Arguably the Giants’ most valuable position player of the first half is scheduled to be out for awhile.
Thairo Estrada isn’t expected to be recovered from his broken hand until later next month, and he leaves a massive hole in the middle infield that will have to be filled by Casey Schmitt and Brett Wisley, neither of who can be trusted offensively.
It’s for that reason that Mike Krukow believes the Giants will pursue reinforcements at the deadline.
“I think so,” Krukow said on KNBR Monday. “You’re not going to get Estrada and [Mitch] Haniger back ’till right around the first of September…so I do think that there is a need. I do believe that the front office and baseball ops. in their evaluation of where the Giants are right now, see the significance of an addition too.
“I don’t think that they felt that way a month ago. I think there was a pretty good chance they weren’t going to do anything. But I think that’s all changed now, and injuries totally dictate the deadline. If you’re a player that isn’t going to be in it, and you’ve got some players that other teams want, that kind of puts you in the driver’s seat.”
Tim Anderson, the two-time All-Star for the Chicago White Sox, could fit that billing. He’s having a miserable season, with an OPS of .541, but the talent is there. Chicago is in fourth place and has a club option for $14 million for Anderson next year, which they might not pick up given how Anderson is swinging the bat this year. Anderson is still 30 years old and his immediate upside as a shortstop partner with Crawford is probably higher than Schmitt and Wisely’s.
Cincinnati is contending but might be open to moving on from Jonathan India, who won the National League Rookie of the Year award two years ago. Reports of his diminished role were greatly exaggerated, but the emergence of rookie infielders Elly De La Cruz and Matt McLain might make the Reds open to exchanging India for pitching help. He’d require a bigger package than Anderson given he’s under team control through 2027.
Other options that could become available, for a variety of reasons, include the Cubs’ Nick Madrigal, Cardinals’ Tommy Edman or Paul DeJong, or a veteran Orioles infielder.
Whatever they decide to do, the Giants should have the chips in the farm system to entice some teams.
“The other thing too, the Giants got a lot to trade,” Krukow continued. “They’ve got a lot of prospects, people in the minor leagues that other organizations want. I think that’s the other thing too. I think when you go into the trade deadline and you’re going to be active, there are certain guys in your organization, you do not want to trade away. And you better have some talent beyond those primary targets to be able to sway an organization into a possible deal. So I wouldn’t be surprised if they picked up a guy or two or even three.”
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