Which part of the roster will Giants try to improve at trade deadline?

San Francisco Chronicle​

21-07-2025

ATLANTA — A five-game losing streak heading into a series in Atlanta pushed the San Francisco Giants a little further into third place in the National League West and 2½ games out of a wild card spot.
They have been either coasting or playing some of their worst ball since a hot start in April and May, but their place in the thick of it is trending toward the Giants being buyers with 10 days until the July 31 trade deadline.
President of baseball operations Buster Posey made the splashiest move of the year when he traded Kyle Harrison, Jordan Hicks and prospects for slugger Rafael Devers.
That move chipped at the organization's pitching depth and, with the state of the rotation, the Giants will be looking first to bolster a rotation that's showing vulnerability and is now without as big a safety net.
Granted, pitching has been this team's strong suit to date. Robbie Ray, despite an off Sunday afternoon in Toronto, and Logan Webb head up a rotation boasting a 3.88 ERA — 12th best in MLB, sixth best in the National League. Their 3.60 FIP, a statistic that measures pitchers' effectiveness independent of the defense, is second best in the NL. Their bullpen makes the entire group stronger, collectively holding a 3.61 ERA and 3.60 FIP, both second best in the league.
What's gone wrong is at the back of the rotation.
Nothing about Justin Verlander 's year with the Giants has been consistent except the ineffectiveness. He's without a win this season and holds a 4.99 ERA, but will make his next start on Wednesday in Atlanta. Though he's coming into his own as a consistent starter, attention must be paid to Landen Roupp 's workload. Now at 96⅓ innings pitched, he's nearing the career-high 107⅓ he pitched between three minor league teams in 2022.
The immediate concern is with Hayden Birdsong. The Giants skipped his start against the Los Angeles Dodgers before the break after three previous concerning outings in which he completely lost the strike zone and issued 13 walks and gave up 11 earned runs (including four home runs) over 13 innings. A bad start against the Atlanta Braves could justify a demotion to the bullpen for Birdsong if they make a move.
Further down on the list of priorities is the bullpen itself, which could use another left-handed reliever with Erik Miller rehabbing a sprained left elbow. As the Giants await Miller's return in mid-August at the earliest, Joey Lucchesi has filled in nicely in Miller's place and the organization recently called up lefty Matt Gage for depth.
The offense is an obvious weak spot, so a fair question is: Why not add a bat at the deadline? With Devers, Matt Chapman, Willy Adames and Jung Hoo Lee locked into lucrative contracts, there isn't a ton of wiggle room to add an impact bat. Heliot Ramos is the everyday left fielder and Casey Schmitt has taken over at second. Devers is expected to play first base at some point in order to get Wilmer Flores more designated hitter at-bats.
There may be room to add a right-handed outfielder, but the Devers addition accomplished the goal of adding an impact bat. The hope is that Devers will heat up once the pain from a back injury subsides and the offense can play up to their earnings.