The Giants added some serious depth to the pitching side of their roster signing Aaron Sanchez RHP to a 1 yr/$4 M contract with incentives up to $6.5 M and Nick Tropeano RHP to a minor league deal for $1.1 M if he makes the Opening Day roster also with added incentives.
Tropeano was the first signing. He was a SP with the Angels in 2016 and 2018, missing 2017 with Tommy John surgery. He also missed most of 2019 with elbow and shoulder issues. He resurfaced with the Pirates in 2020 as a reliever who posted a 1.15 ERA in 15.2 IP while sporting a 10.91/2.30 K/BB. He has a starter's repertoire of 4 pitches including a FB that averaged 91 MPH last year which he threw 30% of the time, a curveball(31%), Changeup(12%) and a Split(26%). Tropeano brings the potential for versatility with possible roles ranging from bulk innings to Closer. As with most of the Giants signings, health will be the big issue.
The bigger news is the Aaron Sanchez signing which comes as a bit of a surprise given he was last fully healthy and pitching effectively in 2016 with the Blue Jays. He missed the end of the 2019 season and all of 2020 with shoulder surgery. He reportedly held a showcase in October 2020 where he hit 98 MPH on the FB and showed high spin rates. Apparently the Giants were impressed enough with that and his potential for a comeback season to give him a surprisingly lucrative MLB deal.
The interesting question is who will get dropped from the 40-man roster to make room for Sanchez. I was perusing it the other day and there really isn't anyone left to drop who would not be a painful decision. Jaylin Davis? Steven Duggar? Jason Vosler? Chadwick Tromp? Conner Menez? One of the offseason adds, Castro/Doval/Santos? Now that Spring Training is starting, can that decision be postponed until Opening Day? Tyler Beede could start the season on the 60-day IL.
FWIW, somewhere along the way Aaron Sanchez was traded to the Astros with Joe Biagini who was a Giant before the Jays nabbed him in the Rule 5 draft. Biagini now is a non-roster invitee to the Cubs ST. His days as a Starter pretty much ended ignominiously in 2017.
ReplyDeleteBrebbia is likely to start on the 60-day DL as well.
ReplyDeleteGabler spoke highly of Castro and Doval and said something like "They are pitching like they can pitch in the majors in 2021."
I think Davis and Duggar will have their last chances with the new OF prospects knocking on the door. Ruf's chances decrease without DH. I also think Vosler has a tiny path in front of him.
It is not a bad problem not to have too many openings on the 40-man.
Aaron Sanchez could turn out to be a great signing by FZ if the Giants pitching coaches can continue their track record of turning pitchers careers around. I remember Sanchez having great stuff during the times he was healthy and a All Star pitcher with the Jay's. They could use him as either a starter and it wouldn't surprise if they use him as maybe a closer. When I saw Tyler Anderson sign with the Bucs, had a feeling FZ was up to something. Nick Tropeano could be used in the same role Trevor Cahill filled last year. Andrew Bailey appears to know him well. Sanchez fits the profile of pitchers FZ likes to sign. If the Giants can turn him around he has high upside
ReplyDeleteFirst 40-man move: Brebbia to the 60-day for McGee.
ReplyDeleteProbably next will be Beede to the 60-day for Sanchez.
Then the competition will begin.
I'm guessing we've seen the last of the major league contract adds.
DeleteI am going to sound like a broken record, but this is another signing that could well turn into a lottery ticket at the trade deadline.
ReplyDeleteLike it or not, the NL West features two of the very best (possibly the two best) teams in baseball. But, it doesn't end there. Both the Dodgers and the Padres have deep farm systems that will provide cheap young talent into the foreseeable future. For the Rockies and the D-backs, well.......it's going to be a very long 5+ years to return to relevance. For the Giants, it means their rebuild may need to be super-charged a bit. The circumstances of the NL West means getting to 'good' likely won't be enough. It will probably take 'great' to seriously contend.
I love the way the Giants farm system has added talent, including a good number of guys with very high ceilings. But, more is needed, particularly high end pitching talent. The Giants are going to have great financial flexibility next offseason, so many contracts coming off the books. However, adding through free agency is expensive and risky, and high end pitching is particularly expensive and risky.
When the trade deadline rolls around, the Giants will almost certainly be too far behind the Dodgers and Padres to have a realistic shot at the playoffs. If some combination of Cueto, Sanchez, Gausman, McGee, Rogers, DeSclafani and/or Wood have significant value, FZ should go to work to add young arm talent - as much as possible.
I agree with this analysis.
DeleteAgree that Giants should look to add young pitchers to their system. If they fall out of the playoff race they should look to sell. Most of the pitchers mentioned are on 1 yr contracts which might make it easier to trade, but there could be questions about starting pitching this year around baseball regarding innings pitched and workload due to 60 game pandemic season last year. Giants will need to consider if they have enough pitching to get through 162 games if they consider trading a veteran pitcher for a young pitching prospect. Agree that just because they will have financial flexibility next off season doesn't mean they should invest heavily in free agents. It will depend on much immediate help they can find from their farm system. Free agency is expensive and risky, but fan base will be disappointed if they don't sign at least one or two top free agents. The shortstop class has 5 top players right now led by Lindor. The only high end starting pitcher I see is Noah Syndagard.
ReplyDeleteI do too. Depending on how solid Posey looks this year, whether he appears viable as the starter for another 1-2 years on a reasonable extension, and how solid Bart looks in Sacramento, I could easily see FZ adding Bart to such a package for the right young arms. If the return is enough, he might even include some of the surplus young OF talent (not including Ramos).
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