The SF Giants should listen on almost everyone — these players hold the most trade value

The SF Giants have reached a point in their season where wondering whether they’re going to be buyers or sellers at the Aug. 3 trade deadline has turned into denial. Not because the deadline is less than a week away, but because the Giants currently have the third-worst record in a challenging National League and fewer than 60 games remaining.

A team like the Miami Marlins (53-54) hasn’t yet decided how it wants to approach this deadline. A team like the Boston Red Sox has gone from an obvious seller to a potential buyer in a matter of weeks. For the Giants, it has been clear for weeks: they’re going to sell. And everybody should be available — well, except for their foundational piece.

President of baseball operations Buster Posey has made it clear in the past that ace Logan Webb would not be dealt. A report from Bob Nightengale stated that Jung Hoo Lee had become untouchable. And while getting rid of one of Willy Adames’, Rafael Devers’ or Matt Chapman’s contracts would create much-needed financial flexibility, the chances of it happening seem slim.

A Webb trade would net the Giants the biggest return of prospects and/or major-league-ready players, but this team owns a lot of valuable assets for teams still in contention and aiming to play deep into October.

A 45-61 team probably shouldn’t boast that many valuable assets. Maybe the Giants were supposed to be better. We’ll never know what would have happened had the front office addressed the obvious flaws on the roster during the offseason, if this team had played fundamental baseball night in and night out or if it hadn’t gotten off to one of the slowest offensive starts in franchise history. All of it is hypothetical. What isn’t hypothetical is that the Giants should get as many prospects as they can, especially in the pitching department.

Here are their most valuable trade chips just a few days away from the deadline.

The obvious trade chips for the Giants

The expectation is that Luis Arraez and Robbie Ray won’t be members of the SF Giants when the team embarks on a three-game trip to Texas on Aug. 3. Both are on expiring contracts and have skill sets that could immediately bolster a contending team’s roster.

Arraez could basically fit on any club with postseason aspirations. Every manager and front office could use a high-contact hitter who rarely strikes out and plays Gold Glove-caliber defense at second base. But a couple of teams have emerged as obvious candidates.

The Tampa Bay Rays own the best record in the American League, but their second basemen have posted the sixth-worst fWAR at 0.5 and are batting just .241 with a .654 OPS, both the sixth-lowest marks at the position in the majors.

The other team is the surging Boston Red Sox, who have gone 18-3 in July and now sit in a Wild Card spot. The numbers from their second basemen also haven’t been great — 15th in fWAR, 23rd in batting average and 22nd in OPS — and if they think they’re a few pieces away from contending, Arraez will probably be viewed as an option. For the Giants, trading hitting for some pitching sounds like a wise strategy. Arraez could net them an interesting package.

As for Ray, his latest stretch has undoubtedly drawn interest from teams in need of starting pitching or innings-eaters. Since June 1, Ray has gone 6-0 with a 1.67 ERA across nine starts. Plus, he has some postseason experience, though his numbers don’t work in his favor. In six playoff appearances across 2017, 2020 and 2022, he went 0-3 with a 7.43 ERA in just 13 1/3 innings.

There is a famous saying in baseball: You can never have too much pitching. Ray has proven that he can pitch deep into games. He could even start a playoff game for a few teams. So it’ll be interesting to see what the Giants can get for their veteran. A return of two or three pitching prospects sounds like a reasonable price.

The less obvious ones

I didn’t want to call that segment “the surprising ones” because I don’t think it would be that surprising to see the Giants trade three or four more players. Names like Heliot Ramos, Tyler Mahle and even Casey Schmitt have emerged as possible trade candidates.

Ramos, who becomes arbritration-eligible next year, would fit on a lot of teams. The Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees, Cleveland Guardians, and Seattle Mariners are among teams looking for outfield power and some reliable right-handed bats. Ramos checks both boxes. He owns a career .850 OPS against left-handed pitchers and would provid some pop to any contending teams. The concern with Ramos is his defense, as he posted a -9 OAA in left field last season and is at -2 so far this year.

I said it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Giants trade three or four more players, but I would consider it very surprising to see Schmitt leave. With Arraez almost guaranteed to join another club, all signs point to Schmitt taking over at second base for the foreseeable future. His versatility and flexibility are going to be appealing to teams, though. Front offices are at least going to call, although his recent injury might have complicated things.

Schmitt is having a career year and will be under team control for three more seasons after 2026. He has already set career highs in home runs, runs batted in, doubles, hits and runs. He has also started at six different positions this year — 12 games at first base, five at second, 24 at third, three at shortstop, 29 in left field and 23 as the designated hitter. At his preferred position — the hot corner — he has posted a plus-3 OAA in just 24 games and has shown Gold Glove potential there. He has been so good that fans tend to forget that an actual multiple-time Gold Glove winner in Matt Chapman is still on the injured list. Teams should call, but I don’t think the Giants should pull the trigger unless they’re blown away. He’s just too valuable.

The last name in my “less obvious” section is Tyler Mahle. He’s less obvious because I didn’t think teams would be interested in a pitcher with an ERA in the 6s and nearly double-digit losses. But as I said earlier, teams can never have too much pitching. Mahle could serve as an innings-eater or as a fourth or fifth starter. And he has shown flashes this season, holding the Los Angeles Dodgers scoreless through seven innings, the Milwaukee Brewers through six and even the Philadelphia Phillies and Tampa Bay Rays through more than five innings. If teams think they can get something out of him, either as a long reliever or a reliable starter like he was in Texas last year, they’re going to pursue him.

The bullpen has more trade value than its numbers suggest

The bullpen has been a season-long issue and a major source of frustration for the Giants. It ranks in the bottom tier statistically and will need a complete overhaul during the offseason. Still, some of those pitchers are going to draw attention because, once again, teams can never have too much pitching.

First, there are Caleb Kilian and Keaton Winn, whose numbers have been tarnished by a few dreadful ninth-inning outings. The former has posted a 0.82 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in 22 innings when not pitching in the final frame and has held lefties to a .554 OPS. Meanwhile, Winn has posted a 2.25 ERA and 0.89 WHIP in 28 innings outside of the ninth. He has also allowed just two home runs in 34 2/3 innings, and 25 of his 35 appearances this season have been scoreless. Contending teams will be looking for relievers who don’t allow the ball to be put in play too often. Kilian and Winn fit the bill, as long as they aren’t used in the ninth.

Then there’s Erik Miller: a hard-throwing lefty with very good stuff but some command issues. He strikes out a lot of batters and generates a ton of swings and misses, but his 22 walks in just 31 1/3 innings blemish an otherwise very attractive Baseball Savant page. It’s worth noting that he hasn’t allowed a run in 12 straight outings.

And finally, the last piece of that bullpen I see as particularly valuable is JT Brubaker. The 32-year-old has been very solid for the Giants this season, posting a 2.74 ERA in more than 49 innings of relief. His value comes from his ability to pitch multiple innings on a regular basis, something he has done 12 times this season. In addition to being a potential innings-eater, he has also held left-handed hitters to a .167 batting average and a .480 OPS.

Posey has received a fair amount of criticism in his second season in the front office. One thing he did nail in his first year at the helm of baseball operations was the trade deadline. Last summer, he turned Tyler Rogers, who was on an expiring contract, and Camilo Doval into José Butto, Blade Tidwell, Drew Gilbert, Trystan Vrieling (Double-A), Jesus Rodriguez and Parks Harber. He has even more assets at his disposal this year, and they’re arguably even more valuable. He also has a lot to address. One trade deadline isn’t going to be enough to fix this roster, but it could be a good start.

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