SAN FRANCISCO -- Giants fans aren't the only ones confused about how a $200 million team can go into the break 27 games out of first place. In a lengthy interview with the San Jose Mercury News, Brian Sabean, the team's executive vice president, noted that it's "almost like we've forgotten how to win." Sabean also said this first half is something the front office is having "a difficult time coping with."
"All of us are scratching our heads at how we've flatlined like this and fallen off the map," Sabean said. "It's beyond frustrating. The break couldn't have come at a better time. Now having said that, I've been around this game a long time with two organizations and I don't know what to expect to start the second half. I really don't have a good handle on what our trajectory is, if any."
The Giants came into the season expecting to be buyers at the deadline. Instead, they'll try to shop Eduardo Nuñez, Johnny Cueto and others before July 31. Sabean noted in the interview that the Giants are already mixing youth in, calling the last few weeks "a tryout camp of sorts." Christian Arroyo, Ryder Jones, Austin Slater and Kyle Crick are among the prospects who have seen action. The focus now is the trade deadline and trying to figure out what to do with this roster going forward.
"I know Bobby and Jeremy are way ahead of schedule as to their preparation for trade deadline," Sabean said. "Needless to say, we're going to be strategic. We're not going to be buyers unless it would be an investment into the future, which rules out (Bryan) Reynolds. I would doubt that, given our current payroll situation, we would be willing to take on more payroll, but within that, I would think we can be as creative as any team that we'll have players available at the deadline, and I think we'll be a lot more open minded to more names than we have been in the past."
The Giants tried a similar approach last year, trading Matt Duffy and prospects for Matt Moore, who was supposed to help the 2017 team and then be a fixture in the rotation going forward. Moore has instead had a disastrous first half. When asked which aspects of this season are particularly disappointing, Sabean said among other things, "quite frankly, the starting pitching has been a huge disappointment."
