Hot Stove Update: Rangers Go Bargain Hunting; Alex Wood Back To Dodgers

A couple of Hot Stove moves over the weekend could indirectly impact the Giants.  The Rangers signed 3B Todd Frazier to a 1 year/$3.5 M contract with a $5.75 M option for 2021 with a $1.5 M buyout which guarantees him a total of $5 M.  This signing is quite a comedown for a team that had designs on Anthony Rendon and Josh Donaldson, but may turn out to be the smarter play in the long run.  Frazier's days of hitting 40 dingers are long gone, but he had a nice bounceback season last year with 21 and a 1.9 fWAR.  If he equals that level of production over the next 2 seasons, he's a major bargain who does not clog up the payroll for years to come.  So, how does this signing affect the Giants?  It might make the Rangers less interested in Nick Castellanos(although it certainly does not preclude signing him).  Also, it's been a long time since the the Giants/Castellanos rumors were even so much as an ember, so it probably has no impact on the Giants at all!

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The other notable signing was Alex Wood re-upping with the Dodgers for 1 year/$4 M with incentives up to $10 M.  Earlier in the offseason, Wood seemed like a nice low-cost bounceback option for Farhan Zaidi to jump on, especially with the common Dodgers connection.  This isn't such a low cost option as $4 M guaranteed seems like a lot for a guy was injured most of last year and whose velocity and performance were down when he wasn't.  On the other hand, $4 M is miniscule in the bigger MLB payroll picture and both the Giants and Dodgers can easily afford it.  Meanwhile, several potential low-cost bounceback options remain on the SP free agent market including Taijuan Walker and Chad Bettis.

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The Giants announced a $50 M infrastructure project to upgrade their training facilities in Arizona which are reported to be currently well below MLB standards.  So, when I read that, the thought occurred to me that $50 M is approximately the gap between the Giants currently projected 2020 payroll and the CBT threshold.  Maybe that's where they decided to allocate that money instead of payroll?  I guess the problem with that theory is infrastructure is generally paid for over time whereas payroll is almost always pay as you go.  At any rate, I am happy to hear the Giants are upgrading their Arizona facilities to be competitive with the rest of the league.