Although the San Francisco Giants have stayed away from most of the top-tier free agents this offseason, they may sign one of the top international prospects. From earlier on Monday, the Texas Rangers and Milwaukee Brewers have finalized a trade.
Ben Badler of Baseball America reported on Sunday that the Giants held a private workout for Cuban prospect Yoan Moncada. The 19-year-old switch-hitting infielder has been garnering interest from a number of teams and the competition to sign him is expected to be fierce once he's cleared by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control. Moncada held a showcase back in November during which the Giants, Braves, Red Sox, Yankees, Rays Padres and Cubs were present.
Sources said earlier this month that the Red Sox and Yankees were the "heavy favorites" to land Moncada, but that could now change with the Giants' interest. San Francisco missed out on Jon Lester earlier this offseason and Moncada would be an excellent addition to their farm system and eventually their middle infield. Here's what Badler had to say:
"Several sources have said the Giants have been trying to get more involved in the Cuban market, with the push coming at the ownership level. If the Giants were able to sign Moncada, he would immediately become their top prospect-and one of the top prospects in all of baseball."
As for other clubs making moves, the Texas Rangers and Milwaukee Brewers have finalized a trade that was reported earlier on Monday. The Brewers sent starter Yovani Gallardo and $4 million to the Rangers in exchange for prospects Luis Sardinas, Corey Knebal and Marcos Diplan, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports. Gallardo will likely be the No. 2 starter behind Yu Darvish and will earn $14 million in 2015.
Here are the positions and 2014 statistics of all the players involved in the deal:
Gallardo, SP: 8-11 with a 3.51 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 32 starts (192 1/3 innings)
Sardinas, 2B/SS: .281/.302/.364 with 51 runs scored, 37 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in 81 games between Double-A Frisco and Triple-A Round Rock
Knebal, RP: 5-1 with a 2.18 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 63 strikeouts in 34 games (45 1/3 innings) between Double-A Erie (DET), Triple-A Toledo (DET) and Triple-A Round Rock (TEX)
Diplan, SP: 7-2 with a 1.54 ERA and 1.06 WHIP in 13 starts (64 1/3 innings) in the Rangers' foreign rookie league
