The SF Giants are heading into the August 3 trade deadline with the kind of roster flexibility that looks good on paper and gets messy fast in practice. They’re open for business, sure, but that doesn’t mean the front office will find buyers for everyone it would like to move.
A handful of players are going to be especially difficult to deal because of injury, performance, contract size, or some unhelpful combination of all three. And when the deadline passes, these five names are the ones most likely to still be wearing orange and black.
Harrison Bader is one of the clearest examples. Even if he were healthy, his season at the plate has made him a tough sell.
He hasn’t played since late May, and now he’s set to see a specialist for his foot issue, which only makes the situation more complicated. The 32-year-old is hitting .170/.198/.358, has appeared in just 30 games, and is owed $13 million next season.
Unless San Francisco is willing to absorb almost all of that money, moving him before the deadline looks awfully unlikely.
Adrian Houser is in a similarly awkward spot. The Giants handed him a two-year, $22 million deal in the offseason expecting starter-level production, but that never showed up.
He’s now working as a long reliever out of the bullpen and carries a 5.10 ERA on the season. On top of that, he’s owed $11 million next season.
Like Bader, he’s the kind of player the Giants would probably need to subsidize heavily to trade, and even then the market may be thin.
Then there’s the group that has drawn calls but still feels difficult to move: Matt Chapman, Willy Adames, and Rafael Devers. Chapman is still coming back from injury and hasn’t produced at the level the Giants hoped for.
Adames has struggled on both sides of the ball. Devers has been the best of the three, but his contract runs the longest.
Add in the fact that Chapman and Adames both have no-trade clauses, and any deal would likely require San Francisco to eat a significant amount of money. That makes the whole exercise a steep climb.
Could Buster Posey and the front office push hard enough to force a reset anyway? Sure.
If they really want to work the phones and move these players at any cost, it’s possible. But that would come with a painful price, and it’s far from the most likely outcome.
The simplest read is the most realistic one: these players have underperformed relative to the contracts they signed in San Francisco, and that’s exactly why they’re likely to still be around when the Giants open the second half.
In Other News...
Giants Suddenly Face A Heliot Ramos Decision Fans Wont Like
With the trade deadline approaching, the Giants are having to sort through a familiar kind of roster puzzle: which young outfielder fits into the long-term picture and which one might be used to help elsewhere. Heliot Ramos has become the name drawing the most attention, not just because of his value, but because San Francisco also appears intent on keeping Jung Hoo Lee in place as part of its outfield core. That leaves the front office weighing whether to lean on the system or use one of its more established pieces to address other needs.
If Ramos does end up in play, the Giants would at least have some internal cover to consider. Victor Bericoto, Parks Harber and Bo Davidson are among the outfield options mentioned as possible replacements, which gives San Francisco a path forward even if it is not the one fans would prefer. Still, the bigger question is whether the club is willing to move a player with real trade value at all, and the answer to that could shape how the rest of deadline season unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Tigers Fans Wont Like Which Contender Just Entered The Rumor Mill
The Rays are still expected to be active when the trade deadline arrives, with catcher and second base viewed as the obvious places to look for help. But the picture around the roster has gotten a little murkier lately, because some of the players who were supposed to be part of the supporting cast have started making a stronger case to stay in the mix.
Cedric Mullins, Chandler Simpson, Nick Fortes and Victor Mesa Jr. have all turned in better recent stretches, and Tampa Bays win over the Guardians offered another reminder of why that matters. Fortes came through with four hits, Simpson contributed both at the plate and in the field, and Richie Palacios delivered the deciding three-run homer, leaving the front office with a harder question than it expected as deadline season approaches. [Read more 🡒]
Casey Schmitt Injury Suddenly Raised The Stakes For Giants Deadline
Casey Schmitts breakout season has been one of the more encouraging developments for the Giants, with the third baseman giving them real production at the hot corner and a middle-of-the-order presence they could build around. He left Mondays game on July 28 after an apparent left knee injury while rounding first base, and even before any official diagnosis, the timing alone made the moment feel bigger than a single in-game exit.
For a club trying to sort out its deadline direction, any uncertainty around Schmitt changes the conversation fast. The Giants were already weighing how aggressive to be, and now the ripple effect could reach beyond one roster spot, with Heliot Ramos suddenly looking like a more likely name to move if the front office decides it needs to pivot. For now, though, everything hangs on what the MRI shows and how much the Giants are forced to rethink from there. [Read more 🡒]