July 19th- July 26th
In almost the blink of an eye, the Giants are 15 and 3 in the month of July and have thrust themselves into a ridiculous National League Wild Card race. They have moved from last place to tied for second place in the division in exactly a week. Obviously, this has caused Giants fans to come out of hiding, and are over the moon about this team. The atmosphere at Oracle Park for this past series against the Mets was noticeably more electric and full then the rest of the season. Oh yeah, and they also walked off the Mets 3 times in the series, so that probably helped. But the craziest thing about this entire run is that the team that was regarded by all to be the leading sellers at the Trade Deadline has now pulled their players out of trade talks for the time being. Yes, you heard that right. Farhan Zaidi has taken a step back when it comes to fielding inquiries for Madison Bumgarner, Will Smith, Sam Dyson… etc. There are multiple theories about what this means and why Zaidi did this, and I’m going to cover a couple of them in this article, and give my opinion for what the Giants should do.
The least confusing reason for Zaidi’s actions is that he believes that this team actually has a shot at making the playoffs, and he doesn’t want to trade any key pieces that could help them get there or help them make a late October run. I believe this is most likely what Zaidi is thinking. He probably feels the weight of Bochy’s last season, the fan’s love for the trade chips, and the fact that this is only his first season with the Giants on his shoulders and wants to see where this run could go. This is completely understandable too, as some fans would definitely be upset if Zaidi traded away the stars and brought this playoff push to a halt in his first season as General Manager.
One train of thought is that Zaidi is taking these players off the market for the time being because it will make potential suitors more desperate to acquire targets, and in turn, they will offer up better prospects and trade packages to the Giants. This is definitely a possibility, because it is obvious Zaidi is a very smart man, and a tremendous General Manager. However, it seems to me that the Giants have a shot at the playoffs, and until they prove they are not playoff caliber, I don’t think Farhan will go into full-sell mode, unless the offers are too good to refuse
The final fan opinion is that Zaidi still has absolutely no clue what he is going to do at the deadline, and he is just taking his trade chips off the market to give himself some time to reflect and think about the future. Part of me believes that Zaidi really doesn’t know what to do yet, but deep down I don’t think he can forget about the horrendous start the Giants had to this season, and I believe he knows he can and needs to help the farm system with some trades. Whatever Zaidi is he is feeling, he has to make a decision soon as July 31st is rapidly approaching, and soon some trades will be made, forcing his hand.
No matter what Zaidi decides to do going forward, I personally hope that Giants fans can continue to be happy, whether that means accepting the trades that are made and reflecting on this amazing stretch of games or enjoying a playoff push, and maybe even another World Series. Man, that would be something.
What do you think the Giant’s trade deadline strategy will be? Are they sellers, buyers, or do the stand pat? Let me know in the comment section below, and when you’re down there, be sure to subscribe to Orange Friday so you get notified every time a new article is posted.
Written by Jack Smith
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