The Giants Will Miss Out Massively if They Fail to Trade Matt Chapman

Known for the pop in his bat and the steadiness his glove, third baseman Matt Chapman makes a prime candidate for a trade due to the position he plays

San Francisco Giants third baseman Matt Chapman | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The cat is out of the bag concerning where the San Francisco Giants stand at the 2026 MLB All-Star Break: They're terrible. Period... Full Stop.

In what has been an absolute meltdown of a season, San Francisco president of baseball operations Buster Posey is now scrambling for answers. And they'll be hard to come by, considering the club's most appealing trade chips are high-priced and signed to long-term deals.

The Giants (41-55) pulled into the break 19.5 games out of first place and on their way to what looks more and more like a 90-loss season. They have zero shot at making the playoffs, which is why they should be lighting the wick on a fire sale. Unfortunately, the biggest names in the lineup (Rafael Devers, Willy Adames, and Matt Chapman) are all wrapped up in the security of cushy contracts.

However, on Chapman's side of things. The third baseman is under a six-year, $151 million contract. Even trickier of all: It includes a full no-trade clause, and it doesn't sound like any potential transaction will be trashed. That's the vibe produced by his agent when asked whether or not Chapman would be shipped out of 'Frisco in the foreseeable future.

“I would say that it’s not something on the radar," Chapman's agent, Scott Boras, told John Shea of The San Francisco Standard on Monday.

Giants Must Make This Move... Somehow

Chapman, on base in a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While deals involving Devers or Adames would seemingly be like trying to move a mountain with your bare hands, Chapman might crumble over the next couple of weeks. The Giants will be in the doldrums and just playing out the stretch, no matter what. So, the veteran third sacker might start considering the pleasures of playing in October before deadline day gets here.

The Giants need this deal for a lot of reasons: They need to dump salary, and they need to make room for a fresh crop of prospects on the way. All four of the Giants' top positional prospects (Josuar Gonzales, Luis Hernandez, Jhonny Level, and Gavin Kilen) are natural shortstops. Moving Chapman clears the way for one of them to be the starting third baseman when they finally reach the Major League level.

The team needs to send a signal to San Francisco supporters that the Giants are serious about a rebuild and youth movement. The apathy among the fan base can easily be cured by loading the organzation with exciting young propecs, in much the same way the Miami Marlins have. Instead of looking at the same stale product, the organization can present a few fresh faces for the Giants faithful.

Some big bricks in the wall have to be torn out first, however. And one of those bricks is Chapman, who now appears to have little future by the Bay and would serve the Giants better by waiving his no-trade clause and accepting an exciting ticket out of town.