Brandon Belt will be belting HR's for the Giants in 2022 after accepting the Qualifying Offer of $18.4 M. This seems like a great deal for both Belt and the Giants. For Belt, it's a significant yearly raise over his just expired contract. Belt's market obviously factored in his injury history and wanted no part of a long term deal so this is the next best thing. For the Giants, they are only on the hook for the 1 year, so the risk is minimal.
It seems like with Belt back, the Giants have first base well covered and will turn their attention to other priorities such as pitching for the remainder of the Hot Stove League season.
Good news on Brandon Belt. May he stay healthy. What do you think chances/interest of Giants signing outfielder Seiya Suzuki? 321/.435/.647 triple-slash line with 38 home runs and nine stolen bases across 526 plate appearances in 133 games with the Hiroshima Carp last season. Being 27 years old, I wouldn't mind seeing a 3 year deal.
ReplyDeleteThe Giants historic lack of apparent lack of interest in Asian talent is mystifying because it seems like such a natural fit. It sure would be great to bring a top Asian free agent to SF for change.
DeleteFrom the MLB article released on Wednesday:
Delete"Giants president Farhan Zaidi told The Athletic (subscription required) that the NL West champs will also be in the Suzuki sweepstakes.
'He’s a really good player. … We’ll be in that outfield market and adding another right-handed bat, particularly one that hits for power with good at-bat quality, kind of fits our team,' Zaidi said."
I have so much trust in the Brain-trust of Zaidi and his ability to see value and go get it.
I would be really, extremely excited about the prospect of this particular player, Seiya Suzuki, to be an impact player here in the states. And, I've always seen the posting-fee system as a very powerful tool for high-spending teams to gain an advantage by adding talent without giving up salary cap or picks in the draft.
I agree that the Giants should look to Japan. Shinjo the outfielder did not really have much of a bat for the Giants and of course they did have that RP Murakami for a couple of years(I believe he was the first Japanese player to pitch in the majors).
ReplyDeleteIt would be great to get someone to do what we hoped Alex Dickerson would do last year. Rumors are that Giants are pursuing Nick Castellanos who will require both money and a longer contract. If too expensive, why not go with Suzuki?