San Francisco Giants: 2005 MLB trade deadline review

In the days leading up to this year’s MLB trade deadline, we’ll take a look back at San Francisco Giants deadlines past. Next up, the 2005 trade deadline.

After eight straight winning seasons, the San Francisco Giants took a step backward during the 2005 season. They had a 33-44 record entering the month of July, which left them nine games back in the NL West standings.

However, that didn’t stop them from adding a veteran piece to the mix who wound up sticking around longer than expected.

Here’s a look at their July activity:

July 30, 2005: OF Randy Winn acquired from Seattle Mariners for RHP Jesse Foppert, C Yorvit Torrealba

The Giants acquired 31-year-old Randy Winn right before the deadline and he hit a scorching .359/.391/.680 with 22 doubles and 14 home runs in 247 plate appearances following the trade.

That was enough for the Giants to give him a three-year, $23.25 million extension during the offseason.

“He’s a leadoff hitter with a lot of dimensions,” general manager Brian Sabean told reporters. “We signed him long-term because of the type of player he is. A center fielder with run-producing potential is a rarity. The fans warmed up to him. There’s a lot to like about Randy Winn.”

He wound up spending parts of five seasons with the Giants, hitting .290/.345/.432 with 12.3 WAR during his time with the team.

For the Mariners, it was a roll of the dice on Jesse Foppert, who had ranked as the No. 5 prospect in all of baseball prior to the 2003 season, according to Baseball America.  However, he underwent Tommy John surgery at the end of 2003 and never lived up to the hype.

Summary

The Giants finished the 2005 season at 75-87 and in third place in the NL West.

Despite their standing as non-contenders, they did well to acquire a long-term piece in Randy Winn, while also wisely pulling the trigger on moving Jesse Foppert while he still had some value.

Well played.

Check back here in the days and weeks to come for more San Francisco Giants trade deadline reviews, all culminating in what promises to be a busy 2019 deadline.