A classic baseball conundrum seems to be engulfing the Bay Area. Should the San Francisco Giants let catcher Joey Bart go in return for Chicago Cubs star Kris Bryant? Bart is rumored to be a potential centerpiece of a possible trade that could land the Giants Bryant, as stated by Jon Morosi of the MLB Network:

Sources: The #SFGiants have spoken with the #Cubs about Kris Bryant, and the Cubs are evaluating 24-year-old catcher Joey Bart as one candidate to be requested on their side of the talks. Bart has a .904 OPS this year at Triple-A.

Bart, the former No. 2 overall pick, likely would be available only in a deal that involves players in addition to Bryant, a free agent after this year. Bryant would have great value to the Giants, with whom he could play 1B, 3B, and LF.

The backdrop, of course, to this is the fact that the Giants are on top of the NL West that has become a three-team race that also involves the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres. With a clear shot of making the postseason and a deep run in it, the Giants might be tempted to pull the trigger on a package including one of their finer young pieces in the organization for a proven star who's still clearly in his prime. 

On the other hand, the Cubs are expected to be among the biggest sellers ahead of the trade deadline. They have fallen way out of contention for even a Wild Card slot with a sub-.500 record (50-52) at the time of this writing.

Apart from the Giants chasing another World Series title, one of the biggest factors the team will have to weigh in if they want to trade away Joey Bart is the long-term outlook of the catcher position. Buster Posey is having a sensational year no doubt, but what he’s doing this season is unsustainable in the long run, considering his age. After skipping the entire 2020 MLB season, the 34-year-old Posey returned in 2021 and has been making loud noises at the plate since.

So far this year, Posey is slashing .327/.418/.544 and is the biggest reason why the Giants are head and shoulders above the rest of the league with a catcher wRC+ of 134. (The Dodgers are second with 117 wRC+). Apart from Posey, the Giants also have Curt Casali, but he was only brought in to provide depth this season and likely will be gone by 2022. 

At present, Joey Bart is the future of the catcher position in the Bay Area and some people would go as far as to say that he is the next face of the franchise. Bart has minimal experience in the big leagues to date, though, he has been exceptional in the minors where he is currently posting .310/.372/.532 for the Sacramento River Cats this year. In other words, shipping Bart is not going to be an easy decision and, at least to some corners of the Giants nation, a greatly unpopular one.

There’s also the looming free agency cloud hovering above the head of Kris Bryant. His contract is due to expire at the end of the season, giving his suitors something more to think about. Trading Bart for what could amount to be a rental player would ultimately and absolutely make sense across the board if at least one of these two things happens: the Giants win the World Series and/or Bryant signs an extension with San Francisco.

With how things are going right now for the Giants and without much information about Bryant’s preference in the offseason, it’s safer to say that San Francisco is closer to winning it all this season than having Bryant in the long term, of course with the assumption that he’d get traded to the Bay Area. The Giants might likely ask for more than just Bryant in this kind of deal because there’s no assurance that he will stick around beyond this session with the team and that would leave something for San Francisco whatever decision Bryant makes by the end of the 2021 campaign.

Bryant will be an instant plug-and-play piece to the Giants’ lineup. The third baseman has extensive experience in playing in the outfield. San Francisco will have little issue finding a permanent role that he can occupy for the rest of the season. Getting Bryant at this juncture of the season will send shockwaves across the league with tremors being instantly felt by the Dodgers and the Padres.

Bart would be a nice player to build around but the Giants still have Patrick Bailey whom they can still groom to be Posey’s successor. A World Series win could also greatly influence Bryant into signing a multi-year deal with San Francisco. 

The Giants have had their time during even-numbered years. Now is the perfect time to set a new trend.

Bring Kris Bryant to The Bay.