The San Francisco Giants could be a surprise destination for the most valuable starting pitcher on the free agent market.
Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer has outlined the top 10 starters set to hit free agency with Corbin Burnes of the Baltimore Orioles topping Rymer’s list.
Burnes, a four-time All-Star and winner of the 2021 National League Cy Young Award, is still just 29 years old. According to Rymer, Burnes is likely to attract offers from the biggest market teams in Major League Baseball, most notably the New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Boston Red Sox.
Interestingly, Rymer also listed the Giants as a potential landing spot for Burnes. The acquisition would not be cheap for San Francisco, as Burnes could demand north of $300 million, according to Rymer.
While Burnes struck out less batters this year and also allowed a career-high 37 barrels, these signs won’t detract teams like the Giants from pursuing the ace.
“The picture (of Burnes right now) is not that of a devolving pitcher, but rather of an evolving one,” Rymer said. “And as long as the results are there, well, why complain?
“Teams in need of an ace certainly won't be. They'll be too busy trying to woo Burnes, with the end result likely to be a deal that comes close to comes close to matching the $300-plus million guarantees of Gerrit Cole and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.”
Will the Giants oust the Dodgers and Mets and become the NL team to swoop in and make Burnes an offer he can’t refuse?
More MLB: Phillies could fire manager after ‘evaluation meetings’ take place
