MLB Trade Deadline News 2011: Buster Olney Thinks B.J. Upton Makes Sense for Giants - SB Nation Bay Area

Upton is the guy I would most like to see the Giants go out and get to invigorate the offense.

Maybe Colby Rasmus or Michael Cuddyer after that. Alphonso Soriano may still be available and worth the risk.

Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes and Aramis Ramirez are lesser fits due to money, years under contract or the bugaboo "He's a heck of a player when he decides to play". Who wants a guy who doesn't want to play for extended periods of time? Of course, that comment may have been made about Upton and Soriano a time or two as well. There are reasons these guys are available.

I would list Brandon Belt, Gary Brown and Zach Wheeler as off limits in any deal, but almost any package of other available parts would be worth it. IMO.


MLB Trade Deadline News 2011: Buster Olney Thinks B.J. Upton Makes Sense for Giants - SB Nation Bay Area:

"We're still about two weeks out from the MLB trade deadline, but the rumor mill continues to churn out new stories. ESPN's Buster Olney stated on his blog Sunday that the San Francisco Giants would be a terrific fit for Tampa Bay Rays Outfielder B.J. Upton as Tampa continues to weigh it's options with the 26 year old outfielder. "

Here's Buster's breakdown of the situation, which I remind you is purely speculation:

San Francisco doesn't typically make deals with the Padres, who have Ludwick, or with the Athletics, who have Willingham, and they might not want to pay the necessary price for Beltran. Upton would fit the Giants' park with his defense, and he would be under control for San Francisco through next year.

The stumbling blocks for such a deal are plentiful, especially with the Giants unwilling to trade top prospects for big name players right now. That would likely mean an outfielder on the Giants roster would have to go, and I don't see the Rays taking Pat Burrell back, picking up Aaron Rowand's gigantic contract, nor do I see the Giants letting go of Nate Schierholtz, Cody Ross or Andres Torres right now. The Giants need a bigger bat than Josh Willingham or Ryan Ludwick can bring (especially now with Ludwick slumping) and if they don't want to pay the price for Beltran, they might be digging through the wavier claim pile once more looking for gold.