San Francisco Giants Acquire McCutchen In a Smart Deal with Pittsburgh

The San Francisco Giants finally got an outfielder they needed, pulling off a smart deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates to bring in Andrew McCutchen.

The San Francisco Giants got the outfielder they so desperately needed on Monday, trading for the face of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ franchise, Andrew McCutchen. After getting so little offensive production from the corner outfield spots in 2017, they add a proven contributor coming off a strong offensive season in 2018.

McCutchen has been a center fielder for basically his entire career, but has been a negative defender for four years running according to defensive runs saved and UZR. The Pirates attempted to move him to right field last season, a move that was curtailed after new center fielder Starling Marte‘s suspension in early April.

After the deal was initially announced, Giants’ beat writer Alex Pavlovic tweeted that the team’s plan is to have McCutchen play a corner outfield spot. If that is the case, McCutchen’s bat will provide a sizable upgrade to either left field or right field.

As a group, Giants’ left fielders in 2017 were 29th out of 30 teams in home runs (14), average (.232), slugging percentage (.338), and wRC+ (68). They weren’t the worst thanks in each category thanks to the Kansas City Royals. They finished dead last in WAR at -1.5 because their defense was also bad.

In right field, that group finished among the bottom-five teams in home runs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, wRC+, and WAR.

McCutchen, on the other hand, is coming off a great season after struggling in 2016. He hit .279/.363/.486 with 30 doubles, 28 home runs, and a 122 wRC+ and 11.2 percent walk rate. He finished the season extremely well, hitting .313/.400/.540 with 22 home runs and a 146 wRC+ in his last 111 games, starting on May 24th.

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He will fit in the middle of the order, with McCutchen, Buster Posey, Evan Longoria, and Brandon Belt forming the heart of the order in some fashion. McCutchen has hit 20 or more home runs in seven straight seasons, and is coming over from PNC Park where it isn’t exactly a hitter-friendly place in left field. He will of course lose some home runs over the course of the season, but shouldn’t be hurt too much.

The outfielder is only under contract for one more season at $14.5 million, but Pittsburgh is reportedly sending $2.5 million to the Giants to cover a portion of McCutchen’s salary. That gives the Giants just a tiny bit of wiggle room to stay under the soft cap.

In return for McCutchen, the Giants are sending two players to Pittsburgh. Right-handed pitcher Kyle Crick and outfielder Bryan Reynolds are the newest members of the Pirates’ organization.

After a long and winding journey through the minor leagues, the former first-round pick Crick finally made his long-awaited major league debut in 2017. Though he seemed destined to go down as a bust, he found his footing as a reliever last year and parlayed that into his first big league chance. He threw the ball well, pitching to a 3.06 ERA on the strength of an explosive fastball, but still showed signs of the command problems that had plagued him for years. Working with pitching coach Ray Searage, known as a wizard with pitchers, should help him continue to develop.

Reynolds was a second-round pick in 2016, and quickly became one of the Giants’ top prospects. He had a great season in 2017 with the High-A San Jose Giants, earning the team’s MVP honor with a .312/.364/.462 slash-line and 26 double, nine triples, and 10 home runs. He is still a few years away from the big leagues, but looks like a promising young prospect.

The Giants could, conceivably, also get a prospect back in this trade, in a roundabout way. They can offer McCutchen a qualifying offer after the 2018 season, and if he were to decline that and sign with another team, the Giants will get a draft pick back. If they stay under the luxury tax, they receive a second-round supplemental pick. If they go over, that picks moves back to the end of the fourth round.

The team acquired an outfielder they certainly needed without parting with their top prospects (Heliot Ramos, Tyler Beede, and Chris Shaw). They received money back to continue to put together their team for 2018, and could potentially get another draft pick the following year. This was a great trade, and definitely helps with their goal of being competitive again next year.

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There still remains the question of who the Giants’ center fielder in 2018. The Giants have a small amount of money to work with if they want to go the free agency route, where players like Jarrod Dyson and Cameron Maybin, among others, remain. They could also use that money in an attempt to shore up their bullpen or the backend of the rotation. If that does become the case, in-house options like Gorkys Hernandez and Steven Duggar become the most likely candidates to start the season in center field, maybe in a platoon role.

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