Getty The Red Sox have a hole at shortstop after Trevor Story's injury. Could Brewers infielder Willy Adames fill the void?
The San Francisco Giants have had a busy winter preparing for the 2024 regular season. There have been several additions to manager Bob Melvin’s lineup that’ll help the offense. There’s one rumored trade target that still plays for another team, though: Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Willy Adames.
Once the Brewers traded Corbin Burnes to the Baltimore Orioles, trade rumors began to swirl around the shortstop. That’s probably because Milwaukee told teams Adames was available on the trade market. Trade proposals involving the Giants landing him began to fly, and Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller is predicting he’ll land by the Bay before this summer’s trade deadline.
If that happens, what would it take for San Francisco to make Adames more than just a rental player? The Athletic’s Tim Britton crunched numbers to see what a potential extension could cost. He’s projecting a valuation of six years and $132 million for the shortstop. The right-handed hitter will be making $12.25 million this year before hitting the open market, per Spotrac.
Adames is entering 2024 with an eye toward registering his fifth season of 20-plus home runs since 2019. He already has a 31-homer campaign under his belt, which happened in 2022.
A Look at the Giants’ Offseason Lineup Overhaul
The Giants entered this past winter with grand plans. They went after two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani and starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto in free agency. Unfortunately for San Francisco, they both signed for a combined $1 billion with their National League West rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Despite whiffing on those two pursuits, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi found other ways to meaningfully upgrade the roster. It included installing Jung Hoo Lee as the starting center fielder, Jorge Soler as the designated hitter and Matt Chapman as the third baseman.
Could those additions, plus what they’ve done to the pitching staff be enough to contend for a Wild Card spot? It’s possible, but Adames could be a huge upgrade and provide a level of certainty at his position the Giants don’t have at the moment.
Marco Luciano is currently penciled in as the starting shortstop. The 22-year-old has been slowed this spring because of a hamstring injury. Even if he’s fully healthy, though, there’s an element of unknown based on recent performance. He posted a .777 OPS between Double-A and Triple-A in 2023 before posting a .641 mark in 14 big-league games for San Francisco.
Could San Francisco’s Next Big Move Involve Adames?
The slow-moving free-agent market allowed the Giants to add Soler and Chapman to their roster later than they probably expected. Could another big splash be on the way before Opening Day? Could it involve Adames?
Based on recent comments from Zaidi, the answer to both of those questions is no. While discussing the Chapman deal, he proclaimed that San Francisco’s offseason is over (despite still being connected to free agent pitcher Blake Snell). As for the club’s next move, it’d probably involve clearing up an infield logjam. Signing Chapman pushed incumbent starting third baseman J.D. Davis to the bench.
However, the possibility of the Giants trading for Adames will remain until another team lands him or he reaches free agency.