Ranking the top 3 early-season SF Giants needs for the trade deadline

It has been a surprisingly strong start to the season for the SF Giants. They have solidified themselves as a contender for not only a postseason spot but even in the wildly competitive National League West. What are some of the areas they could address at the trade deadline?

Ranking the top 3 early-season SF Giants needs for the trade deadline

If they want to solidify their chances as a formidable opponent and possible championship threat, they will need to address a few roster holes.

1. Bolster the rotation

This seems like something every team will need that’s in contention. The good news is that there should be some arms on the market that will be available.

No name will be bigger than Sandy Alcántara, who is healthy this season and has yet to hit his stride. I suggest not looking at the numbers with this former Cy Young Award winner. However, the Marlins are going to be looking for a huge prospect haul since Alcantara has two more years left on his contract.

They do not have to trade him until they get the deal that they’re looking for. Trading for Alcantara would give the Giants a nice possible playoff rotation consisting of him, Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, and Justin Verlander. This is a very quality rotation that could match up with a lot of teams in a series. 

While there is always a big name, if the Giants wanted to look at some value arms who could also help the rotation, there are some options there, too. One of them is Los Angeles Angels left-hander Tyler Anderson, who has gotten off to a strong start. The other is Pirates lefty Andrew Heaney, who is also off to a nice start. Neither team appears to be going anywhere, so both players should be available for trading.

Unlike Alcántara, these two should be bargain buys on the trade market. What you would be giving up in the front end of the rotation value, you would gain by just adding more depth pieces to a rotation. These two guys are more back-end rotation guys if one or both were to come to San Francisco. 

So far this season, the starting pitching has been good. But depth will always be tested. It would also be nice to bulk up a strong unit ahead of the postseason since teams like the Dodgers, Padres, and Mets are full of front-end rotation pitching depth. Of course, you can never have too many arms either.