Locked On Giants – Daily Podcast On The San Francisco Giants

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick looks at MLB Trade Rumors' Top 50 Free Agents list and discusses which free-agent hitters are fits for the Giants—and which are not. Last week, Ben looked at all of the starting pitchers on MLB Trade Rumors' list, and he continues that conversation this week by looking at the hitters on the list. Last Thursday, Ben looked at the very top free-agent hitters and discussed who was a fit and who wasn't. Today, he looks at Didi Gregorius, Michael Brantley, Justin Turner, Marcus Semien, James McCann, Andrelton Simmons, and Joc Pederson. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick talks about the San Francisco Giants' decision on Friday to add four prospects to their 40-man roster in order to protect them from this December's Rule 5 Draft. In corresponding moves, the Giants DFA'd Chris Shaw, Aramis Garcia, and Jordan Humphreys. Added to the 40-man were outfielder Alexander Canario and right-handed pitchers Gregory Santos, Camilo Doval, and Kervin Castro. Canario is considered by most to be one of the Giants' Top 10 prospects, although he dislocated his left shoulder a few weeks ago and required surgery. Santos, Doval, and Castro are seemingly going to be high upside bullpen options for the Giants as soon as next year. Shaw, a former first-round pick by the Giants, never caught on with the new regime. Garcia was behind Buster Posey, Joey Bart, and arguably Chadwick Tromp on the Giants' catcher depth chart. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick answers questions from listeners about the San Francisco Giants. Among the questions asked and answered are: What would you say are the Giants’ plans at first base or shortstop with Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford, respectively? If you had to say, are any or both these guys on the Opening Day roster in 2022? With 451 plate appearances in 2019 and 2020, do we still think that Donovan Solano is due for regression? What are your thoughts on a Jackie Bradley Jr. signing or a possible Kevin Kiermaier trade? Do you see the Giants trying to sign starting pitcher free agents who they target as reclamation projects, like Gausman Smyly, to two- or three-year deals instead of one-year deals? Do you think last year without a minor league season will slow down the Giants' improvements towards a pennant or World Series? Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick wraps up his discussion about which free-agent starting pitchers from MLB Trade Rumors' Top 50 Free Agents list fit the San Francisco Giants—and which do not. He also starts from the top and looks at which free-agent hitters could be fits. On the pitching side, Cole Hamels, Anthony Desclafani, and Chris Archer are discussed. One seems like a solid fit, one has a major injury concern, and one seems to be a middling fit. On the position player side, J.T. Realmuto, George Springer, Marcel Ozuna, DJ LeMahieu, and Ha-Seong Kim are discussed at length. Which two does Ben consider solid fits? Which hitters are brushed off immediately because they don't fit? Listen to find out. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!  Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick talks about which free-agent starting pitchers from MLB Trade Rumors' Top 50 Free Agents list are fits for the San Francisco Giants—and which aren't. Ben discusses whether Taijuan Walker, Garrett Richards, Corey Kluber, and Charlie Morton could be targets for the Giants, and why some pitchers do not fit even though they might seem to from afar. He also discusses the starting pitchers toward the bottom of MLBTR's list, including Adam Wainwright, Mike Minor, J.A. Happ, Jon Lester, and Rick Porcello. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!  Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick talks about which free-agent starting pitchers fit the San Francisco Giants—and which don't. He discusses how Trevor Bauer, Masahiro Tanaka, Jake Odorizzi, José Quintana, and James Paxton fit, or don't fit, the Giants' plans. One is downright dominant, but likely to be expensive. A couple are intriguing, but have major injury concerns. Who stands out as someone who fits the Giants? One thing is certain: the Giants will be tapping into this market, as they're in somewhat desperate need of starting pitching help. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!  Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick talks about the San Francisco Giants losing free agent Drew Smyly to a one-year, $11M deal with the Atlanta Braves. While it's disappointing to lose Smyly, the huge silver lining is that the Giants are proving to be very successful at rebuilding pitchers' values. First it was Drew Pomeranz, who joined the Giants on a one-year, $1.5M deal in 2019, only to sign for 4/$34M the following offseason. Next it was Kevin Gausman, who signed for 1/$9M and then got 1/$18.9M the following year. Smyly is yet another example of a low-cost Giants signing cashing in for a much higher payday the following year. This trend figures to help the Giants lure in upside pitchers in need of a rebound season. Also discussed on today's show is a rumor that the Giants are interested in free-agent starter Jake Odorizzi, and an update on the health of Giants prospect Alexander Canario. Canario dislocated his left shoulder in Fall Instructional League, and underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum. The Giants must add Canario to their 40-man roster by Friday or else they risk losing him in this December's Rule 5 Draft. Canario's injury complicates that calculus. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick answers questions from listeners about the San Francisco Giants. Among the questions asked and answered are: How do you think the Giants will fill out starters 3-5 for 2021? Will they go outside the organization? If so, who would they most likely target? Who do you think could be DFA'd with the roster crunch approaching? Any thoughts on this list: Aramis Garcia, Chris Shaw, Jordan Humphreys, Trevor Gott, Darin Ruf? With so many teams seemingly trying to save money, would now be the ideal time for the Giants to try some more Will Wilson-like trades? How big an issue is losing Ethan Katz? Will Marcus Semien get a nine-figure deal, and what’s that suggest about Trevor Bauer's potential contract? Did winning the Cy Young affect Bauer’s price? Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick discusses Kevin Gausman accepting the San Francisco Giants' $18.9M qualifying offer. Bringing back Gausman was a top priority for president of Giants baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and general manager Scott Harris, and on Wednesday, they got their man. Gausman was reportedly weighing multiyear offers as the qualifying offer deadline neared, but he ultimately decided to accept the one-year, $18.9M QO and return to the Giants in 2021. Gausman accepting the QO does not rule out the two sides agreeing to a multiyear deal. Also on today's show, Ben talks about the Giants' estimated payroll in 2021, and how much they may be able to add this offseason. He also discusses the news that Giants assistant pitching coach Ethan Katz has been hired as the pitching coach for the Chicago White Sox. Katz's hiring reflects positively on Gabe Kapler and his ability to put together a strong coaching staff. Katz likely won't be the last of Kapler's coaches to be hired away in the coming months and years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick discusses the San Francisco Giants' signing of minor league free agent Jason Vosler to a major league contract. It's a peculiar move, and one that doesn't have a ton of recent precedent in San Francisco. Many Giants' media members speculated that the signing of Vosler indicates that he will be on the major league team, but Ben believes that Vosler will simply be an option, rather than a sure thing to platoon with Evan Longoria at third base. Vosler primarily plays third and first base, but he's also played second and shortstop in his minor league career. He was previously in the Cubs' and Padres' organizations, where he was blocked at his primary position by Kris Bryant and then Manny Machaco. Giants' president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has a track record of fidning diamonds in the rough, and Vosler could be next in line. Also on today's show, Ben talks about Kevin Gausman's impending qualifying offer decision, which is due this afternoon, as he reportedly weighs multiyear offers, including from the Giants. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick talks about former San Francisco Giants outfielder Mac Williamson suing the club over a concussion that 'ended my career.' Ben also talks about Donovan Solano winning the N.L. Silver Slugger Award at second base, and Kevin Gausman's impending qualifying offer decision, which is due on Wednesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick answers San Francisco Giants questions submitted by listeners on Twitter. Among the questions asked and answered are: Would the Giants consider trading from their position player prospect depth to get a stud pitching prospect? Of the Giants' top prospects, which one(s) are most likely to be traded? It has to be Alexander Canario, right? With Buster Posey coming back and Joey Bart playing for the back half of last year what do you think will happen at catcher? What can we expect to see from Marco Luciano next year? Any chance he’s a sept call up? Which prospects do you think will get a chance to play at the major league level next year? Do you think there is any way that Evan Longoria finishes his massive contract on a different team? If so, is there any possibility Longoria is shipped in 2021, 2022, or is it still too early to tell? And then if you had to make a guess, does he finish that contract with the Giants? All that and more on today's Locked On Giants. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick answers San Francisco Giants questions submitted by listeners on Twitter. Among the questions asked and answered are: Do you see the Giants trying to make a move to get Francisco Lindor? What do you think about Trevor Bauer? Do you think he'd be a good fit? Should we expect anything out of Tyler Beede in 2021? Who's the odd-man out in our current rotation if we sign a free agent starting pitcher? If the Giants fall out of contention but Brandon Belt is healthy and performing well, do you think he waives his no-trade clause to build up value for free agency? Should the Giants be looking to trade Mike Yastrzemski in the next couple years? More years of control will net a better trade and he isn’t getting younger. All that and more on today's Locked On Giants! Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Built Bar Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick casts his ballot for the 2020 All-MLB team, in honor of the still-undetermined U.S. Presidential Election. Fans are allowed to vote once every 24 hours through next Friday, and there are three Giants who made the cut. Not all players are eligible to receive votes; only those who had great years appear on the ballot. Are any Giants likely to win the award? Will Ben be a homer and cast a vote for every Giant who's a finalist? Find out who he thinks is deserving of winning the prestigious honor of being named to the All-MLB team in 2020. Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON,” and you’ll get 20% off your next order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick reacts to MLB Trade Rumors' Top 50 Free Agents with Predictions. It's always fun to see this annual list from MLBTR, and this year was no different. Ben looks through each of the top 50 to see who MLBTR thinks is a good fit for the orange and black. Kevin Gausman was ranked as a top-10 free agent, and MLBTR expects him to return to the Giants by accepting the qualifying offer. Relatedly, they expect the Giants to be suitors for pretty much all of the top starting pitchers available to sign. The Giants are also linked to numerous top relief pitchers, which also makes sense, but they're not listed as suitors for any left-handed infielders, which Ben thinks is a mistake. Tommy La Stella, specifically, is a great and obvious fit for the Giants because he crushes right-handed pitching and is capable of playing third and second base. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices