SF Giants-Rangers mock trade would deny Luis Arraez his one trade deadline wish

The trade deadline is fast approaching and will be here on August 3. Expect the SF Giants to be heavily involved in a lot of rumors during the next week and a half. One proposed trade by former MLB GM Jim Bowden, now a columnist for The Athletic, would send Luis Arraez to the Texas Rangers but it would deny him his one wish. 

While Arraez has said he’s happy in San Francisco and would even be open to an extension, it doesn’t seem like the Giants are entertaining keeping him around long-term. He’s said his one wish in any trade is that he’d go to a team where he could still play second base. It’s not exactly clear that would be the case with the Rangers.

Texas currently has Ezequiel Durán as its second baseman and he’s having a solid year. He’s hitting .268/.323/.433 with 10 homers and 51 runs batted in. While he can play other infield positions, shortstop and third base are already spoken for as they aren't going to bench Corey Seager even though he's struggling and Josh Jung is one of the best players on the team. 

Arraez can also play first base but there doesn’t seem to be an opening there either as Jake Burger is there and he has 17 dingers on the year. Burger can’t be moved to the designated hitter spot because our old friend Joc Pederson is there and he has 17 homers this season as well.

Unless the Rangers made another trade from their infield, it’s tough to see how Arraez would fit into the picture. Maybe they could turn Durán into a utility man but he’s hit well enough to warrant everyday playing time.

What would the Giants get out of Bowden’s proposed trade?

While Arraez probably wouldn’t get what he wants out of that trade, what would the Giants be getting in the two prospects Bowden proposed? In his mock trade he has the Giants send Arraez to Texas in exchange for left-handed pitcher Dalton Pence and infielder Yolfran Castillo.

Pence and Castillo are ranked as the No. 12 and No. 8 prospects in Texas’ system respectively. Pence (no relation to our beloved Hunter) is having a solid year in the minors with a 2.52 ERA in 75 innings pitched. He’s expected to make his big league debut in 2027.

As for Castillo, he would be yet another teenage infielder to add to San Francisco’s collection. He is 19 and is known for being a great fielder although he’s shown some promise at the plate in the minors this year by hitting .287/.395/.408.

That wouldn’t be a bad haul for the Giants, but Arraez probably wouldn’t love it. Maybe the Rangers could get creative to make it work and slot him in at second but the sad thing for Arraez is he doesn’t have much say in where he can be traded to so he’s really at the mercy of the Giants in all this which is ironic since he’s been the team’s best player while underperforming veterans like Matt Chapman and Willy Adames can veto any trades they want. Life is unfair, Luis, life is unfair.

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