By Jordan Long
The San Francisco Giants added depth to their outfield, agreeing to a minor league deal with Melvin Upton. He is going to work on his game at extended spring training in Arizona. Once that is completed, Upton will report to Triple A Sacramento River Cats to get some playing time in the outfield. After that he will be called up to the San Francisco Giants.
Upton spent spring training with the Toronto Blue Jays, hitting .194 with 3 home runs. Upton took too many chances at the plate swinging at pitches out of the strike zone ending in 10 strike outs. The Blue Jays decided that the last roster spot would go to infielder Ryan Goins and released Upton to free that spot
The Giants decided to sign Upton since he was the best outfielder left on the free agent market. Once he is called up to the Giants, he will help this team win with his bat. Upton can hit the long ball, get on base, and score runs. In his career he hits .243 with 164 home runs and 586 RBI’s.
In the outfield Upton plays every position and rarely makes an error tracking a ball down. Last season he made only 5 errors. Upton has a strong arm and base runners can’t advance when he has the baseball. If they do Upton will throw them out. Upton had a total of 18 outfield assists last season.
The Giants are a better team with this move. With this added depth Manager Bruce Bochy can rotate his outfield. Once Upton is back with the Giants, outfielders Jarrett Parker, Denard Span, and Hunter Pence will be able to take days off and the outfield won’t miss a beat. The Giants are hoping that Upton is the missing piece in the outfield.
What do you think about the San Francisco Giants adding Melvin Upton?
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