BNO GANG NEWS: Giants think big post Panda: Upton, Tomas, Cruz, even Scherzer on menu Jon Heyman / Baseball Insider November 25, 2014 The Giants will turn their attention to names like Max Scherzer. The World Series champion Giants, perhaps just a little surprised to see the beloved man they call Panda fly off to Boston, seem well prepared to deal with their unexpected big loss and have already started to reach out or ramp up talks regarding several available free agents and trade targets. And it’s by far not just the Cuban slugger Yasmany Tomas, the one big-time talent who has been most frequently linked to them for awhile, but even bigger names with established MLB pedigrees, including the biggest free-agent pitcher Max Scherzer. The Giants, champions three of the last five years, are thinking small and very big, as word is they’ve cast a wide net, initiating talks regarding several star players, including not only players who could fill obvious needs such as Justin Upton, Nelson Cruz, Nick Markakis, Torii Hunter, Chase Headley and Tomas, and presumably also Jay Bruce and others, but also the two biggest starting pitchers -- Jon Lester and Scherzer. The Giants wanted Sandoval back, but a Giants person called their situation a “clean slate,” a suggestion that they have options galore and are considering many of them. They have touched bases with a number of useful second-tier pitchers, as well, including Justin Masterson, who could easily have a big bounce-back year now that he’s healthy, and could re-engage with their other key free agents, such as excellent reliever Sergio Romo plus veteran starter Jake Peavy, who staged a nice finish for them. Scherzer obviously is the most interesting new name. The Scherzer market has been almost exclusively under the radar to this point, as the Giants become only the second team seriously connected to Scherzer (and the deep-pocketed Yankees are a definite maybe at this point). In any case, the Giants shouldn’t be discounted here. While the Giants wouldn’t be pegged as the obvious landing spot for Scherzer since they have a bona fide ace in Madison Bumgarner and another one returning in Matt Cain, they have been known to think outside the box. The Giants, a model organization in terms of both business and baseball success, certainly have the wherewithal to go for such a big free agent, especially after they banked the $95 million-plus they offered Sandoval (their final offer was for that amount plus a willingness to nudge it up a bit, too). They are also a team that hasn’t skimped on its stars, from Barry Bonds to Tim Lincecum, and arent above pulling a surprise, as they did with a late, $126 million free-agent deal eight years ago for Barry Zito. Scherzer (or Lester, who was first linked to the Giants by Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports) is obviously a potential luxury buy, but it’s a necessity the Giants find an outfielder and third baseman, and to that end, there’s word out there that they’re more likely to spend in the outfield and go a bit cheaper at third, which makes sense considering the paucity of available third basemen. They have contacted Headley, who they know from the NL West, but seem more enthused at least for the moment about some of the outfield options. They’ve been in the middle of talks for the Cuban slugger Tomas, who at least for now they see fitting in as an outfielder. One of the added attractions of Tomas, though, is that it’s possible he proves to be proficient at third base, where has played at times in the past. Tomas is also drawing keen interest from the rival Padres, the Braves and several other teams. The Giants also have taken close looks at Upton and several others. They’ve basically reached out to every available outfield option, from Cruz, who wouldn’t seem like a perfect fit as an occasional DH, to Markakis, to even the ex-Giant Cabrera, who had an “awkward departure,” one Giants person admitted about the career years that was cut short after a PED suspension in 2012, when the Giants won the World Series without him. The exit of Sandoval wasn’t exactly smooth or expected, either, as they were quite hopeful to retain the beloved Panda right up until word came via reports, including one here, that he was headed to Boston, and even a little after those reports as it turned out. The Giants were cognizant of all the dispatches saying Sandoval was heading to Boston, but even several hours after the first couple reports about Sandoval going to Boston hit the Internet, Sandoval’s agents were still acting as if the star third baseman might come back to them, publicly maintaining Sandoval hadn’t decided. That thought was reinforced when one of the agents sent a message to the Giants that he hoped Sandoval would still decide to stay in San Francisco. But alas, it turned out, to the surprise of many (not just them) that Panda’s heart wasn’t completely in San Francisco. Now the champion Giants have to move on, and they are clearly prepared to do just that.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Nov 2014 22:14:01 +0000