The Giants are pushing for an outfielder
One of the worst kept secrets this offseason is that the Giants are looking to upgrade their outfield for 2018. Giancarlo Stanton has seemingly been their top target as they’ve been most closely connected to the star slugger since the beginning of this process. On Wednesday, we learned that San Francisco was willing to take on all of Stanton’s contract to get him in the Bay Area. Of course, Stanton would have to agree to go to the Giants, and reports say that he’s waiting to hear what the Dodgers are willing to do. Perhaps he’d agree to a trade to San Francisco if/when Los Angeles backs out of trade talks — playing on the west coast seems to be the biggest priority for Stanton — but who knows how long the Giants will be willing to wait. It’s worth mentioning that they’ve also been asking about Andrew McCutchen. As for what this means for the Red Sox, we can keep San Francisco as an option for a potential Jackie Bradley Jr. trade if Boston ends up acquiring both a first baseman and an outfielder.
Athletics sign Yusmeiro Petit to a two-year deal
The hot stove is sizzling! A few days after Doug Fister signed his deal with the Rangers, now reliever Yusmeiro Petit has signed a two-year deal with the Athletics, per Ken Rosenthal. Petit will make $10 million over the course of the deal and Oakland has a team option for another $5.5 million in 2020. Petit has always been something of an underrated reliever in my eyes and he was someone I was hoping the Red Sox would be in on. At ten million over two years, this could be a steal for Oakland. Petit is a unique reliever with the ability to toss two or three innings in every appearance. In 2017, he tossed 91 innings over 67 appearances with a 2.76 ERA, 101 strikeouts and just 18 walks.
- The Astros are going to shop Mike Fiers and try to work out a deal involving the right-handed starter before Friday’s non-tender deadline. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if some team took Fiers on, but there’s no reason to expect the Red Sox to be in on these trade talks.