San Francisco Giants rumors: Pablo Sandoval still open to contract extension

The San Francisco Giants have had a long and complicated relationship with third baseman Pablo Sandoval over the last seven seasons or so.

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With free agency on the horizon for the man known as “Kung Fu Panda,” that relationship might be coming to an end in a matter of months. Both sides have expressed vague interest in an extension to keep the husky third baseman in San Francisco, but it would appear that those talks never advanced beyond the stage of being more than a theory.

It seems that Sandoval is headed for free agency, but until that officially happens, he is still opening to talking to the Giants about an extension. As told to Andrew Baggarly:

To take a look at Sandoval’s numbers through 115 games this season is to observe a guy who has managed to bounce back after a rough start. In total he is batting .283/.330/.438 with 14 home runs and 55 RBI. The potential problem with committing to Sandoval, one presumes, is not necessarily his overall numbers but the inconsistency with which he produces them.

Having already tied money up in Hunter Pence and Buster Posey, would the Giants be interested in ponying up big money to keep Sandoval even though he is prone to massive cold streaks? Should they be?

That kind of production can be hard to find from the third base position, especially from a switch-hitter, so it should be fascinating to see how this situation unfolds and what the Giants decide to do.