SF Giants may opt for a 'soft rebuild' in their trade deadline approach

The SF Giants are in a state of limbo roughly two weeks before the trade deadline. With several paths to take, perhaps a soft rebuild approach is the most prudent path forward that still allows the team to contend while keeping an eye on the future.

SF Giants may opt for a 'soft rebuild' in their trade deadline approach

Sitting at 47-50, it is conceivable that the Giants have a strong second half that earns them a playoff berth. At the same time, it is easy to argue that the team could have a disappointing second half that leads to them being one of the worst teams in the NL.

It is precisely because the Giants are in this state of limbo that makes the job of the front office so difficult. The team has not really done enough to make you believe that they are a Bo Bichette away from being a playoff team. Nor have they played poorly enough to give up on them entirely.

The Giants could just stand pat and not really do anything, deciding to roll with the current roster and let them decide their fate. This would be pretty similar to how Farhan Zaidi has approached the deadline for most of his Giants tenure.

They could go out and make a big splash but that seems fairly unlikely and would be very out of character for Zaidi.

Instead, they could opt for something of a "soft rebuild" approach. The soft rebuild would not be a wholesale fire. The Giants would still retain their free agent acquisitions from the offseason. Instead, they would trade players who are not completely essential to them contending.

This would include the two names most heavily featured in trade talks: Michael Conforto and Camilo Doval. On its surface, it may seem unlikely that a team could trade away their former All-Star closer and a fairly consistent hitter and remain in contention.

However, the Giants have depth in both of these areas.

Luis Matos has proven that when he gets hot he can carry a lineup. He has cooled off considerably from earlier in the season but if the Giants made him an everyday starter they could live with his streakiness so long as he played solid defense and got hot every now and then.

While Doval has been a solid closer for the Giants, there are other pitchers on the team that could close. Tyler Rogers, Ryan Walker, Taylor Rogers, and Jordan Hicks are all valid options. Even a closer-by-committee approach could be just as good as, if not an improver over, Doval's performance this season.

If the Giants dealt these players and got a young prospect or two out of it, they would be planning for the future while not sacrificing too much of the present. Of course, these moves could backfire if Matos struggled and the team cannot close out games. But this soft rebuild would be a prudent approach for a team that is currently in a state of limbo heading into the second half.