It may be time for SF Giants to move on from two long-tenured fan favorites

With the SF Giants in freefall ahead of the trade deadline, they have some difficult decisions to make. While the team could still buy, it may be time to move on from two long-tenured fan favorites in Wilmer Flores and Mike Yastrzemski.

It's no secret that Yastrzemski and Flores have found a home in San Francisco. Yastrzemski, a minor-league journeyman with the Orioles, finally got his shot in the big leagues with San Francisco and never looked back. Flores, on the other hand, was a free-agent signing who quickly grabbed the hearts of San Francisco with his clutch hits and late-game heroics. However, with a team sinking fast and both players hitting free agency following the season, should the Giants cash in for the veterans at the deadline?

SF Giants may have to move on from Flores and Yastrzemski

"Yaz" has been one of the most consistent presences in San Francisco's lineup across the last half decade. While he's never been the superstar that the Giants have longed for, he's been one of the more solid third outfielders in baseball, even finishing top 10 in MVP voting in 2020. Constantly accumulating between 1.5 and 2.5 fWAR and hitting 15 to 25 home runs, he's as solid of a role player you could get.

However, fast-forward to 2025, and it may just be time for the Giants to move on. With a Giants team that is struggling and Yastrzemski heading for free agency, the team could shop him around some contenders looking for a left-handed hitting outfielder that won't cost a ton.

While Yastrzemski was one of the Giants' best hitters to start the year, he's slowed down significantly as of late. Since June 25th, he is slashing .167/.270/.256 with a 30% strikeout rate and a wRC+ of 52. It's looking more and more likely that Yaz's time with the team is coming to an end, especially with some of the young outfield options in the upper minors (Luciano, McCray, Davidson). If a team calls with a decent flyer of a prospect coming over in return, don't be surprised if Posey and company decide to make it happen.

Wilmer Flores' career with the Giants has been a bit more of a roller coaster in comparison to Yastrzemski's. He's consistently been better in odd years and it seemed like that trend was continuing to begin the season. He was racking up RBIs with the best in baseball, even leading baseball in the stat after a 3 home run performance earlier in the year.

However, since June 15th, we've gotten a completely different Wilmer. He's slashed .209/.281/.279 with only 1 home run and a wRC+ of 63. While he is one of the clutchest hitters in baseball, it's hard to consistently run out a hitter of that level night in and night out.

While teams won't be lining up to add a Wilmer Flores to their roster at the deadline, there could be a fit for a first-baseman or DH option who only hits lefties. Once again, if Posey feels as if the prospect coming back is worth it, it shouldn't be shocking to see Flores depart San Francisco once August hits.

While it wouldn't be the sweetest of departures for two guys who fans have clung to over the last couple of years, it might just make sense. With both heading towards free agency and most likely signing elsewhere, Buster Posey could make the best of the situation when thinking about the team's future.

To add to the fact, there are reinforcements at both of these positions that make weathering the "storm" of the second-half extremely simple. Grant McCray is a left-handed hitting outfielder with some pop and the Giants' top ranked prospect, first-baseman Bryce Elridge, has been raking as of late.

Sure, it would be a bit of a heartbreak for Giants' fans to see Wilmer and Yastrzemski go, but if you want Buster Posey to truly do what's best for this organization's future, it very well may be shipping them off.

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