Report: Giants ‘entertaining’ trading young pitchers for defense originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The Giants have a ton of young pitchers in their system that many consider to be one of them the strengths of the organization.
But with other areas needing improvement, San Francisco could look to trade one of these young arms in the near future.
The Giants are “entertaining” the idea, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported in his Friday column, and that’s even if they don’t land a top-tier pitcher in MLB free agency or in a trade. While the future is bright on the Oracle Park mound, San Francisco is looking to improve defensively by getting younger and more athletic – and that’s where a trade could come into play.
“Failure to sign an experienced starter could make the Giants more reluctant to part ways with pitching,” Rosenthal wrote. “However, the team needs to add young, athletic position players who can defend. Dangling young arms might be the best way to achieve this.”
While lefty Kyle Harrison, who made his MLB debut this season, is certainly not a starter, the Giants have a talented group of other pitchers that Rosenthal lists as possible candidates, including Carson Whisenhunt and Mason Black, or two others, the last one Tristan Beck and Keaton Winn made their debut this season.
The decision could depend on who the Giants sign to join Logan Webb at the top of their rotation, if anyone. They reportedly have one Contract offer on the table for Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is one of the most sought-after pitchers on the free agent market alongside reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.
It remains to be seen whether the Giants will actually turn to the trade market to improve their defense, but if they are indeed willing to listen to offers for their young pitchers, it will certainly attract the attention of teams across the league .
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