The one trade that added to the current roster could be a major addition with some luck as the Giants sent the always ambiguous "Cash Considerations" to the Cincinnati Reds for veteran second baseman Scooter Gennett.
Gennett (29) has struggled to a .212 average without a homer in sixty-six at-bats after missing much of the season with a severe groin strain suffered in an Arizona spring training game.
While Gennett has been having his problems at the plate since returning to the Reds lineup, his previous two seasons in Cincinnati saw his hitting leap forward after what had been an average career with the Milwaukee Brewers with averages of over .290 in both seasons, a combined total of fifty homers and 189 RBI.
Gennett will likely replace Joe Panik at second base, mainly because I cannot imagine the Giants bringing Gennett in, only to sit him behind Panik, who is hitting just .231 as of this writing,
Gennett is a free agent at the end of the season, but to add a potential All-Star level bat for what seems to be as simple as paying Gennett (who is making just under ten million for 2019) his salary for the rest of the season is a low cost in talent terms and well worth the risk even considering his recent struggles.
The Giants didn't only make trades to add to the rosters, they made three to add talent to their upper minor league levels-all of these trades would send away relievers, but none of the top relievers were moved as both Will Smith and Tony Watson would stay after being mentioned often as trade bait for contenders for months.
The Giants have drafted well over the last two seasons and their lower-level teams have several potential quality players, but their AA (Richmond) and AAA (Sacramento) are downright bereft of position players.
The first of these trades would see San Francisco trade pitchers Drew Pomerantz off the main roster and Ray Black from AAA Sacramento to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for AAA shortstop Mauricio Dubon.
Dubon, a 25 year old from Honduras and the third-rated prospect in the Brewers system, was acquired by Milwaukee from Boston in 2016 and made his major league with the Brewers earlier in July, batting twice before being returned to AAA San Antonio, where Dubon was hitting .297 with 15 homers and nine steals this season after missing much of the 2018 season with an ACL that was torn during a rundown.
Dubon was carrying a 23 game hitting streak when that injury occurred and seems to be ready to see if his bat will play in the big leagues.
Dubon's glove is not reported to be an issue and his hit tool has always thought to be above average and while some questioned his power, his 15 homers in a pitchers park might be a sign that despite the juiced ball, Dubon could be growing into having at least average pop.
Drew Pomerantz was signed in the off-season to be a back of the rotation arm and in 17 starts struggled to a 2-8 record with an ERA over five.
However, the lefthander had pitched well in his four appearances since moving to the bullpen, allowing only one hit in five innings and Milwaukee must have liked what they've seen, considering what they gave for a reliever that can return to free agency at the end of the season.
Ray Black has always been a player that showed a lot of talent but never seemed to get a break, either from the Giants or injury, Black, who throws over 100 MPH, never was able to have that breakthrough.
The 29-year-old pitched only two innings for the Giants this season, allowing one run as he spent most of the season in AAA Sacramento, where he was 1-0 with a 5.23 ERA in 23 innings, where as always, Black struck out plenty of batters, this time 36 of them.
I'm sorry to see Ray Black leave, but perhaps it was time for Black to have a chance somewhere else.
Besides that, I'll always have that great Ray Black story.
The Giants would also move reliever Mark Melancon to the Braves for two pitchers.
Melancon, who signed a big contract in 2017 when the Giants were expected to contend and instead finished with the worst record in the National League,was then injured, managed to bounce back with two solid seasons, although he received closer money ( a total of sixty-two million) to be a solid reliever in a non-closing capacity.
The surprising part of this trade was that San Francisco managed to make Atlanta pick up the final year of Melancon's contract in full at fourteen million dollars for 2020.
That alone makes the trade worth making, but the Giants added a prospect in Tristan Beck, the Braves fourth-rounder in 2018 from Stanford.
Beck has started eight games for Atlanta's High A team in Florida with a high ERA of 5.65 but has struck out 39 in 36 innings for the Fire Frogs.
Beck's a little old for that level (23) and those struggles are a bit concerning, but Beck has good command and is pretty polished as a college product and considering he was part of Atlanta's taking all of Mark Melancon's contract, he's well worth a flier.
Beck has not been assigned anywhere as of this writing, but my guess is he'll be sent to High A San Jose.
Veteran Dan Winkler was tossed into the deal as well as a reclamation project.
Winkler pitched very well for Atlanta in 2017 and 18 but has not pitched well this season (2-1 4.98 ERA) and was sent to AAA Gwinnett, where he pitched just as bad (0-1 4.86 ERA).
At 29, relievers can be quite inconsistent and capable of bouncing back as well as falling apart, so even though Winkler is arbitration-eligible over the winter, one never knows if Winkler can be turned around in either the short or long term.
The final of the deals was with the Minnesota Twins as one of those reliever reclamation projects that worked out as the Giants sent Sam Dyson to Minnesota for three minor leaguers.
Dyson, who was dominant for Texas in 2015 and 2016 and then flew off the rails in 2017 with an ERA of over ten before being acquired by the Giants, tuned a bit and returned to his previous level (4-1 2.47 ERA in 49 appearances), so gambling on relievers that have fallen on hard times can be a lucrative proposition when such pitchers work out.
The 2017 addition and subsequent revitalization of Dyson paid with three players that are far from sure things, but if one works out, the gift keeps on giving.
The main addition appears to be 25-year-old outfielder Jaylin Davis, who has broken out into prospect status with four excellent months between AA Pensacola and AAA Rochester with a combined 25 homers and a .298 average between the two Twins affiliates.
Davis does have issues with strikeouts as he has fanned 110 times already this season and the big question is this- is the power legit or is it a product of the juiced baseball with AAA using the exact same baseball as the major leagues?
The answer to that question will determine whether Davis can contribute to the big club or will be just another AA/AAA hired gun.
Kai-Wei Teng is pitching well at the low A level (Cedar Rapids) with a 4-0 record and an ERA under two in eight starts, plus at 20 Teng is young for the level, so he appears that he could be a surprise in the making.
Teng may very well be, but his strikeout rates aren't excessively high (49 in 50 innings) and this could be a case of a polished pitcher with good breaking stuff overwhelming young hitters that doesn't hold up as the pitcher rises to other levels.
Strikeouts per innings pitched is my favorite stat when looking at the lower minors because usually if you aren't missing bats in low A, pitchers don't start missing them at double or triple-A.
Still, those are strong numbers and Teng is someone to at least keep an eye on.
The other player is also a pitcher, but this one is the proverbial shot in the dark with 19-year-old Dominican native Prelander Berroa, who has made seven starts in the Twins Appalachian League team in Elizabethton.
Berroa has an ERA of over four and a half but has struck out 37 in 31 innings, but his 2018 numbers in the Gulf Coast League are what raises eyebrows with 41 K's in 29 innings, an ERA of 2.43 and allowed only eight earned runs.
The numbers aren't deep enough yet to know for sure, but I wouldn't be ready to cast Berroa as just a throw-in, he could eventually be what stands out from this trade.
One has to like what the Giants were able to do considering their fringe contender status.
They added a possible All-Star level bat for the cost of paying him for the final two months of the year., added a potential eventual starter in the infield, dumped an expensive contract and added three interesting young arms as well.
No complaints here considering what they traded and what they had invested in those assets, I think the Giants did well for what they wanted to accomplish.
