Farhan Zaidi on the SF Giants’ trade deadline & state of the roster

Aug 3, 2023, 9:20 AM

SCOTTSDALE, AZ - FEBRUARY 18: General Manager Farhan Zaidi of the San Francisco Giants looks on dur...

(Photo by Alex Trautwig/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Sacramento Kings Beat Writer

The Major League Baseball trade deadline passed on Tuesday afternoon, and there was a sense among San Francisco Giants fans that the team should have made more moves to upgrade its roster.

According to Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, San Francisco’s front office was engaged on all fronts, but there was little activity around the league during this summer’s lackluster trade deadline.

“I don’t know what the broader perception is, but it wasn’t a super-active deadline,” Zaidi said on Tuesday evening. ” A lot of the bigger names that people thought might be moved at the deadline were not. Teams that were kind of on the bubble decided to push in. I think a lot of teams dealt with the same supply-and-demand issue that we did, and we ultimately didn’t line up on anything.”

Zaidi’s lone deadline move was a trade with the Seattle Mariners that brought former All-Star outfielder AJ Pollock and utility-man Mark Mathias into the fold for roster depth.

As several players like infielder Thairo Estrada, who is expected back this weekend in Oakland, and outfielder Mitch Haniger work their ways back from injury, Zaidi stated that internal players’ returns will help the Giants down the final stretch of the season.

“It’s really more just getting our guys back and feeling like our internal options (are good),” he said. “The younger guys have gone through some ups-and-downs, but if we have an injury, we feel confident they can fill the void.”

Along with comments on the returns of players like Estrada and Haniger, Zaidi spoke about the approaching MLB debut of San Francisco’s top prospect, left-handed starting pitcher Kyle Harrison.

“He’s sort of on the accelerated rehab program,” Zaidi said of Harrison on Tuesday. “He was really right on the cusp when he had the hamstring injury, so it’s not going to take much for us to feel like he has checked the last box and is ready to come up here.”

Farhan Zaidi says Kyle Harrison will make his MLB debut soon

With Estrada, Haniger, and Harrison on the way, it seems as if Zaidi and the Giants’ brass are approaching the playoff push with the idea that their internal pieces can get the job done.

Entering play on Thursday, San Francisco (60-49) held sole possession of the National League’s top Wild Card spot while sitting just 2.5 games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgeers.

Buckle up, Giants fans. The playoff push is on.