15 MILB Free-Agents That Could Help The SF Giants In 2021

Minor-League Free Agents That Could Help The SF Giants In 2021:
Catchers: Jett Bandy, Cameron Rupp

Joey Bart, Aramis Garcia, and Chadwick Tromp could all be a backup catcher next season in the majors. They could also all be back at Triple-A. If the Giants are looking for some more experienced insurance, Cameron Rupp and Jett Bandy have plenty of big-league experience.

Rupp has always had solid power and played passable defense behind the plate. Since his last MLB game in 2017, Rupp has slugged north of .400 in 145 Triple-A games. He’s never walked much and comes with a decent amount of swing-and-miss, but also posted an impressive .285/.368/.511 triple-slash against southpaws. If the Giants are willing to move Buster Posey to first base against lefties on occasion, Rupp could add some serious punch.

Bandy has a much stronger defensive track-record but has shown even more offensive struggles at the plate in his 492 plate appearances. Even with his limitations, he did manage a respectable .232/.319/.475 triple-slash against lefties while dealing with some bad batted-ball luck (.239 BABIP). Interestingly, he’s hit better than Rupp at Triple-A over the past couple of seasons too.

Minor-League Free Agents That Could Help The SF Giants In 2021:
Starting Pitchers: Mike Foltynewicz, Aaron Wilkerson

Competent starting pitching is the hardest thing to find in baseball. So finding a legitimate starter on the minor-league free-agent market is a particularly difficult task. Mike Foltynewicz is just two years removed from an All-Star appearance and finishing in the top 10 for the NL Cy Young Award. He’s obviously not been close to as effective since suffered some major injuries. At the same time, that upside is unheard of in this part of the market. If he’s willing to take a minor-league deal, it’s an easy offer to make.

Aaron Wilkerson is the classic case of a prospect never receiving a chance to find consistency. The 31-year old was very good at Triple-A from 2018-19 as a starter, but in his two big-league callups (one with the Rockies and the other with the Brewers), he was relegated to the bullpen. Perhaps he doesn’t have the stuff to be successful at the highest level, but it’s hard enough to ask a player to adapt to big-league competition without forcing them to change roles. His numbers suggest there could be a competent starter their.