One trade, one signing the Giants should make

Cincinnati Reds second baseman Jonathan India Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports. 

The San Francisco Giants, who finished fourth in the National League West the previous season, have been looking for methods to improve on their disappointing 2023 record of 79-83. They signed outfielder Jung Hoo Lee to a six-year deal in the winter, making their first major splash. However, they are still looking to add players. The Giants will require every bit of assistance they can get to contend in the competitive NL West division, as the Los Angeles Dodgers have made several significant offseason acquisitions. 

The Giants should make the trade and signing listed below this summer.  

Trade: The Cincinnati Reds send second baseman Jonathan India to be acquired.

Although Thairo Estrada is already scheduled to start at second base for the Giants, obtaining the winner of the 2021 NL Rookie of the Year Award would provide the team with a much-needed quality bat that isn’t always required to be on the field to make an impact. 

India has slashed.255/.350/.419 in his three MLB seasons while playing 372 games and scoring 224 runs, 171 RBI, and 125 extra-base hits. The 27-year-old, who played third base for the University of Florida, is an athlete who is adaptable enough to play different positions.

The Reds already have a wealth of youthful talent in the infield; even if he is rumored not to be on the trade market, they might use him to add to their farm system or get an upgrade elsewhere.

With Estrada, India would have a player to relieve some of the load on its 22-year-old shortstop Marco Luciano, who only made his Major League Baseball debut last season. 

Signing: Blake Snell, the 2023 NL Cy Young Award winner, will strengthen the rotation.

The Giants will still need a top-of-the-rotation arm, and Snell is the best one on the market despite their deal for former Cy Young Award winning pitcher Robbie Ray. 

Snell would provide the Giants with another elite arm to aid in their fight in the NL West, and he would be the huge splash that general manager Farhan Zaidi has been waiting for since he arrived in San Francisco. 

The 31-year-old southpaw won the NL Cy Young Award in 2023 after finishing with a 14-9 record, 2.25 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, and 234 strikeouts in 180 innings pitched. The Dodgers signed pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a 12-year, $325 million contract, so Snell will probably want a bigger deal than anticipated, but the Giants saw his dominance last season and know just how good he can be.

This previous summer, Snell went 2-0 in three starts versus the Giants, pitching eighteen scoreless innings, striking out twenty-six and giving up just ten hits.

The Giants would have a pitching staff that could compete with anyone if they added Snell to a rotation that already has Logan Webb, a young fireball in the form of Kyle Harrison, a Cy Young candidate, and the recently acquired Ray.