Possible Offseason Targets for the San Francisco Giants: Giancarlo Stanton

Through the month of October we’ll look at several different targets this offseason that the San Francisco Giants could possibly pursue, continuing with Giancarlo Stanton.

There have been some reports of the Giants having interest in Stanton, so it makes sense that he could be a possible offseason target.

I think a lot of fans would be exstatic to see Stanton in the Bay. We’ve already talked about how the Giants desperately need more power in their lineup, and Stanton would definitely provide enough for everyone.

He’s hit 22 or more home runs in all eight years he’s been in the big leagues. In the three seasons he’s gotten over 500 at-bats he’s hit at least 34 home runs.

However, there are some major hurdles that come with acquiring Stanton.

The first is his massive contract. He’s owed $285 million over the next 10 years with a $25 million team option for the 2028 season and a $10 million buyout. Stanton also has an opt clause after the 2020 season.

Any team trading for him could be coughing up nearly $300 million over the next 11 years. And this for a guy who has only played in 145 games or more in 3-of-8 seasons.

The other problem is that he’s coming off the best season of his career. In 2017 he hit .281 with 59 home runs, 123 runs scored and 132 RBI. He’ll finish top three in the MVP voting if he doesn’t flat out win the award.

So it’s not like the Marlins are looking to dump him and eat a lot of his contract.

Now I do think the Marlins will have to pitch in some money if they trade him, but it won’t be that significant.

Which leads us to another problem, what are the Giants going to give up for Stanton? The Giants have one of the worst farm systems in major league baseball with just one player in the top 100.

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The Giants would likely have to give up four or five of their best prospects, including Heliot Ramos — the Giants first round pick from the 2017 draft.

I’m not at all against giving up all those players for Stanton, but I doubt the front office will, and I’m betting the Marlins get a better package from someone else.

The one thing on the Giants side is that they are one of very few teams who can take on Stanton’s contract.

As much as I would love to see Stanton smashing home runs in AT&T Park next year, my feeling on this is that it would be a bad move for the Giants.

Next: Possible Offseason Targets for the San Francisco Giants: Christian Yelich

There are several weaknesses on this team, and Stanton doesn’t cover them all. I would rather see the Giants spread that money around to build a complete team.