On Monday afternoon, Giants’ general manager Bobby Evans completed his third trade of the offseason, dealing for former Pittsburgh Pirates’ franchise cornerstone Andrew McCutchen. Though McCutchen has spent 99 percent of his career –1,315 out of 1,328 games in the field—as a center fielder, his declining defense is viewed as a serious concern moving forward.
How will San Francisco handle its outfield alignment after trading for the 31-year-old McCutchen? We looked at five different options for the Giants to consider.
Play McCutchen in center field
With Hunter Pence capable of manning right field and the Giants having three or four different players on their 40-man roster who could start the 2018 season in left, it’s possible San Francisco views McCutchen as a potential starting center fielder for 2018. Because McCutchen is playing on an expiring contract, the Giants wouldn’t be married to the possibility of making him their center fielder of the future, but they could think of him as an upgrade over Denard Span who handled the position for the club last season. McCutchen was adamant in Pittsburgh that he still possessed the range to play center field on an every day basis, and even though the advanced metrics aren’t kind to McCutchen, the Giants might be willing to take the gamble if it means their newest acquisition will be happy about joining the club. Because this idea isn’t in line with the Giants’ offseason plan of adding an above average defender in center field, it’s more likely McCutchen plays in right field while Pence slides over to left.
Let Steven Duggar earn the job
The Giants believe 2015 sixth round draft choice Steven Duggar has the potential to become the club’s center fielder of the future, and while Duggar might still be a year away, he has tools that could likely play at the Major League level right away. Though Duggar probably wouldn’t hit for average as a rookie, he’s considered a strong defensive center fielder who has the range to play effectively at AT&T Park. Duggar has also exhibited good plate discipline in the Minor Leagues, even posting a .370 on-base percentage in a very small sample size with AAA Sacramento at the end of last season. Because Duggar is under club control, his contract wouldn’t eat away at the team’s payroll, which is another enticing reason to pencil him in as the center fielder. San Francisco’s current lineup features seven starters with at least one All-Star appearance, so the Giants might be willing to let Duggar learn on the fly and earn a starting job this spring.
Sign Lorenzo Cain
The trade for McCutchen should keep San Francisco’s payroll slightly below the $197 million luxury tax threshold, and based on Evans’ previous comments this offseason, it appears as though the Giants would prefer to stay under the tax ceiling. However, McCutchen’s defensive regression clearly leaves a hole to fill on defense, and Cain is the premier center fielder on the free agent market. Signing Cain would force the Giants to surpass the tax threshold and add another player on the wrong side of 30 years old (Cain will turn 32 this year), but he would provide the team with an instant impact bat at the top of the order and a top-notch glove in center field. Bob Nightengale of USA Today has already reported the Giants are out on Cain, but if they want to make one final splash this offseason, Cain could be the missing piece between missing out on a playoff berth and contending in a tough National League West.
Platoon Austin Slater/Jarrett Parker
If the Giants aren’t prepared to hand the job over to Duggar just yet, San Francisco could start the season by platooning Austin Slater and Jarrett Parker in center field until Duggar is ready to make the jump. Slater performed well in his rookie season and has a short approach at the plate that allows him to hit the ball the other way, whereas Parker began the 2017 season as the Opening Day left fielder before having his season derailed by a collarbone injury. Neither player was groomed to play center field, but both are decent defenders who can hold down a job for a short period of time. The Giants may also look at using Gorkys Hernandez in center field, who was the team’s best defensive outfielder last season. Hernandez’s struggles at the plate should deter San Francisco from counting on Hernandez to take on a larger role.
Trade for a young, controllable center fielder
Because the Giants didn’t surrender Heliot Ramos, Tyler Beede or Chris Shaw in the McCutchen deal, San Francisco still has a bit of ammunition left in its farm system if Evans wants to strike one more deal. Considering how close the Giants are to the luxury tax threshold, it wouldn’t make much sense for the club to add another Major League player, but there are ways Evans could make this work. Due to his reported $6.1 million salary for 2018, Boston’s Jackie Bradley, Jr. is likely off the table, but San Francisco could look into acquiring an outfielder like Milwaukee’s Keon Broxton who won’t be arbitration-eligible until 2020. Doing so would probably force the Giants to give up a decent package of prospects, so it’s unlikely Evans works out another trade.
Sign a cheap free agent center fielder
Hours after initial reports of the McCutchen trade appeared, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported that the Pittsburgh Pirates have agreed to pay a portion of the $14.5 million owed to McCutchen in 2018. While it remains unclear exactly how much of McCutchen’s salary the Giants are covering, the additional room under the luxury tax threshold could be enough for San Francisco to sign a cheap free agent center fielder like Cameron Maybin, Jarrod Dyson or Austin Jackson. Maybin, Dyson and Jackson are considered cheaper than other options like Carlos Gomez and Jon Jay, who are likely out of the Giants’ price range if the team plans on adding a free agent.
*A sixth option was added to this article following a report that the Pirates planned to pay a portion of McCutchen’s salary in 2018.