The Giants want Aaron Judge. But he’s not the only outfielder looking for a San Francisco treat.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports “According to an industry source, the Giants have checked in on Cody Bellinger, who was non-tendered by the Dodgers last week, as well as Brandon Nimmo, who compiled a 5.1 WAR with the Mets last season.”
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Interest in Bellinger, the 2019 National League MVP, is simmering. The Athletic’s Jim Bowden tweeted Sunday:
There is significant FA interest in Cody Bellinger as at least 5 teams called within an hour of him being non-tendered,several more have called since according to source close to Bellinger…..his LH bat…plus plus defense in the OF & 1B great base running & former MVP is only 27
But Bellinger’s agent, Scott Boras, has made it seem like the outfielder will be looking for a one-year deal. “Most likely, because of his age, we don’t want a multi-year,” he said, according to The Athletic.
As for Nimmo, SNY’s Andy Martino reported last week the outfielder is meeting personally with teams. Martino reported the list of interested clubs includes the Mets, New York Yankees, Colorado Rockies and Toronto Blue Jays “and that is far from a complete accounting.”
In fact, the Blue Jays have emerged as a top threat to grab Nimmo following last week’s trade of All-Star outfielder Teoscar Hernandez to the Seattle Mariners.
After the trade, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported “The #BlueJays are showing interest in free agent OF Brandon Nimmo, sources say; the trade of Teoscar Hernández has freed up a spot in the Toronto lineup to add the left-handed bat they’ve lacked.”
In addition, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reported last week the Yankees made “several surprising free-agent connections, including with marquee shortstops Trea Turner, Carlos Correa and Xander Bogaerts and also crosstown center-field star Brandon Nimmo.”
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Of course, the Yankees’ interest in those stars is secondary to the club’s desire to re-sign Judge. And San Francisco will give New York a run for its money.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported Monday night that “According to sources, the reigning American League MVP will meet with the Giants on Tuesday, sitting down with a club expected to be one of the Yankees’ biggest competitors to sign the superstar.”
As first reported by NJ Advance Media’s Randy Miller, the Giants have signaled they will be all-in on Judge:
The Giants have targeted Judge and are prepared to spend whatever it takes, a person with knowledge of the Giants’ thinking told NJ Advance Media after meeting with members of the franchise’s ownership group. The person, who isn’t authorized to speak on behalf of the team, was granted anonymity.
“Judge is at the top of the Giants list and they won’t be underbid,” the person said. “If they miss out, it won’t be because of money.”
The person added that the Giants planned to entice Judge further by signing at least two-high priced free agents.
“The Giants are not going to stop with Judge,” the person said. “They have so much money freed up.”
Earlier this month at the GM Meetings in Las Vegas, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said ownership has given him “no explicit ceiling” on how much he can spend this winter.
“I think from a financial standpoint there’s nobody that would be out of our capability,” Zaidi said. “And then it’ll just be a question of whether there’s mutual interest and how we put together the best possible team.”
MORE MLB:
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– Ex-Yankees slugger hits free-agent market
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Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.
