With the emergency of Patrick Bailey, Joey Bart’s name has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Bart’s return from the Injured List is now expected to coincide with a designation to Sacramento’s Triple-A squad. Greg Papa of KNBR posited that the struggling catcher could be involved in an even bigger move if things continue on the same trajectory with him and the big-league squad in the foreseeable future.
“I think trading for a starting pitcher is going to be on the table,” Papa said on KNBR. “There’s no doubt. That brings up Joey Bart then. Joey Bart is a piece you could use. When they got Kris Bryant a couple years ago, the rumor was they were going to send Bart to Chicago to the Cubs. They didn’t have to do that. Could you make a trade where you get a front-line starting pitcher for Joey Bart and probably more in your system?
“The way Bailey’s playing, Blake Sabol, would you use Joey Bart as a piece to go and get a starter?”
Papa believes at some point Kyle Harrison can help shore up the rotation, but it’s unclear when and how effective he will be. At the moment, the Giants have only three reliable starting pitchers in Logan Webb, Alex Cobb and Anthony DeSclafani. Reinforcements from elsewhere may be needed.
“They’ve lost four of their last five,” Papa continued. “Right now if you’re going to make Farhan [Zaidi] be a buyer, and not be neutral or be a seller, you got to get above .500. Look around the league right now. It’s hard to believe but the St. Louis Cardinals got walked off by [Bruce] Bochy and the Rangers last night, they have the worst record in the league. They’re not going to stay the worst record forever, they’re going to be in the market for starting pitching.”
Some starters who could be on the block are Corbin Burnes of the Brewers, Marcus Stroman of the Cubs or Lucas Gialito and Dylan Cease of the White Sox.
“In a month time when the deadline is upon you,” Papa concluded, “and Farhan’s compelled to be a buyer, maybe buy a starting pitcher.
