The San Francisco Giants have sought a superstar hitter ever since their current president of baseball operations, Buster Posey, began exiting his prime.
A solution could be peeking over the horizon.
The Toronto Blue Jays and four-time All-Star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. have been unable to come to terms on a long-term extension, and Guerrero is entering his walk year. While the Blue Jays have been reticent to consider trading him thus far, they may eventually have to admit defeat.
Guerrero, who owns a 137 career OPS+ and is coming off a six-WAR season, would be a fantastic addition to the Giants' lineup--and any lineup, for that matter. But how would San Francisco go about trading for the 25-year-old slugger?
On Friday, Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer proposed that the Giants could send a package of reliever Camilo Doval, infielder/outfielder Marco Luciano, and outfielder James Tibbs III to Toronto to try and pry Guerrero loose.
"The Giants have been in a spending mood recently, committing $333 million just to Matt Chapman and Willy Adames in recent months. They could conceivably make Guerrero an extension target," Rymer wrote.
"Otherwise, this deal would have the benefit of not including Bryce Eldridge. He's the Giants' best prospect, and they've reportedly been unwilling to part with him."
Here's the rub with Rymer's take: The Giants probably aren't going to have the best odds to sign Guerrero to a long-term contract. While that doesn't exclude them from the trade sweepstakes in the event they happen, they probably won't be able to land the slugger without including their best prospect in the package.
Eldridge, a 20-year-old, 6-foot-7 slugger, could be a superstar one day. Maybe, if he's lucky, he'll be almost as good as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Just a parting thought for Posey and the Giants front office.
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