On paper, Lorzeno Cain appears to be everything the Giants lack in centerfield. Aside from 2016 when he batted .287, Cain has batted .300 or better every year since 2014. He’s coming off a season where he batted .300 with 15 home runs and he’s known for phenomenal defense, despite being 31-years-old.
The only issue, which appears to be a deal-breaker for the Giants, is the qualifying offer that Cain received, and rejected, from the Kansas City Royals. Since that decision will increase Cain’s price beyond that of a normal signing, Giants’ executive vice president of baseball operations Brain Sabean told Tolbert & Lund on Friday afternoon that they are avoiding these qualifying-offer free agents, unless it’s absolutely necessary.
“I addressed this way back in the Winter Meetings and it’s my personal opinion that it wouldn’t be prudent for the organization,” Sabean said. “But I think to Bobby’s point, you have to be open to almost anything. Now, having said that, we are positioning ourselves to be out of the CBT this year so we can operate more freely next year and as a result we’ve kind of shifted where we’re looking and what we’re looking at.”
Should the Giants sign a free agent who rejected a qualifying offer from their former team, they’d give up their second and fifth round selections in this year’s draft, along with $1 million in international money because they’ve gone over the luxury-tax threshold the past two years. Thanks to their 98-loss season in 2017, the Giants will pick second in every round this year, making their second round selection increasingly more valuable.
And with their farm system in the condition that it’s in, even before trading away their once-top prospect Christian Arroyo as a part of the package for Evan Longoria, the Giants are hesitant to pass up on the opportunity to refuel their minor league system, but it’s not out of the question.
“While anything is and can be possible during an offseason like this, it’s not probable in my mind,” Sabean said.
To listen to the full interview check out the podcast below, and start from the beginning for Sabean on the free agent market.