San Francisco Giants: Under the radar free agent options
September 28, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Colorado Rockies center fielder Drew Stubbs (13) throws his helmet after striking out in the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
OF Drew Stubbs
It was just a couple months ago when San Francisco was on the verge of trading for Rockies outfielder Drew Stubbs. Of course, the deal did not follow suit, but clearly there is a mutual interest.
The #sfgiants have interest in Drew Stubbs, who just cleared waivers. Would have to be a minor league deal.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) August 23, 2015
Although Stubbs likely will not be the hot signing of the year, he will in fact add defensive help and some power off the bench. Stubbs is a former number eight overall pick and has hit as many as 22 home runs in one season.
The reason for his struggles in the majors has been his strikeout ratio. In 2011, Stubbs led all of baseball with his 205 strikeouts. While most teams want their speedy outfielders hitting in the lead off spot, Stubbs makes it difficult to do this because the one result a lead off hitter cannot have is a strikeout.
In 2015, Stubbs had his worst hitting season as a pro, but it was just in 2014 when he batted a career high batting average of .289 and had his fewest strikeout total (136) of his career. With last year being so tortuous, Stubbs will be a cheap $1-2 million free agent.
Next: Alex Rios