On Monday the Giants surprised a lot of folks by dealing Jonathan Sanchez to the Royals for Melky Cabrera.
The deal may work out for the Giants, or it may not. But the important thing is that, according to common sense, the Giants could take the money they might have spent on someone like Coco Crisp in centerfield and pump it into a big-time free-agent like Carlos Beltran or Jose Reyes.
However, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports says that might not be the case, and that the Giants might be out on all of those guys, thanks to payroll constraints.
Rosenthal writes that Beltran "no longer looks like a fit" and that San Francisco "probably won't be a serious bidder" for Reyes either.
The Giants being out on Reyes isn't particularly surprising, considering how much money he's likely to command. But the Beltran news is a bit odd considering that the Giants seem like a logical fit.
Instead, it would appear the Giants are OK going forward with an outfield that consists of Cabrera, Brandon Belt/Aubrey Huff (leftfield/first-base platoon) and Nate Schierholtz.
Brian Sabean could also re-sign Cody Ross if he doesn't attract much interest in free agency and his price remains low.
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For those wondering, all the money that would go towards Beltran or Reyes is heading towards arbitration-eligible players as well as big-name pitchers that need extensions and/or raises.
But, hey, on the bright side this should mean no trading of Tim Lincecum.
