Giants sign outfielder Nori Aoki to one-year deal

The San Francisco Giants have signed former Kansas City Royals outfielder Nori Aoki to a one-year deal worth $4.7 million.

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In what looks like an obvious move of “Pagan insurance”, the Giants signed Nori Aoki to a one-year deal to plug the hole in the outfield and hopefully get more production at the leadoff spot should Angel Pagan have injury problems again. In the last few years, Gregor Blanco has filled in for Pagan when he’s been out with injury and has often struggled mightily at the leadoff position. It was no different last season when the Giants found themselves again without Pagan and trying to shift their lineup to find some production in the top of the order.

The difference in those numbers is key and likely a big reason why the Giants pulled the trigger on this deal. They’ve certainly discovered in the last few years that they cannot rely on Pagan to stay healthy during the entire season and they tend to sorely miss his leadoff bat.

According to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, the deal includes a $5.5 million club option and $1.5 million in performance bonuses. That translates to a 2016 team option with a $700,000 buyout, according to Hard Ball Talk. A pretty good deal, all things considered.

Of course, Aoki isn’t without problems. Sometimes he doesn’t look so hot defensively, often taking poor routes to the ball, but over his career, his numbers in that area are pretty good and he’s hit .287 career in his three seasons in the MLB, along with a .353 on base percentage. He takes as many walks as strikeouts and as previously mentioned, his leadoff numbers are better than the Giants’ other option.

Aoki will take over for the Giants in left field, a spot previously occupied by Michael Morse and then later Travis Ishikawa for much of the postseason. Aoki played in right field for the Royals last year and he played a total of 132 games with 491 at-bats. He had 140 hits, 43 RBI and 17 stolen bases. He hit .285 on the year and only had one home run, a total not likely to go up in cavernous AT&T Park.

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