Category: San Francisco Giants

Giants Turn The Page: Brinson, Villar, Knapp first to get September auditions

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By Morris Phillips

The Giants have a refreshed look for the final month of the season with three roster additions now that the team no longer has postseason possibilities in 2022.

The additions won’t showcase the organization’s top prospects, but they give three, intriguing players a chance to help the club win now, particularly if they can provide timely hits and credible defense. The biggest parallel for all three? They all have big league experience and little else to prove in the minors.

Once again, the Giants are practicing pragmatism, while the fan base might want personnel pyrotechnics. But their approach is sound. The new rules institued just before the start of the season allow for two, additional rostered players, not the clubhouse-crowding ten to 15 spots that traditionally bought the number of players in uniform to or near 40. Teams are forced fill specific needs under this format.

If you’re hoping to see Heliot Ramos, Marco Luciano or the fast-rising Vaun Brown–the guys in the San Francisco minor league system that have the biggest buzz–don’t hold your breath. All three probably won’t be heard from until spring training or even next September. Unfortunately, as we found out when the Juan Soto-to-the-Padres deal went down, Giants’ prospects haven’t had a bang up season as several experienced injuries and missed time, and none transformed themselves into MLB-ready breakout stars. The guy that came the closest was 21-year old Kyle Harrison who pitched well enough that there was speculation he could skip AAA Sacramento an earn a promotion to San Francisco.

David Villar and Lewis Brinson, who was acquired Thursday in a trade involving minor leaguers that haven’t made a Major League appearance this season, will join the team for Friday’s series opener against the Phillies. Villar provides his experience gained earlier this season in his first call-up, and gives the 25-year old a reward for his outstanding season at Sacramento. Villar will allow the Giants to spell Evan Longoria at third base, and provide insurance if the 36-year old veteran continues to have issues with his hamstring.

Brinson was acquired from the Astros for cash, and he provides intrigue in that he was a buzzworthy prospect a few years back as the main piece coming back in the trade that sent Christian Yelich to the Brewers from the Marlins. Currently, the 28-year old hasn’t panned out with heavy strikeouts numbers being his biggest impediment, but he had 45 extra-base hits in 85 games at AAA Sugar Land. Brunson provides another center field option for a club that only has Mike Yastrzemski with Austin Slater’s status uncertain due to the dislocated finger he suffered earlier this week.

Andrew Knapp got a promotion with fellow catcher Joey Bart landing on the 7-day concussion list. Knapp and Austin Wynns will be the team’s two catchers until Bart returns, although there’s a possibility that when he does return the Giants will retain all three for the final month. Knapp played collegiately at Cal and grew up in Sacramento. He wasn’t hesitant to express his excitement with the move.

“To end up back on the team that I grew up watching, it’s pretty awesome,” said Knapp, who has played 322 Major League games in five seasons with the Phillies, Pirates and Mariners.

Again, this isn’t a youth movement. Villar is 25, Brinson is 28, and Knapp, 30. The hope is Farhan Zaidi’s roster moves make the Giants better–even if it’s incrementally. The other prong in Zaidi’s equation is landing a splashy acquisition (like Shohei Ohtani or Aaron Judge) at some point next season.

On Friday, Alex Cobb will take the mound for the Giants with Kyle Gibson getting the start for the Phillies at 7:15pm.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Daniel Dullum: Padres Musgrove shuts down Giants striking out 11 batters

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San Francisco Giants right fielder Luis Gonzalez cannot catch a double hit by San Diego Padres’ Wil Myers during the sixth inning of at Oracle Park in San Francisco, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022. (AP News photo)

On the Giants podcast with Daniel:

#1 Joe Musgrove San Diego Padres had himself a game striking out 11 batters which is a season high and he kept the Giants batting order off balance.

#2 The Padres Manny Machado had three RBIs and helping defeat the San Francisco Giants 5-4.

#3 Luis Campusano and Jake Cronenworth also had RBIs for the Padres in a game where every run counted.

#4 The loss was the Giants seventh straight in the course of this seven game losing streak how bad has this team needed some good hitting.

#5 The Giants had Thursday off and get set to open up a three game series against the Philadelphia Phillies Friday night. Starting for the Phils Kyle Gibson (9-5, 4.08) for the Giants Alex Cobb (4-6, 3.81) a 7:15 pm PDT at Oracle Park.

Join Daniel for the San Francisco Giants podcast heard Thursdays at www.

The Low Point: Coming up short, injuries, Craw’s ejection symbolize the Giants’ squandered season in 5-4 loss to San Diego

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Well, we now know when the next meaningful Giants-Padres game will be.

April 29 at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú Béisbol in Mexico City. The remaining meetings between the clubs this season will be of diminished importance.

Adios Pelota.

The Giants suffered a third straight one-run loss to the Padres, 5-4 on Wednesday afternoon at a sparsely-populated Oracle Park. And if that weren’t burdensome enough, their season is unofficially done with a seventh straight loss to end August and a fall to fourth place in the NL West.

“Admirable effort, no quit,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “A lot of grind at the end no matter the situation. But the only thing that matters in this league is wins and losses and we weren’t able to get it done.”

That’s kind of the beginning of what’s wrong. The rest?

Have a seat.

Brandon Belt delayed his decision to opt for knee surgery until Thursday. The first baseman got a second opinion on his troublesome knee from Stanford Medicine that recommends surgery. The opinion alone likely ends his season, and starts speculation that his career with the Giants will end at the conclusion of the season. The 34-year old will be a free agent and he plans to speak to his agent regarding his options before deciding on the recommended surgery.

Austin Slater has a dislocated finger suffered in Tuesday’s loss. He couldn’t hit, but was available to pinch run, which he did, scoring a run in the eighth inning. Slater’s been a top performer offensively through the Giants’ last two months of losing, but it’s unlikely he plays much going forward or at all with the team wanting to audition other players in September.

Evan Longoria started Wednesday despite his sore hamstring. Joc Pederson and Brandon Crawford jawed with the umpires, who appeared to contribute to the Giants’ 14 strikeouts with questionable calls. Crawford was ejected after gesturing for calm and turning away from third base umpire Ryan Blakney and his emphatic heave-ho.

“You play below-par baseball for a really long period of time, tempers are going to flare,” Kapler said. “People are going to be pissed off. Stress levels are going to be high. Patience is going to be low.”

Then to conclude their afternoon, the hosts’ rally from a five-run deficit ended with an uneventful ninth inning while facing disposed closer Josh Hader. The former Brewers’ All-Star hasn’t tipped the scales with a 19.06 ERA in eight appearances since his trade. But he mowed down the Giants in the ninth, retiring Tommy La Stella, Luis Gonzalez and Austin Wynns after Thairo Estrada’s leadoff base hit to end it.

“Whether it was with Milwaukee or it was here, at the end of the day, it was something mechanically that I was going through. It was a little bump in the road that, ultimately, is making me into a better player, said Hader, who finally realized an opportunity to positively spin his struggles.

“We’ve got to get him going,” said Padres manager Bob Melvin. “This is a guy that we brought in for a reason.”

Giants can’t buy a win drop sixth straight to Pads 4-3 at Oracle Tuesday

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San Diego Padres starter Blake Snell pitched six innings giving up no runs and four hits against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Tue Aug 30, 2022 (AP News photo)

San Diego (72-59). 4. 9. 1

San Francisco (61-67). 3. 7. 4

Tuesday, August 30, 2022

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO-Tuesday’s contest between the 71-59 San Diego Padres and the 61-66 San Francisco Giants was a battle between two disappointed and disappointing teams.

No one expected the Giants to duplicate their superb 107 win 2021 season, but no one expected them to be all but out of contention for a playoff with six weeks left to play. If you’ve been following my dispatches, there’s no need for me to make a summary list of the orange and black’s deficiencies and no time or space to attempt an analysis of them.

I will, however, add that Joey Bart, who had re-established himself as the Giants’ catcher of the future, will be out of action for at least a week as a result of the concussion he suffered in last Monday night’s accident prone encounter between the Pads and the Giants that also claimed umpire Marvin Hudson and the Oracle Park lighting system.

The Padres, too, had high hopes. They started 2021 as the main challengers to the Dodgers’ perennial dominance of the NL West. The Giants took care of that delusion. This year, they waited with baited breath for Fernando Tatís, Jr., the hope of the franchise since ’19, to recover from the fractured wrist that had him on the IL since April 7.

They hocked the family jewels to the Nationals at the trade deadline to acquire Juan Soto and Josh Bell and gave up Eric Hosmer, for whom they’d traded four players to acquire the days before, and two prospects to the Red Sox,in order to get left handed pitcher Jay Groome.

That wasn’t all, but you get the picture. This team would be unbeatable with Tatís in the line up. But he pissed away that opportunity along with the performance enhancing drug found in his urine. The Padres now are in a fight to keep their tenuous hold on the third and last wild card spot.

Blake Snell, San Diego’s southpaw starter, came to work with a record of 5-7, 4.24. After the Friars defeated the Franciscans it stood at 6-7, 3.87. Snell did an excellent job in his six inning stint, shutting the Giants out on four hits, three walks, and a hit batter. He struck out eight. 62 of his 105 pitches counted as strikes.

Logan Webb, who, along with Monday night’s losing pitcher Carlos Rodón, has been one of the twin pillars of San Francisco’s rotation, started for the Giants. He began the day at 11-7, 3.33 and ended it at 11-8, 2,89. Webb threw exactly 100 pitches, 72 for strikes, over 6-2/3 frames, yielding only one run, and it was unearned. He allowed four hits and a walk, while fanning seven.

Neither team scored until there were two down in the top of the sixth.

That doesn’t mean that the game was uneventful before then. The first two innings alone provided us with two challenged calls, one for catcher’s interference and other on the second out of what would have been a double play.

The result of both reviews went against the Giants. In that same pair of innings, each pitcher either picked off a runner or caught one stealing, and Austin Slater dislocated his left pinkie sliding into second base. Mike Yastrzemski replaced him as center fielder.

As the game progressed and the zeroes piled up on the scoreboard, the episodic excitement of the opening frames gave way to suspense. San Diego finally broke the ice when Manny Machado beat out a grounder to Crawford, whose throw to first went wild for the shortstop’s second error of the night.

Josh Bell followed with a single to right that drove in Machado and sent Webb to the showers, replaced on the mound by Alex Young. The portsider walked Jake Cronenworth on a full count. Brandon Drury caused a stir with a fly to deep right center on which Yastrzemski made a fine running catch to end the inning.

The Giants threatened a comeback in their half of the frame. With one down, JD Davis slammed a double off the Visa sign in right center, but Snell fanned Estrada and Crawford to put down the brief uprising.

Submariner Tyler Rogers was the Giants’ hurler for the seventh. Ha-Seong Kim led off with a bouncer that Davis fielded at the hot corner, but his throw to first drew Yermín Mercedes off the base.

The error haunted the homeowners because the next batter, Trent Grisham, drove a full count sinker 389 feet into the left field night to put the Pads on top, 3-0. Two of those runs were unearned, the result of bad throws from the left side of the San Francisco infield.

Then the serious trouble started. Jurickson Parofar doubled to left, went to third on a productive ground out to second by Soto, and scored on a two bagger to right by the Manny you love to hate. Out went Rogers, in came Scott Alexander, who struck out Bell on three pitches; he didn’t swing on any of them. But the orange and black now were looking at a four run deficit.

Tim Hill started the seventh for San Diego, pitched to three batters (strike out, walk, force at second), and gave way to Luis García for the final out. García threw a scoreless eighth, allowing only a hard hit single that just eluded Flores’s glove on its way to center field.

Joc Pederson led off his team’s eighth, pinch hitting for Mercedes, he lashed a single to left. After Longoria flew out to center, Davis hit a hard bounder to the mound. García fielded it and threw it into center field, putting runners on the corners.

Estrada hit a soft grounder to short and beat it out for a run producing single that advanced Estrada to second. Crawford, the potential tying run, whiffed for the second out. Wynns left Davis and Estrada stranded, grounding out to short. It now was a 4-1 game.

Dominic Leone tried to keep it that way when he entered the fray to open the ninth. He survived a fright when, with two on and one out, the Manny you love to hate hit a long fly ball that Pederson caught in front of the Toyota ad just to the left of the 354 foot sign in left field.

Nick Martínez, seven for seven in save opportunities converted, made it eight for eight. Wade flew out to left. Yastremski went down swinging. Flores kept the Giant fans’ hopes alive by drawing a full count walk, giving Pederson a chance for an encore.

He came through with a splash hit into McCovey Cove, his fourth and second as a Giant. San Diego challenged the call, claiming the ball left the field in foul territory. The call stood, and it was 4-3. But Longoria fouled out to first to end it all.

The Giants will give it another try tomorrow at 12:45. They’ll send Alex Wood (8-11,5.00) and against Joe Musgrove (8-6, 2.96).

Lights Out: Giants suffer 5th consecutive loss, 6-5 to the Padres, further damaging their playoff hopes

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants needed working lights, of course. But at this critical juncture of the season, their wish list is lengthier than a functional ballpark.

An unusual night at Oracle Park unearthed few answers as the Giants suffered a frustrating loss to the Padres, 6-5.

Their fifth straight defeat was again littered with sporadic offense that didn’t take hold until the eighth inning, when they pushed across three runs, and disappeared as quickly as it materialized in the ninth.

Ironically, LaMonte Wade Jr. batted in the ninth, more than four hours after first pitch in a game extended by a pair of in-game delays, and struck out after looking at all three strikes.

So much for “Late Night” and so much for the Giants.

“I thought it was a better offensive performance, but there’s no question the main issue for us is we haven’t been as good in the (hitting) zone,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “I think earlier in the season, we were much better at driving balls in the zone.”

Carlos Rodon left the Giants in an early hole, allowing three runs in the first, capped by Brandon Drury’s two-run shot. Rodon, who was fantastic in his previous start at Detroit, was baffling on Monday. He needed 28 pitches to survive the first inning, and his fastball to Drury–pitch number 24–left the slugger little choice but to deposit it into the bleachers.

Rodon never got untracked, and after a 40-minute delay to fire up the stadium lights preceded by a 10-minute delay when home plate umpire Marvin Hudson twisted his knee trying to track a foul pop, he was left to be philosophical.

“It was odd, right? Poor guy behind home plate tonight, who knows what he did to his knee, but hopefully he’s all right. Then the light thing. It was kind of an odd game today, right? A little different,” Rodon said.

Rodon went just four innings, and departed with the Giants down, 5-0.

The Giants’ comeback that fell a run short started in the fourth with Joc Pederson’s homer that trimmed the deficit to 5-2. In the eighth, Austin Slater knocked in two runs with a base hit, and J.D. Davis followed with an RBI single that scored Thairo Estrada.

Padres’ closer Nick Martinez was summoned to get a four-out save and allowed both run-scoring hits. But he recovered, retiring Austin Wynns to end the eighth, and Tommy La Stella, Wade and Wilmer Flores consecutively in the ninth.

“All of a sudden, the eighth inning feels like the ninth inning and to have to come out and recreate that adrenaline again in the ninth is just another something that really he hasn’t been through,” manager Bob Melvin said of Martinez, who has supplanted the struggling Josh Hader in the San Diego bullpen.

The Giants are 10-14 in August, and a season-worst four games below .500. But here’s what’s even more disheartening: the Padres, one of two teams the Giants need to catch, are 13-13, and would be feeling the heat given all their splashy, in-season additions if the Giants were applying pressure.

On Tuesday, Logan Webb is matched against the Padres’ Blake Snell in the middle-game of the three-game set.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Giants try to make up ground in wild card chase open against Padres tonight; Rodon gets the start

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San Francisco Giants starter Carlos Rodon will go into his wind up tonight against the San Diego Padres at Oracle Park in San Francisco to open a three game series. (file photo San Francisco Chronicle)

On the Giants podcast with Morris:

#1 The only competitive game out of the three game series for the San Francisco Giants against the Minnesota Twins was on Saturday when the Twins edged the Giants 3-2. But the bullpen lost that game for the Giants allowing two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning for the loss.

#2 With a 3-3 tie the Giants couldn’t hold on the tie and starter Jakob Junis was charged with six earned runs on his pitching line. The Twins scored five times in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull away from San Francisco on Sunday.

#3 The bullpen has been struggling trying to get the Giants out of log jams this one wasn’t any different after Junis was lifted in the bottom of the fifth reliever Alex Young who pitched two thirds of an inning gave up two runs both earned and two walks.

#4 The first bad sign about going to Minneapolis was the opening game on Friday where the Giants got outslugged 9-0 and Giant starter Alex Wood got rocked after pitching six innings giving up eight run earned runs on six hits.

#5 The Giants go back to the drawing board and get set to host the San Diego Padres at Oracle Park to open the homestand. Starting pitcher for the Padres Mike Clevinger (4-5, 3.59) the Giants will be starting Carlos Rodon (12-6, 2.81) a 6:40 pm PDT first pitch.

Join Morris Mondays for the San Francisco Giants podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants Swept By Twins For Fourth Loss in a Row In a 8-3 Final

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Junis Jakob delivers a second inning pitch against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on Sun Aug 28, 2022 (AP News photo)

Giants Swept By Twins For Fourth Loss in a Row In a 8-3 Final

By Barbara Mason

The San Francisco Giants (61-65) took on the Minnesota Twins (65-61) Sunday afternoon to finish off their three game series. It has been tough going for the Giants in the first two games. Game one was one to forget losing 9-0 and Game two was crushing after leading into the top of the ninth inning and falling 3-2 in extra innings.

The Giants attempted to stop the bleeding in the final game of the series. They are struggling with injury and at times poor offense. Leaving runners stranded has added to their woes. It was just too much Twins who scored five runs in the bottom of fifth that pretty much put the game out of reach for the Giants.

Both teams scored one run in the third inning and took the 1-1 tie into the fourth inning. The Giants LaMonte Wade Jr. doubled driving in Austin Slater for their first run of the game. The Twins answered with a Carlos Correa double driving in the speedy Gilberto Celestino.

The Twins walked in a run giving the Giants a 2-1 lead. With the bases loaded Minnesota walked Wilmer Flores and Austin Wynns scored.

That lead was short-lived when Jake Cave sent a bullet out of the park with Nick Gordon on base and the Twins were on top for the first time in the game 3-2.

The Giants tied up the game 3-3 in the fifth inning. Evan Longoria scored off a Brandon Crawford single.

The Twins would have another monster inning in the fifth similar to the run that they had Friday night that one in the third inning. They scored five runs all of them coming off doubles. Max Kepler, Jose Miranda Gio Urshela and Jake Cave all doubled giving the Twins an 8-3 lead. San Francisco had a lot of ground to make up going into the seventh inning.

The Twins would hang onto the 8-3 lead and sweep the series. This was the Giants fourth loss in a row.

The Giants will head home for another tough series with the San Diego Padres. The Padres are currently in second place in the National League West with a 70-58 record. Carlos Rodon 12-6 will take the mound for the Giants coming in with a 2.81 ERA. The Padres will send Mike Clevinger 4-5 with a 3.59 ERA. First pitch on Monday will be 6:45 PM PT.

Giants Lose Game Two In An Ugly Finish Minnesota 3 – San Francisco 2

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San Francisco Giants’ Mike Yastrzemski reacts after striking out against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at Target Field in Minneapolis on Fri Aug 27, 2022 (AP News photo)

Giants Lose Game Two In An Ugly Finish Minnesota 3 – San Francisco 2

By Barbara Mason

Friday night the San Francisco Giants (61-64) got smoked by the Minnesota Twins (64-61) 9-0 in a no-contest. The Twins took charge of the game in the first inning and never looked back. San Francisco was looking to even the series Saturday night in game two of the three game series.

Game two had a far different look from last night’s game. This game was a pitcher’s duel through seven innings. The Giants starter Alex Cobb pitched five innings allowing four hits, no runs and seven strikeouts. Sonny Gray went five innings for the Twins with one allowed hit and no runs with four strikeouts. The Giants weren’t able to hold on losing by a run 3-2 at Target Field in Minneapolis.

San Francisco was first up on the scoreboard in the fifth inning. Tommy La Stella sacrificed and Luis Gonzalez scored for the 1-0 lead. That lead would hold through seven innings.

The game was halted when the skies opened up in the eighth inning in an absolute deluge. It had been threatening throughout the game but with two innings left it became reality and the game was delayed.

Minnesota threatened in the eighth inning with runners on first and third with one out but the Giants kept them off the scoreboard heading into the ninth inning.

The Giants loaded the bases in the ninth inning and Wilmer Flores scored off an Austin Slater sacrifice taking a 2-0 lead going into the bottom of the ninth.

The Twins tied up the game when Carlos Correa singled driving in Max Kepler and Jake Cave singled and Luis Arraez scored. It was a new ball game.

This was another ugly finish for the Giants. After intentionally walking Max Kepler in the bottom of the tenth, the bases were loaded. San Francisco pitcher Dominic Leone walked Gilberto Celestino and that was the ball game. It was another devastating loss for the Giants.

Sunday San Francisco will be looking to avoid the sweep with first pitch at 11:10 AM PT. Jakob Junis will take the mound with an 3.58 ERA and a 4-3 win/loss record. The Giants will be facing Aaron Sanchez 3-4 on the mound for the Twins. His overall ERA is 7.36 but does have a 4.50 ERA over the last 7 days.

Monster Third Inning Pushes Minnesota Past San Francisco 9-0

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Joc Pederson struck out in the top of the third inning as the San Francisco Giants drop the first of three games to the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on Fri Aug 26, 2022 (AP News photo)

Monster Third Inning Pushes Minnesota Past San Francisco 9-0

By Barbara Mason

Friday night the San Francisco Giants (61-63) took on the Minnesota Twins (63-61) in a three game series at Target Field. The Giants are just coming off a disappointing split in their two game series with the Tigers earlier this week. The disappointment continued as the Giants dropped the first of the three game series to Twins 9-0.

The Twins got off to a great start in the first inning with a Carlos Correa home run scoring Kyle Garlick jumping off to a 2-0 lead.

The third inning was a disaster for the Giants. San Francisco loaded the bases twice in the inning. Giant pitcher Alex Wood hit two Twins at the plate and Minnesota went on a scoring frenzy. They scored six runs in the inning taking an 8-0 lead.

The Twins had their second home run of the evening off the bat of Gary Sanchez. Jose Miranda got the barrage underway with a sacrifice that brought Sandy Leon home. Gilberto Celestino doubled so deep to right center field that the Twins brought in three runners Garlick, Jorge Polanaco and Correa. Minnesota finished off the third with the Sanchez homer for a whopper of an inning.

Through five innings the Giants only had two hits but couldn’t get much else going. It would be an uphill battle for the remainder of the game. Wood left the game after the third with Zack Little pitching the fourth inning. Bay Area native Joe Ryan had a great showing in this game. He pitched six innings allowing only two hits, no runs and eight strikeouts.

The Twins would add insult to injury in the eighth inning when Garlick, who was having a banner game, hit a homer extending the Minnesota lead to 9-0 This was the Twins third home run of the game.

The Giants only had four hits but managed to hit into two double plays so not much went right for San Francisco in this one.

The Giants will try to regroup for tomorrow’s game with first pitch at 4:15 PM PT. They will send Alex Cobb 4-6 to the mound with a 3.99 ERA. Minnesota will start Sonny Gray with a 7-4 win/loss record and a 3.10 ERA.

You Be The Judge: Should the Giants pursue the Yankees slugger in free agency?

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By Morris Phillips

The Giants have been down this road before. In need of a focal point offensively, and wanting to get younger and usher in a new era, they signed 28-year old Barry Bonds as a free agent in 1993.

That move worked out tremendously.

The initial outlay was $43.75 million over six years, then the highest priced contract in total, and average value per year in the game. The Giants enjoyed a decade of success, and moved into their new downtown ballpark during that run. Bonds went on to be the biggest name in baseball with the records and accomplishments to match.

The 2022 Giants, coming off a 107-win season in 2021, have faltered and are on the verge of turning the page, and likely moving on from their most established stars and several pricey contracts.

The Yankees and slugger Aaron Judge have failed to consummate a contract extension, and the 30-year old is poised to hit the free agent market in the off-season as the game’s biggest prize.

Should the Giants be interested? Would the $200 million cost be a shrewd investment or a boondoggle? Let’s look.

In seven Major League seasons, Judge has showcased his trademark power, hitting 206 home runs to date. His high strikeout numbers and injury history have tempered the buzz surrounding his 6’7″ frame with his 2018 through 2020 seasons truncated due to injury.

But in the last two seasons, Judge has put it all together with 48 home runs and a .297 batting average to date, and attempting to register one of the biggest offensive seasons in the last 25 years. Judge is slugging at .663 clip with 1.056 OPS that leads all of MLB along with his home runs and RBI (105).

What players have put up a full season of comparable numbers? The list is short: Bonds, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth.

Adding to the Judge aura: He’s cut down on his strikeouts, lifted his batting average to a career-best, and he’s a credible base stealer, successful on 14 of 15 attempts.

So why would the Giants be in play? Here’s where it gets interesting. Barring a triumphant run to the World Series, the Yankees and Judge may consider parting ways. Their contract negotiations have been contentious and eventually stalled prior to this season’s start exacerbated by the labor strife that pitted the player’s union against the 30 team owners.

The quiet and private Judge may have grown tired of New York City, and might be amenable to a change of scenery. His childhood home of Linden, California outside of Stockton would be nearby if he chose San Francisco.

And here’s the biggest reason the Giants and Judge might be a fit. The limited market for Judge’s services point toward the Giants as several other teams have made free agent moves in recent seasons while the Giants have swung and missed on Giancarlo Stanton, Bryce Harper, Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto.

And this time a superior trade package won’t Trump the Giants. Money and a belief that Judge can maintain is superstar status throughout a five or six-year deal will be all that’s needed.

Would you pull the trigger on such a move? You and the Giants are on the clock.