The San Francisco Giants might soon be on the hunt for a third baseman. According to a report from Dennis O’Donnell of KPIX 5 in San Francisco, the Boston Red Sox have a 90% chance of signing Pablo Sandoval, and the Giants are basically out of the running.
Sandoval was in Boston yesterday where I am told there is a 90 percent chance that he will sign with the Red Sox. The other 10 percent goes to the Toronto Blue Jays.
So what happened with the Giants? I’m told they were never his first choice, which is why he asked for seven years — a request the Giants were highly unlikely to accommodate. If the Giants want to get back in the race, they will have to up the ante, which team officials are considering.
The Giants’ offer to Sandoval was for five years and $90 million, which is what Sandoval desired this past spring. There was no immediate word on what Boston’s offer to Sandoval is. He was a member of San Franciso’s World Championship teams in 2010, 2012, and 2014, winning the 2012 World Series MVP award. In 2014, Sandoval hit .279/.324/.415 with 16 homers. He’s the marquee third baseman in this free agent class, and only Chase Headley could even hold a candle to his production level.
Boston’s third basemen hit a dreadful .211/.271/.308 this past year, and only the Astros were (barely) worse. Most of the playing time at the position went to Will Middlebrooks, rookie Xander Bogaerts (who started and ended the year at short following two months at third), and utility man Brock Holt.
