Here we have a pair of outfield rumors, one stupid and one sensible. First, the stupid one, from Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi:
Among teams that have checked in on #Rangers’ Rios, from my sources and @jonmorosi’s: #Mariners, #SFGiants, #Yankees, #Reds.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 27, 2014
The rumor isn't stupid -- those hard-working men are just doing their job! -- but the idea of Alex Rios helping the Giants is. Here are some Alex Rios facts:
- He had a .756 OPS in Texas last year, which isn't so hot
- He has a .754 OPS in Texas this year, which isn't so hot
- He doesn't field very well
- He has a $13.5 million option that will cost a million to buy out
- The Giants already have Alex Rios, and his name is Michael Morse
Would the Giants bench Morse when Brandon Belt comes back? Would they play Rios in center until Pagan comes back? No and no. This is the worst thing to happen to rumors since Billy Corgan covered "Landslide."
/waits for studio audience whoops and applause to die down
I wouldn't even trade Tim Lincecum's contract for Rios. Unless the Giants are convinced that Belt is out for the year -- which, jeez -- there's no way that an additional corner outfielder makes sense.
The other rumor, though. Why, this one makes sense. SB Nation's Chris Cotillo is reporting that Chris Denorfia is likely to move soon, with the Giants having interest. Denorfia is a pending free agent in the middle of a miserable year, so he wouldn't take a top prospect. He's been much better over the last few years, though, and he actually fits a need for the Giants, with right-handed power off the bench. He's like Juan Perez after being shot with gamma rays, at least when it comes to his utility as a fifth outfielder. Perez is the better defender, but Denorfia is the better player.
If the Giants are worried about Pagan, but not despondent about his chances to return, Denorfia is a great way to hedge their bets. He'll mean less Gregor Blanco against lefties, and he'll give Morse some late-game breathers as a defensive replacement.
I am for a Chris Denorfia acquisition. Great work on the Padres on selling low again, by the way. Just amazing stuff. Keep it up.
The Rios rumor gets an F- unless Belt isn't coming back soon, in which case it gets a C-. The Denorfia rumor gets a B+, unless it costs the Giants something like Matt Duffy or any other prospect of moderate interest, at which point holding onto the raffle tickets would be more important than upgrading the bench at this point.
Though the ability to reference this every game might be worth a prospect:
Tough call.