MLB insider: Giants linked to 2 potential pitching upgrades

The San Francisco Giants could be in the market for pitchers this year. FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray links the team to two pitchers in particular.

The San Francisco Giants are looking to make a return trip to the postseason after finishing with the best record in MLB the year prior. Entering their off day on May 19, the Giants sit in third place in the NL West, where they are three games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for first. As is the case, teams wanting to make a push for the playoffs will look to improve through the trade deadline.

In the latest episode of “The Baseball Insiders” podcast, FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray says that the Giants should make a move for pitching upgrades. As for who San Francisco could target, Murray brought up that the team has done well with former Cincinnati Reds starters, and wondered if they would be in the market for Luis Castillo or Tyler Mahle.

Murray’s comments on the Giants begin at the 36:15 mark of the YouTube video liked in the tweet above.

Could Giants be in market for Reds starting pitchers?

The Reds are coming off of an offseason where they allowed outfielder Nicholas Castellanos to walk in free agency and traded Jesse Winker, Eugenio Suarez, Sonny Gray and Amir Garrett. As of May 19, the Reds sit in last place in the entire league with an 11-26 record. With that, could the team trade Castillo and Mahle.

Let’s not forget that the Reds refused to move on from Castillo in the past, and general manager Tyler Krall said ahead of the 2022 season that they don’t see themselves trading from Castillo or Mahle.

This season, Castillo only played in two games after missing time with shoulder soreness. Through those two starts, Castillo posted a 5.59 ERA, a 1.138 WHIP, seven strikeouts and four walks through 9.2 innings.

As for Mahle, he started in a league-high eight games as of this writing. He recorded a 5.89 ERA, a 1.473 WHIP and 40 strikeouts over 36.2 innings.

Both Castillo and Mahle are set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2023 season. All eyes will be on both teams heading into the deadline to see if the Giants buy and if the Reds sell.