What an absolute dud. And we're not just talking about the San Francisco Giants' trade deadline, in which their only move was acquiring A.J. Pollock, who's having a very disappointing season. The MLB trade deadline as a whole was very underwhelming, with only a few big-name or high-impact players getting dealt. Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander headlined the list of players moves, but neither deal's structure would have made sense for the SF Giants, as will be explained later.
The Giants' addition of Pollock is puzzling on the surface, but starts to make more sense upon a deeper dive. Despite being 35 years old, Pollock's sprint speed is still 89th percentile. He has a really good throwing arm. He has a track record of not striking out and doing damage against lefties, while also holding his own against right-handed pitching. With SF Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski landing on the IL again, and Mitch Haniger out at least two more weeks, Pollock should be a mainstay in the lineup as he gets a chance to regain his form. He's just two seasons removed from being an impact hitter. The Giants also received utility player Mark Mathias in the trade in which they will send a player to be named later or cash back to the Mariners.
None of the trades that happened at this deadline stood out as great fits for the Giants. The Mets paid down the majority of the hefty salaries owed to Verlander and Scherzer in order to land top-100 prospect talents in return. The Giants should not be giving up players like that—think Marco Luciano, Luis Matos, Patrick Bailey, Kyle Harrison, Carson Whisenhunt—for pitchers around 40 years old who are past their primes. Otherwise, there wasn't much high-end talent traded, nor even any nice complementary pieces (like Tommy Edman) who would've fit the Giants.
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The best daily San Francisco Giants podcast. Whether the Giants are winning championships or retooling for another title run, Locked On Giants host Ben Kaspick—a lifelong Giants fan and former contributor for RotoGraphs and Beyond the Box Score—breaks down every game, rumor, and transaction in a way that's data-driven and rational but also simple, passionate, and accessible to all.
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