Two Trades To Get the San Francisco Giants Back on Track

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Heading into the All-Star break, the San Francisco Giants were atop the National League Wild Card standings, two games ahead of the Colorado Rockies. 

The Orange and Black seemed to be an impact hitter away from serious contention for a playoff spot, and perhaps even a shot at giving the West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers a run for their money. 

Just a week later, however, the landscape is much different. 

The Giants have dropped four of their five games since the break, including two of three to the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park, and the first couple of a four-game tilt in Atlanta.  They've plated just nine total runs in those five contests, dropping the most recent pair by a combined score of 19-to-4. 

Meanwhile, the Rockies have won four of their last six contests, en route to a 1.5 game edge over San Francisco in the Wild Card race. Colorado has averaged more than six runs a game over the past week, its lineup firing on all cylinders. 

These two National League West rivals, heading in opposite directions of late, will meet in a three-game set at Coors Field during the coming weekend. Unless the Giants find a way to right their ship, that series could seal a disastrous road trip and send Bruce Bochy's squad into a tailspin. 

Unfortunately, the fix for the Giants no longer seems to be just a single impact hitter to pair with Pablo Sandoval in the heart of the order. The team now has other glaring holes to take care of, and it may require a few separate trades to patch them. 

General manager Brian Sabean certainly has the trade chips needed to acquire talent, and to a lesser extent the financial flexibility. However, Sabean and managing partner Bill Neukom have shown a reluctance to dig especially deep into the Giants' highly-rated farm system. 

Top pitching prospects Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson are deemed untouchable.  Catcher Buster Posey is expected to take over for Bengie Molina, who is a free agent after the season. And, lefty Jonathan Sanchez is no longer a candidate to be traded, because Randy Johnson will miss at least another month with a shoulder injury. 

Meanwhile, with rookie Ryan Sadowski's magic wearing off, the Giants may now be forced to search for a veteran pitcher for the back of their rotation, in addition to a powerful bat to add to the middle of their lineup. 

Thus, Sabean and Neukom are tasked with striking a delicate balance between competing in 2009, and retaining the talent necessary to build a Pennant contender for the next decade. 

Matt Holliday and Roy Halladay are not the answers, for while they might accomplish the former, they'd certainly detract from the latter. Conversely, standing pat would be a devastating blow to a formerly dejected fan-base that has recently been aroused by the team's first half success. 

The most prudent solution, then, is to acquire useful players who come with neither the production nor the price-tag of stars. 

It's not a foolproof strategy, to be sure, and Brian Sabean has previously shown an aversion to trading for expiring contracts. But there are some "rental" players who are worth a gamble—a far more sensible gamble, in fact, than the boom or bust options mentioned earlier. 

Supplanting the back of the rotation is the easier task, with several capable starters on the market. Two right-handers, in particular, seem to fit the mold well.  

One is Cleveland's Carl Pavano—signed to a one-year, $1.5 million deal loaded with performance incentives—who has been much better than his 5.13 ERA suggests. The 33-year-old's bloated .340 BABiP suggests that he has been rather unlucky throughout the first half. A solid 77-to-20 K/BB ratio, 47.4 percent ground-ball rate, and 3.59 fielding, independent ERA portend much better things in the summer, assuming that Pavano can stay healthy. 

The other is a familiar face now with the Padres

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?