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00:00We can welcome Evan Wiebeck, California Post Sports, into this conversation.
00:04He was on the Zoom just moments ago with Buster Posey and Zach Manassian,
00:09and now here on the River Islands guest line with us.
00:12Grandi in for Dibs, Willard and Dibs.
00:13Hey, Evan, what's going on, man? How are you?
00:16Man, a lot going on today, huh?
00:18Pretty exciting day.
00:20Yeah, yeah, lots going on, but then again, the real big boom.
00:24In other words, a lot happened, but I didn't find any of it necessarily surprising.
00:30How close do you think the Giants got to doing something surprising?
00:36I mean, I thought getting Marcelo Mayer for Eric Miller was pretty surprising.
00:41I don't think trading Elia Ramos was a surprise,
00:45but I thought it was not necessarily an obviously expected move.
00:50You know, we saw him trade two guys under team control through 2030.
00:53It was another three years in Miller and Ramos.
00:57So it wasn't just, you know, the rentals that Buster got rid of.
01:01And as he said on the call, you know, he kind of said, you know,
01:03we don't have to get rid of, you know, Ramos or anybody under control.
01:09So it wasn't necessarily strictly by the books deadline.
01:13I think they did take some swings, and I think ultimately in totality,
01:18it was a big swing here at the deadline, subtracting six players from the Major League roster.
01:22But no, I don't think they were ever going to trade Logan Webb.
01:24I know Buster said they were taking calls on everybody and made it aware that everybody was available.
01:30I don't think that was the case with Logan Webb, as he kind of outlined, you know,
01:35what was it, a month ago when we talked to him.
01:36I do think that they would have liked to get off of, you know,
01:39Adamus and Devers and Chapman.
01:44But like you said, the no-trade clauses for two of those guys complicates things.
01:48The injury for Chapman complicates things.
01:50And ultimately, the money is what complicates things with all three of those guys in their production.
01:55It was just not going to be, it was going to be a tough equation to kind of square out
02:00at the end of the day
02:01to, you know, get off of the money, but also make sure you're not completely putting your Major League team
02:07in a complete hole, losing, you know, kind of those three main pieces.
02:12Evan, so six big leaguers out.
02:13They also trade away one high-A minor leaguer.
02:17You get seven prospects and Marcelo Meyer back, as you mentioned.
02:21Obviously, with these prospects, so many of them are, you know, in the lower levels of baseball.
02:25We're all guessing.
02:26We don't know how good these players are going to be eventually.
02:29But in your opinion, you sum up what the deadline has been.
02:33Do you consider this a successful deadline for the Giants?
02:37I mean, for a team that has maybe been the biggest loser on the field this season,
02:42I mean, maybe besides the Mets, there might not have been a bigger winner at the deadline,
02:47especially for a team that's selling pieces.
02:51You know, I've been pretty critical, I think, of Buster Posey's tenure so far,
02:55and for good reason.
02:56You see where they are in the standings and some of the moves that have been made.
02:59But he's done very well, both at the last trade deadline and this trade deadline.
03:02And a lot of credit goes to, you know, the Giants Pro Scouts.
03:05Who Buster shouted out on the Zoom call, of course, and identifying, you know, this kind of talent to bring
03:10in.
03:11I think it was a big win for the Giants, frankly.
03:13I mean, we didn't know how far they were going to go with this.
03:16I mean, everybody kind of figured it was going to be a rise in Ray, maybe Malley, if they found
03:20a suitor for him,
03:21you know, get off of the guys who were on one-year deals, expiring contracts, get some value back.
03:25But the fact that they were able to, you know, find deals that they liked, liked enough to trade a
03:33guy like Elliot Ramos,
03:34you know, the guy who's the first, you know, opening day starter in back-to-back years in left field
03:39since Barry Bonds,
03:40you know, one of the few position players, right, in the last however many years, maybe past decade,
03:46that this team has actually managed to, you know, draft and develop and turn into.
03:50I mean, he was an all-star right here, I think he was in this ballpark here in Texas a
03:54couple years ago.
03:56So, I mean, that's a guy that they were very proud of internally, right?
03:59And they felt good enough about the package that they got back from the Yankees to move off of him.
04:03And I think that's because, you know, they're getting not just Caden Kent, you know, Jeff Kent's son,
04:08which is going to be a fun little combination in the Giants farm system with Peyton Bonds, Barry's nephew.
04:13Maybe see a future Chet Bonds pairing in the lineup a couple years down the road.
04:18But they got high upside starting pitching, which is something that this, you know,
04:23organization has desperately needed, you know, and dating back to the draft, too,
04:27where they, you know, they spent the first three picks on pitchers and added some real high upside guys.
04:33You know, they say it hasn't been a focus, but it has been a very pleasant outcome, I would say,
04:39in terms of adding pitching and kind of, you know, they've got so much hitting depth in the system,
04:44especially at the lower levels. And now they add, they kind of round that out with the pitching.
04:48And, you know, frankly, I mean, I've been covering the team since 2022.
04:52The farm system is easily in the best place it's been since then.
04:56And I would imagine dating even further back than that, probably, you know, the pre-dynasty era.
05:01You're listening to 95.7 The Game, KGMZ FM and HC1 San Francisco and Odyssey Sports Station
05:06in the home of the Golden State Warriors and Valkyries, always live on the free Odyssey app.
05:10And coming to you live from the Laughing Monk studios, and we're talking to Evan Wiebeck,
05:13who's in Texas with the team, where the lineup should be super interesting tonight
05:17in a game that starts in about an hour.
05:19But after the trade deadline, when the Giants send out six players in five different trades.
05:25Okay, with all that said, I know today is about the deadline, but Evan, you mentioned it.
05:32What does Buster Posey do about this Willie Adamas situation going forward?
05:40It's a great question. I think he just needs to play better.
05:43I think a whole offseason, I mean, that's got to be the Giants' hopes, right?
05:49That a whole healthy offseason against Adamas, right?
05:53And it really is the back issues that are causing the problems.
05:56Of course, it's two sides of the same coin, right?
06:00It's like, okay, do you want the back issues to be the problem?
06:03Because back issues in the second year of a seven-year contract doesn't necessarily pretend something good.
06:08But if it's not the back issues, if it's actual skill decline, that's maybe even worse,
06:14again, in the second year of a seven-year contract.
06:17So it's a totally fair question.
06:20I don't know what they need to do to get him right, but he needs to be making better swing
06:23decisions.
06:24I mean, that's, first of all, at the plate, I haven't looked in the last maybe couple weeks or so,
06:31but last time I checked fan graphs on his swing decisions, he was making swinging at more pitches outside the
06:36strike zone
06:37and fewer pitches inside the strike zone than he ever had on both fronts his entire career,
06:41which is not a good combination.
06:42And then, obviously, the defense has not been up to par, arguably the worst in the sport.
06:49And that's where I think you can really see the back coming into play,
06:52and obviously that's prevented him from doing as much with Ron Washington,
06:55who obviously had so much success with Luis Arias transforming his defense.
07:00So it's not a great situation to be in with five years left on this deal and well over $100
07:08million left.
07:09I think this is kind of, you know, when the deal was signed, everybody kind of, you know, predicted,
07:15well, maybe it isn't going to look so good, you know, in years maybe five, six, seven.
07:19But, yeah, the fact that it's already looking like such an albatross just in year two is not a great
07:24sign.
07:25Evan, so they trade away a bunch of players off the major league roster,
07:28and for the most part they get back prospects that you don't expect to crack the big league roster for,
07:34I mean, at least a year, but probably multiple years, maybe even three years from now.
07:39But as we're talking about, you still have Adamas, you still have Devers, you still have Chapman.
07:44What is the plan for next year, for two years from now, for this organization?
07:48Is it one where they think they can be realistically competitive for a postseason spot next year,
07:54or is it utilizing the youngsters that they're acquiring and try to be good in 2028 and beyond?
08:01Yeah, I mean, Buster Posey was asked to, you know, characterize this deadline.
08:04He was asked if this is a rebuild, and he said, I don't think I would characterize it as a
08:08rebuild.
08:08And I think that's fair to say, even with the subtractions up the major league roster,
08:13because, I mean, like we've been talking about, you still have that core, those three position players.
08:18You still have Logan Webb.
08:20And, I mean, by getting back my error, I think that you're going to, I mean,
08:24you get another kind of everyday position player.
08:25They believe that, you know, he's been harmed by injuries.
08:28They think they can fix his swing and get him back.
08:30You know, he was the number 15 prospect in all of baseball going into last season.
08:35So, I mean, if you can slot him in at second base, you're going to have Casey Schmidt coming back
08:39next year,
08:41obviously, from the meniscus tear.
08:43So, I think, like, we've seen this offense over the last, basically, since May.
08:49It hasn't been terrible.
08:50It's been pretty good at times.
08:52And you kind of see the pieces, at least in the lineup.
08:55And, again, maybe it's not a contender.
08:57I'm definitely not going there.
08:58I picked him to make the playoffs this year.
08:59I'm still eating crow for that.
09:01I don't know if I can put confidence in this core.
09:04But you do see the makings of a real major league lineup.
09:07And then it's just the pitching that needs to be filled in behind Logan Webb.
09:10Because right now, it's Webb and Landon Roop.
09:13And that's about it.
09:16Which is not great.
09:17So, I would expect them to probably sign some veterans starting pitching this offseason.
09:24You're going to have some options on the market.
09:26I mean, including, shoot, Robbie Ray is going to be out there.
09:29Kevin Gosman is going to be out there.
09:30A lot of, you know, very familiar faces.
09:32Tarek Scoble.
09:33Don't leave him out.
09:34Tarek Scoble.
09:35Available.
09:37Maybe not open to a short-term deal.
09:38Yeah.
09:41But, yeah.
09:41I mean, right now, I think Hauser is going to slot back into the rotation.
09:46Maybe behind an opener.
09:47And then they've got Blade Tidwell here in the clubhouse who's going to be making starts
09:52and hopefully vying for a bid.
09:53But, yeah.
09:54They're going to need to add pitching.
09:55They're going to need to really invest in the bullpen.
09:59And, yeah.
10:00I mean, it's going to be a tough sell to think that they're going to be a contender next year
10:03after what they did to the deadline.
10:04But, it's a thing, you know, if you're building for – nobody probably wants to hear this,
10:09but they sure look like they're going to be pretty good in, like, 2030.
10:12Yeah!
10:13Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo, buying tickets.
10:16Evan Wiebeck is with us.
10:17Hey, Evan, I'm going to go into the prospect weeds with you here on the Elliott Ramos thing
10:21because I bet there are a lot of Giants fans that are like, wait a minute, so why?
10:26Are Dakota Jordan and Bo Davidson among the reasons the Giants decided to move Elliott Ramos now?
10:35For sure, yeah.
10:36I mean, they like what they've seen from both of those guys.
10:38Bo is a little bit close to the big leagues.
10:41You know, he just got called out to AAA a couple weeks ago,
10:43and he seems to be tearing the cover off the ball there, just judging by the exit velocities.
10:47You know, both those guys are super toolsy outfielders, right?
10:51I think that they're also pretty confident in Victor Baricotto, too, you know, not to be forgotten.
10:57I know he's out with an oblique strain right now, but, you know, what he had shown both in spring
11:01training
11:01when he tore the cover off the ball and since coming up this season really looked like he could be
11:05a guy who could –
11:06I mean, Ramos is a really good player.
11:09It's tough to say he's going to fill in on a one-for-one level, especially for a guy who's
11:13not –
11:13I mean, none of those guys, right, are proven at the big league level, and that's what matters.
11:17Whereas Ramos, he was an all-star at the big league level.
11:19But, yeah, I think all three of those guys are reasons why they felt comfortable moving on from Elliott.
11:25But I think ultimately the reason was that they – I mean, they really like this LaLaine kid,
11:29a 22-year-old left-hander.
11:31He's 6'7", from the Yankees system, and, you know, he's going to slot right into the middle of their
11:36top 10.
11:37And, I mean, really, like, you look at their top 10 going into, I guess, we'll say the draft a
11:43month ago,
11:44less than a month ago, and I think it was seven or eight of the top 10 guys were position
11:47players,
11:48and most of them were pretty far off.
11:49And now there's just, like, it's a much better balance, and not guys who are necessarily close to the big
11:56leagues,
11:56you know, this year and next year, but a much better balanced farm system and a lot of, you know,
12:00just like – it was – they were really low, really, really low on starting pitching,
12:06especially at the upper levels.
12:08And I think you're going to – you know, the balance is just – it's quite a bit better now.
12:13All right, Evan.
12:14By the way, is there a lineup tonight?
12:17I have it in my text messages if I can take my phone away from my ear for a minute.
12:20Yeah, yeah, yeah.
12:21Take your time.
12:21I want to know – I want to know who's playing second base.
12:25I want to know who's playing left field.
12:28I guess we could probably guess the rest.
12:31Christian Koss probably is starting.
12:32Christian Koss is over at second base.
12:34Do you have it yet, Evan?
12:35Let me see.
12:35You're going to get a speaker here for a second.
12:37Okay.
12:37Yeah, all good.
12:38Put us on speaker.
12:39Live from Texas, ladies and gentlemen, Evan Wiebeck with a lineup.
12:44Oh, this is interesting.
12:46You've got Nate Furman leading off and DH-ing tonight.
12:51Did you say –
12:51Just called out for –
12:52Nate Furman, the former warrior?
12:54Wait a minute.
12:55Who's playing?
12:59Nate Furman, remember?
13:00I said that – you came over in the Alex Cobb trade a couple years ago.
13:04Is that right?
13:05I think so.
13:05Okay.
13:08Let's see.
13:08Left field.
13:09Graham – yeah, the outfield – the real question mark is going to be if anything happens
13:13in the outfield tonight because they've only got three outfielders on the active roster
13:18right now, and they're all obviously in the starting lineup.
13:20Lee in right, Gilbert in center, McRae in left.
13:23That's interesting.
13:23I would have switched.
13:24I probably would have put Gilbert in left and McRae in center.
13:27And then we've got Basabe at second and Koss at third, which is interesting.
13:31It seems like they're maybe going to be alternating because in San Diego we saw Koss at second
13:35and Basabe at third.
13:37Interesting.
13:38And you said – wait, so is either Eldridge or Devers not playing?
13:44Sorry, what was that?
13:45Eldridge and Devers?
13:46Are they – one of them must be sitting out, I guess.
13:50That must be Ryan.
13:51No Eldridge.
13:52No Eldridge.
13:52Devers is at first.
13:53Yeah, it looks like a day off for Bryce Eldridge.
13:55Got it.
13:55Well, I mean, he's been around for so long.
13:58We're doing all prospects now.
14:00Okay.
14:01All right.
14:01Hey, Evan, man, that was a blast.
14:03Thank you so much for coming on.
14:05Yeah, anytime.
14:06Thanks, guys.
14:07Okay.
14:07Evan Wiebeck in Texas with people you've heard of and people you haven't.
14:11Logan Webb on the bump.
14:12Logan Webb on the bump.
14:14I'm sure he'll get the run support he's looking for from Koss and Basabe.
14:18And who – I'm sorry, who's the D.H.?
14:20Nate Furman.
14:21Furman.
14:21He's making his major league debut as far as I can see.
14:26And leading off?
14:27Oh, no.
14:27He has played in one game.
14:28Okay.
14:29Did he pinch run or play defense in San Diego?
14:31He played defense in San Diego during the Basabe game.
14:36So this is his first start, and he will have his first plate appearance to lead off this
14:39game tonight.
14:40Which one was the Basabe game?
14:41I saw him get extra base hits in both games.
14:43He hit a home – didn't he hit a home run off of Mason Miller?
14:46But then he hit another double.
14:47Yeah.
14:48And then told everybody about it.
14:50The Mason Miller game.
14:51I got it.
14:52Yeah.
14:53First extra base hit off Mason Miller since the Stone Age or something like that.
14:57Yeah, Luis Basabe, his OPS this year is 1,511.
15:00I want to get his first name right, Pasta.
15:03How do we say it?
15:04Oslevis?
15:05Oslevis.
15:06Good job.
15:06Oslevis.
15:07Okay.
15:08Basabe.
15:08Basabe.
15:09All right.
15:10Basabe.
15:11Anyway, I won't do that again.
15:12All right.
15:13Segment was sponsored by AC Transit.
15:17Chris Rose in an hour.
15:18Your phone calls now, 888-957-9570.
15:22It's Willard and Dips.
15:23Ha ha.
15:24Yo.
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