It’s no secret that the Giants are in the thick of a pursuit for the game’s top free agent outfielder Aaron Judge, but president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi says the team is looking to add a couple of outfielders this winter (via Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area).
The Giants’ talks with Judge “are continuing” and the Giants “have really strong interest” in adding the AL MVP says Zaidi. Yet Judge may not be the only new possible new face patrolling the outfield at Oracle Park in 2023, with Zaidi looking to add more than one.
That the Giants would look to add two outfielders this winter is interesting, though perhaps not surprising. As things stand, they have LaMonte Wade Jr., Mike Yastrzemski, Joc Pederson, Austin Slater and Luis Gonzalez in the mix for outfield playing time. Pederson seems likely to spend plenty of time at DH, while Gonzalez has a minor league option remaining and may be better suited as a depth piece, as too might Wade Jr.
The Giants have already been linked with Mitch Haniger, Brandon Nimmo and Cody Bellinger this winter, as well as Judge, although it’s not known if they were looking at the previous trio as contingencies to Judge or in addition to him. Of course, it’s not necessarily as simple as that, and while the Giants have the financial muscle to make plenty of moves, it’d seem more likely they’d go after Nimmo in the event they miss out on Judge, while the likes of Haniger and Bellinger – who will command smaller deals than Nimmo – might be more attractive as options alongside a hypothetical Judge signing.
Outside of that trio of options, the likes of Andrew Benintendi and Michael Brantley could make sense. On the trade market, Bryan Reynolds handed in a trade request to the Pirates over the weekend, and it’s certainly possible the Giants could have interest in bringing back a player they drafted and developed.
While the outfield looks to be an area of focus for the Giants, Zaidi also said they’re looking to add a starting pitcher (via Evan Webeck of Mercury News). They’ve reportedly been interested in bringing back Carlos Rodon, but Zaidi was asked about adding a No. 2 starter behind Logan Webb and said “we’ve kind of got other needs”. That suggests that any starting pitcher addition is more likely to come from the mid-tier of options, with names such as Kodai Senga, Taijuan Walker and Jameson Taillon among the options.
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