San Francisco Giants DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Of the teams that could use free-agent third baseman Matt Chapman, the San Francisco Giants know him as well as anyone. President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi was with the Oakland Athletics for Chapman's first two seasons, and new manager Bob Melvin was for all five of Chapman's seasons in Oakland. Third base coach Matt Williams, who was with the A's in 2019 and '19, is an admirer of Chapman's. The 30-year-old would help the Giants' shortage of power while also providing an everyday anchor and stability on the left side of the infield. However, he's also just a year younger than Evan Longoria when he arrived in a trade from the Tampa Bay Rays in December of 2017. Longo had an OPS+ just three percent above league average in his five seasons in San Fran. Chapman is a four-time Gold Glover but hit just .205 with a .659 OPS after April 30, although his hard-hit and exit-velocity numbers for 2023 were among the best in MLB, suggesting a bounce-back season could be coming.

The Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants connected for a blockbuster trade on Friday as Seattle will send former Cy Young winner Robbie Ray to the Giants in exchange for former Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger and right-hander Anthony DeSclafani. Ray, the 2021 AL Cy Young winner with the Toronto Blue Jays, went on to sign a five-year, $115 million deal with the Mariners in free agency prior to the 2022 season. While he regressed some, Ray still posted a 3.71 ERA and excellent 19.4% K-BB% across 32 starts that season. However, he was limited to just a single start in 2023 due to an elbow injury. Subsequent Tommy John surgery will sideline him until after the All-Star break. A big-time strikeout pitcher, the 32-year-old has reined in the free passes that plagued him earlier in his career as he looks to bounce back with the Giants in the 2024 campaign.

Free-agent left-hander Blake Snell has privately expressed interest in playing for the New York Yankees, according to SNY's Andy Martino. At the moment, Snell seems a more likely fit in New York than Jordan Montgomery, with whom they have also talked. The Yankees are looking to aggressively add to their starting rotation and are planning an active month of January, according to league sources familiar with the team's thinking. Snell is coming off his second career Cy Young award after going 14-9 with a 2.25 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with 234 strikeouts in 180 innings over 32 starts with the San Diego Padres, so his price is going to be high. The 31-year-old's 2024 fantasy value is going to be high no matter where he lands given his swing-and-miss stuff, but the tough American League East wouldn't exactly be the ideal landing spot.