piece with another year and a half of team control. In a mid-level deal as part of a three-team swap, González could be the perfect piece for the Giants to dangle.
3. LHP Alex Wood
2023 stats: 60.2 IP, 4.75 ERA, 51 K, 30 BB
2024 status: Free Agent
In 2021, Alex Wood went 10-4, putting up a 3.83 ERA in 138.2 innings. Since then, he's fallen off, tallying a 4.99 ERA over 191.1 innings the last year and a half. He's in a similar situation to Jakob Junis, being capable of taking the mound for a few innings every fifth day, but not quite slotting into that 4th or 5th starter role that teams are used to.
The biggest differences are that Wood actually has started most of the games he's played this year, and that he'll be 33 years old entering next year's season. The former means that he's a bit more capable of slotting into a troubled team's rotation outright, and the latter means that an acquiring team wouldn't be committed to him past this season. His injury history still makes him a bit of a risk, but as far as veteran pitchers go, Wood might be the Giants' best bet to take advantage of a desperate market for starters.
2. OF Mitch Haniger
2023 stats: 148 AB, .230 BA, .653 OPS, 4 HR
2024 status: Signed through 2024, player option in 2025
When the Giants whiffed on Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa, they reset and went big for Mitch Haniger. Haniger, unfortunately, went small for the Giants, going .230/.281/.653 in the first two months of the season before suffering a grueling forearm fracture. The optimistic prognosis is that he may return by mid-September, potentially in time to get back up to speed before the playoffs arrive.
It's unfortunate that Haniger finds himself in that position, because two months truly do not a season make. A common mantra in free agency is that it takes a player a season to settle into their new surroundings and maximize their play based in a new city, and there's plenty of reason to think that a comfortable Haniger would play much closer to his career .801 OPS.
But maybe the Giants aren't smitten with him. If there's a rebuilding team with a longer timeline (Washington or Pittsburgh, perhaps?) that can trade a piece to help San Francisco win now, maybe the Giants ship off Haniger alongside some cash to give him the opportunity to come back without a playoff push looming over his head. In that case, we could see a legitimate (if slightly under top-of-the-market) star-for-star deal that allows San Francisco to land a solid piece without giving up a key prospect.
1. C Joey Bart
2023 stats: 78 AB, .231 BA, .581 OPS, 0 HR
2024 status: Pre-arbitration
Okay, we're cheating a little bit with the "veteran" label here. But Bart's no longer a rookie, and Wrenzie didn't grab him in his 5 Prospects Who Might Be Dealt article. The saga of Joey Bart has been long, stressful, and ultimately may not be over yet. But with the emergence of Patrick Bailey, now might be the time the Giants are willing to part ways with him.
Of course, this depends on how the Giants evaluate the tandem of Bailey and Sabol, as well as how the rest of the industry views Bart, whose OPS has dipped to .657 in the Pacific Coast League this year. It may be that he's only seen as a mid-level flyer, rather than a prospect centerpiece (or even co-centerpiece). But it's still fully plausible that Bart's prospect sheen means he can help the Giants get a Marcus Stroman or Lane Thomas for 2023. It would at least be an emphatic end to the former no. 2 overall draft pick, and perhaps one that leads him to success elsewhere.
