For all the talk about the San Francisco Giants being unable to land any big fish in free agency this decade, they had one of the best hauls in their franchise's history this past offseason.
Jung-hoo Lee gives new manager Bob Melvin speed and contact at the top of their lineup. Matt Chapman and Jorge Soler add depth and power to the lineup, with the former bringing Platinum Glove defense at third base as well. And of course, Blake Snell brings his Cy Young talents to the rotation, where he'll eventually team up with fellow newbies Jordan Hicks and Robbie Ray.
Yet, there's one position where the Giants remain lacking, a position that was manned for over a decade by a franchise icon the team had no interest in re-signing; a position that was supposed to be claimed by an ascending rookie, but instead appears earmarked for a veteran castoff. That position is shortstop, one of the most essential spots in the game.
Thankfully, there is a solution in the trade market that makes all too much sense. Let's take a look at what that solution is, and explore why the Giants would be wise to pursue this big name trade market at some point during the 2024 campaign
Bonkers trade Giants must make: Acquiring Willy Adames
The Milwaukee Brewers may still say they are contending in 2023, but if they don't move Adames before this season's trade deadline, they are likely going to lose him for nothing in free agency next offseason. Adames would headline the upcoming free agent class at shortstop, and given what we've seen from the Brewers in past years, chances are they aren't going to be in any sort of rush to give him a big new contract. The Giants, meanwhile, could either extend Adames or allow him to walk and keep No. 2 prospect Marco Luciano around.
Adames is a high-ceiling, high-floor addition for a team with a giant (no pun intended) question mark at shortstop. At his best (see 2021), he can be a middle-of-the-order bat who can hit 25-30 home runs per season. If his on-base percentage craters, as it did a year ago, he's still that same power threat and a 99th percentile fielder in terms of Statcast's OAA from last season. And even then, San Fran would have good depth behind him in Nick Ahmed and Luciano, even though the talented prospect struggled throughout the spring.
The Giants are already $5 million over the collective bargaining tax threshold, so as first-time taxpayers, they would owe a 20 percent penalty on top of Adames' base salary ($12.25 million), so his total cost for San Francisco would be $15.75 million, assuming the Brewers were unwilling to eat a dime of his salary to improve the package they got in return for him.
Adames is on an expiring deal, so it bears no weight on the Giants ability to get under the threshold next year, if that is the goal. No eight-figure transaction can be considered “cheap,” but it's a lot more affordable for this season than signing a hypothetical marquee free agent shortstop would have been.
There are several prospects the Giants could include in such a deal that would either send the Brewers a young shortstop to eventually fill Adames' shoes, or add to the depth of their future rotation, which presently has little established high-end talent. For the sake of argument, let's say Milwaukee would receive Walker Martin, a 20-year-old shortstop, and Mason Black, a 24-year-old starting pitcher. The two are currently ranked as the Giants' No. 5 and No. 9 prospects respectively, per MLBPipeline.
If that is the price, even for a one-year rental, San Francisco has to be willing to pony up if it means legitimate contention in the National League West this year. Not only are the Los Angeles Dodgers the runaway favorites, miles ahead of the Giants in all the projections, but even as improved as this Giants team is on paper, they still could easily finish in fourth behind similarly revamped Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres squads. Fix this one, obvious hole, however, and there's no reason the Giants couldn't outlast the Dodgers in October once their rotation is fully healthy.
Let's stick on the Dodgers for a second. Why is it so pressing for the Giants to pry Adames away from the Brewers now? Well, the Dodgers have a new shortstop of their own this season. His name is Mookie Betts, the same Mookie Betts who has won six Gold Gloves already…in right field. Betts might be the best all-around athlete the game of baseball has to offer, but picking up shortstop at age 31 isn't something that can simply be taken for granted.
If Betts' defense suffers, or the wear and tear of throwing from shortstop diminishes his offensive value at all, you can expect that the Dodgers will be aggressive in pivoting to Plan B. And who have the Dodgers been linked to all offseason, including by one of baseball's most trusted reporters, Ken Rosenthal? You guessed it, Willy Adames.
Beating L.A. to the punch in the Adames sweepstakes would be a message, not just to the Dodgers, but to all of baseball. The Giants have tried to chase the voodoo magic of their 107-win 2021 season for over two years now, but it's all been in vain. They've built up a good enough roster to at least get themselves back into the playoff discussion. But a move like this? This signals that the Giants are ready to throw down. They'd be ready to take on any team, any place, any day of the fall.
And let's not forget, there was a time, almost exactly a decade ago, that nobody wanted to trek across the country to the chilly shores of the San Francisco Bay and take on the Giants in the postseason. If they can get themselves there, with a team rounded out by Adames as the shortstop, they'd have just as good a chance as anybody of taking home the World Series trophy.
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