Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
The Giants would have an easier time building a roster if they knew what kind of roster they need to be building.
The position-player type of the Farhan Zaidi regime — good plate discipline, plenty of flexibility and athleticism, nice pop, few strikeouts — is simple enough to seek. What is more difficult is knowing how many holes these pegs can fit into.
It’s December — non-tender day for arbitration-eligible players, to be specific — and there is little clarity about whether there will be a designated hitter in the National League next season. That greatly affects both those tender decisions and the free agents the Giants sift through.
MLB Network reported Wednesday San Francisco has interest in free-agent Marcell Ozuna, who was an MVP candidate last season and won a Silver Slugger with the Braves — with whom he mostly DH’d. He also can play the corner outfield, but the Giants would want him primarily as a DH option, which very much murks up the interest level.
The Blue Jays reportedly also are interested in the 30-year-old, who led the league last season in home runs (18) and RBIs (56) while slashing .338/.431/.636. He has cut down on strikeouts in recent seasons and walked more en route to becoming one of the premier offensive players in baseball.
With the Giants looking at a righty hitter primarily seen as a DH who also can play some outfield, this could bode poorly for Darin Ruf, to whom the Giants will decide soon whether to extend a contract for next season. Ruf, too, is a power-hitting righty option with a bat and not much glove.
“I think we just have to hedge our bets,” Zaidi said recently about building a team without knowing whether the universal DH will make it to a second season. “… It may make it more important to have enough defensive versatility and defensive ability in our position-player group that may be something that influences some of these decisions.”
The Giants will bring back corner outfielders Mike Yastrzemski and Alex Dickerson, both lefties, the latter of whom could use a complement (which was Ruf last season). Mauricio Dubon adjusted well to center, but the Giants did not and do not have a lefty-hitting platoon partner with him, the best on the market being Jackie Bradley Jr. (which could change once the nontenders are known).
Ozuna would be a nice piece provided there is an extra spot in the lineup for his bat. The Giants hope they’ll have an answer to that unknown before he’s off the board.