One team that has been out of contention for a while in the National League West Division is the San Francisco Giants. Buried in the bottom of the division, they are battling with the Colorado Rockies to stay out of the basement.
The division isn’t as deep as it has been in years past. The only team over .500 is the Los Angeles Dodgers. They have a 14-game lead over the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks after Tuesday night’s results. San Francisco is 21 games back and just one clear of the Rockies.
President of baseball operations Buster Posey would love to sell at the August 3 trade deadline. However, that is easier said than done. There are not going to be many teams lined up to take on all of his high contracts. He could look to move some players in the final year of their contracts. Second baseman Luis Arraez and pitcher Tyler Mahle are among those players. Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report listed Mahle as a low-risk trade candidate before the deadline.
San Francisco Giants Pitcher Tyler Mahle Tabbed Trade Candidate
When Justin Verlander left in free agency over the winter, Posey was looking to replace him. He inked Mahle, a veteran right-hander, to a one-year contract for $10 million. It’s safe to say that things haven’t gone as planned. In 14 starts, he is 1-8 with a 5.70 ERA in 71 innings. He has a career-worst -0.5 WAR.
Kelley believes Mahle could benefit from a change of scenery. He had a lot of success with the Texas Rangers in 2025. Some teams could hope to get something close to that out of him at the backend of their rotation.
“The 31-year-old went 6-4 with a 2.18 ERA in 16 starts for the Texas Rangers last season. That’s recent enough success that there will be teams who think Mahle could benefit from getting a new set of eyes on him. Health has always been the biggest question for Mahle, but he could be an addition for a team that needs a back-end-of-the-rotation starter,” wrote Kelly.
Mahle’s last start won’t help his trade value, if he has any. He allowed four runs on eight hits in just 4.1 innings on July 5 against Colorado in Denver. The start before that, he allowed four runs in four innings to Arizona.
Tyler Mahle Trade Value Remains a Question Mark for San Francisco Giants
It’s safe to say that Posey isn’t going to be looking for much in return for Mahle. Dumping his contract and opening up a roster spot to give a young pitcher a look over the final two-plus months would be the reason for the move.
Regardless, San Francisco would love to move a veteran contract like Matt Chapman’s or Rafael Devers’, just over a year after he was acquired from the Boston Red Sox. That’s not looking like a great move right now. However, nobody is likely to take that off Posey’s hands.
The Giants are one team that could be looking at some changes over the next month, and everything should be on the table for other teams to come calling on. Again, easier said than done for Posey.
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