Five SF Giants Trade Possibilities With The Texas Rangers

SF Giants-Texas Rangers Trade Fit: Joey Gallo

This is the big one. Joey Gallo is the biggest power hitter in baseball with one of the strongest arms in right field. It’s the kind of combination that could enable the Giants to move Mike Yastrzemski to left field and lock in their starting outfield of the future. Of course, the Rangers know a lot of teams have a use for Gallo. Given how hard of a bargain they are driving for Lynn, it’s easy to envision them raising the stakes even higher for the powerful left-handed hitter.

The Rangers could have learned from their mistake though. They had two seasons of team control over Lynn last offseason (and Mike Minor the year before that), but they held out for a top dollar and could not come to a deal. Minor regressed heavily and was traded for pennies on the dollar at this year’s trade deadline. Lynn may not regress but still will not command the return he probably would have last offseason.

Gallo will be a free agent after the 2022 season. His arbitration salaries will likely be around $6 million in 2021 and $10-$12 million in 2022 (assuming a solid season). Both are solid values for a player of his caliber but are sizable enough that a team with cheap ownership (like the Rangers) might also have a little more incentive to make a deal.

The Giants have someone with some similar characteristics to Gallo in Alex Dickerson, but his injury history and platoon splits present some major differences. Gallo has spent some time on the IL, but never for injuries as severe and constant as Dickerson’s. Plus, Gallo quietly has nearly an identical career OPS (.825) against southpaws as he does against right-handed pitchers (.826). The ability to play every day against all matchups is far more valuable.

Plenty of teams would be interested, but a package built around Heliot Ramos and someone like Trevor McDonald would be more than fair compensation. I am as high on Ramos as anyone, but there’s still a fair amount of risk with his profile. Gallo may be closer to free-agency, but the Giants could slot Gallo into their outfield immediately and have the ability to sign him to a long-term deal.

It would also make someone like Alex Dickerson more expendable in a trade. While he is not going to bring back a huge return, it would still give Zaidi an avenue to recoup some more prospect depth.

Also, while Texas will probably want to trade Gallo and Lynn separately to maximize returns, it’s worth wondering whether Ramos, Bailey, Wong, and Dickerson would be enough to get the Giants both. For what it’s worth, the Baseball Trade Simulator would consider that deal an easy win for the Rangers. The Giants might not be maximizing value, but would still have a solid system and clearly upgraded their starting rotation and outfield.

Trade speculation always comes with a lot of conditions. It’s virtually impossible to know what teams think of players in their organizations or in others. However, the Texas Rangers are clearly entering a rebuild and have been pretty open about not actively pursuing a contender in 2021. With the SF Giants approaching their window for contention, there are many ways to envision the two clubs completing a swap.