3 outfielders the SF Giants should target if they miss out on Aaron Judge

3 outfielders the SF Giants should target if they miss out on Aaron Judge

1. Adam Duvall

SF Giants fans will certainly remember the name Adam Duvall. He was traded along with pitcher Keury Mella from the Giants back in 2015 in exchange for pitcher Mike Leake.

He has gone on to have a solid big league career for a number of teams and has proven to be a consistent power threat at the plate.

Injuries have also plagued him throughout his career, as he has missed time due to injury in several of the last few years.

Last season with the Atlanta Braves, Duvall hit .213/.276/.401 with 12 home runs and 36 RBI in 86 games. Those numbers certainly do not jump off the page, but we have seen over the course of Duvall's career that he can hit the ball out of the park which is something the Giants, and every other team, covet.

Given Duvall's injury, age, and relative underperformance last season, the Giants could probably sign him to a similar deal that he received last year in the $9 million range. That would be a reasonable risk to take on Duvall given his power numbers over the course of his career.

He is certainly not Aaron Judge, but the Giants could always use another right-handed power hitting outfielder/designated hitter, and Duvall would certainly fit that bill for the SF Giants in 2023.

3 outfielders the SF Giants should target if they miss out on Aaron Judge

2. Kevin Kiermaier

Given last season's defensive struggles for the SF Giants, signing center fielder Kevin Kiermier could be a wise move to shore up the defense in the outfield.

After the Giants traded away Mauricio Dubon and Steven Duggar last season, they were left without a pure defensive center fielder. Both Mike Yastrzemski and Austin Slater have shown that they can be serviceable in that role, but the Giants still do not have a strong defensive center fielder on the roster.

Kiermaier has spent his entire big league career with the Rays. He has never put up gaudy power numbers, but he has won a Gold Glove and has decent speed.

Kiermaier would ideally not be an everyday starter with the team. Instead, he could start here and there based on match ups and be a late inning defensive replacement for someone like Joc Pederson to shore up the defense.

Whether or not the Giants sign Aaron Judge, they need to get back to doing the small things well in 2023 if they want to be a contending team. Signing someone like Kiermaier can allow them to do that on defense.

SF Giants: Three outfield targets if they miss out on Aaron Judge

3. Wil Myers

SF Giants fans will definitely be familiar with longtime tormentor Wil Myers. He has seemingly always hit well against the Giants during his time with the San Diego Padres.

The Giants have signed Giants tormentors before, though. Just look at Wilmer Flores. So it would not be without precedent if the Giants were able to steal a former division foe.

Myers dealt with injury last season, but while he was on the field he put up respectable numbers at the plate. He hit .261/.315/.398 with 7 home runs and 41 RBI. That is basically consistent with numbers he has put up in recent years.

Myers can play the outfield, first base, and he would be a solid DH option against lefties. He brings the versatility that Farhan Zaidi looks for and could provide some power from the right side of the plate.

In sum, these are three solid options for the Giants no matter what happens in the Judge sweepstakes. If the Giants lose out on Judge and sign one of these options only, many Giants fans would roll their eyes and resign themselves to another season of mediocrity.

But if the Giants can land a big fish in free agency, pairing that singing with one of these more under the radar options would make for a good strategy as the Giants try to build a winning team in 2023.