Giants are reportedly interested in Joc Pederson, and they should be all in

There have been talks for a while that the San Francisco Giants might pursue Joc Pederson, a Bay Area product who has tragically spent his career donning Dodger blue. While some of those talks might have been based on actual reports, many were based on the fact that it merely felt like a good fit.

Apparently the Giants agree, as those talks have turned into honest to goodness reports. According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Giants have been in discussions with Pederson, and are intent on adding another left-handed bat to the outfield mix.

To which I say: do it Giants. Do the heck out of it. Don’t do it if the price is right. Don’t do it if the market is suppressed. Just do it. And if it costs a few more dollars than you had hoped ... don’t care, do it anyway.

Yes, Pederson is coming off a rough year in which he had a batting average of just .190. But that was the first season since his 38-plate appearance rookie year in 2014 that he hit below league average. He’s a player who has comfortably lived in the “really good hitter” area code.

In 2019, Pederson hit 36 home runs. To put that in perspective, the last Giant to hit 36 home runs was Barry Bonds.

17 years ago.

Pederson would likely be a platoon option for the Giants, as he sports a career .849 OPS against righties as opposed to a .576 OPS against lefties. That’s OK. The Giants love platoon options, especially in the outfield. Mike Yastrzemski is the exception, not the rule.

The Giants are going to have a roster crunch, but that’s also OK. Pederson has a longer track record than Alex Dickerson or Darin Ruf. And unlike those two, Pederson’s defense makes him playable, even when he doesn’t have a platoon advantage.

The Giants need impact players. They need impact players so they can have a winning season. They need impact players so they can be fun to watch. They need impact players so they can start to look like a quality baseball team that is attractive to marquee free agents.

Get Joc Pederson. Just get him.