Kurtenbach: The time is right for SF Giants to trade Logan Webb

The San Francisco Giants must trade Logan Webb. Right now. Today.

Don’t hesitate. Don’t second-guess. Don’t whine about his Northern California roots or love of the local nine. Don’t clutch your pearls over the idea that he’s the “face of the franchise.” And don’t tell me a single thing about marketing.

The Giants are nine games back of a National League wild-card spot before the middle of June. They’re sinking like a safe tossed off the Golden Gate Bridge.

Webb has been absolutely magnificent over his last three starts, but he’s a single working engine on a passenger plane with no wings.

One ace cannot save a total, unmitigated disaster. And his value on the trade market will never, ever be higher.

The Giants just wrapped up a miserable 2-4 homestand. There’s no team in baseball as good as the Giants fending off a sweep; no team worse than the Giants every other day.

There’s no magical late-season surge coming to save this team.

Even when they play great baseball, it only happens once every five days when Webb takes the mound. The other four days are a grueling exercise in existential dread.

An organization with its wits about it would read the room.

This year’s a total wash. The only future that matters lives in the kids, especially - perhaps even exclusively - top prospect Bryce Eldridge.

Since the postseason is beyond a far-fetched dream, Buster Posey’s front office needs to prioritize a new timeline: Eldridge’s timeline. And the kid is 21.

Sell anyone on a veteran major league deal who can net a real return and try to turn the negative into a positive.

Because for everyone who has rightfully been complaining about the Giants’ interminable mediocrity, this season from hell carries a twisted silver lining - it should force the organization to choose a new direction.

Yes, the Giants have jumped off the treadmill of mediocrity and subsequently sprained both ankles. They can take advantage of the fact that things, frankly, can’t get much worse this season.

Nobody’s trading for Matt Chapman, Willy Adames or Rafael Devers on their current high-priced deals.

But guys like Luis Arraez and Robbie Ray should have their bags packed if another team offers a bucket of used baseballs. Heck, see what Casey Schmitt can fetch before arbitration reality sets in for the latter next year. I’d even entertain the idea of a Jung Hoo Lee deal, seeing as he has an opt-out following the 2027 season.

But Webb? He’d be No. 1 on anyone’s wish-list.

Unless the Giants plan to hand him a massive extension right now - which makes zero sense but perhaps fits with Posey’s track record of bizarre logic - they should aggressively shop him. Just keep him out of the National League West, because there’s no need to be neighborly.

Webb has two and a half years left on his current contract. It’s an absolute steal at its price.

And while everyone’s drooling over Tarik Skubal - ESPN’s entire baseball coverage plan seems to be discussing hypothetical trades of the Tigers’ ace - he’s coming off an elbow injury and heading straight toward free agency.

Webb is the safer, better asset on the market. He should easily command a top-20 prospect, a top-80 prospect, and a lottery ticket (or two) of the selling team’s choice.

I haven’t and won’t pretend I can run a baseball front office better than the professionals. That’s the hardest gig in sports.

But even I can see that not only is the time right to sell Webb - every additional start in black and orange is an invitation for danger - but the Philadelphia Phillies and Giants are a perfect match for a deal.

Philadelphia already boasts a wicked rotation with Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo.

Add Webb to that mix, and you’ll strike pure terror into the rest of the National League. Have fun with that, Braves and Dodgers.

Obviously, facing a great rotation in the National League playoffs isn’t a concern for the Giants.

But the Phillies are a win-now operation with a rapidly closing title window. Their head honcho, Dave Dombrowski, famously operates with a firm “forget them kids” philosophy.

Of course, in spitballing this idea, I’ve already heard the predictable groans from Giants fans.

They say you can’t trade the face of the franchise, a NorCal kid who loves playing in San Francisco.

To which I say: The hell you can’t.

Webb might be the face of the franchise, but it’s a franchise that’s currently closer to the Rockies than to the Padres. Being the king of a landfill isn’t a trophy worth keeping.

Webb has been in the big leagues for eight years and has exactly one playoff series to show for it. That’s not changing anytime soon.

At some point, keeping him around is unfair to the competitor.

Build around the kids. It’s not a full rebuild because the situation is too bizarre - the Giants already have decent talent on cheap contracts and those permanent infield veterans. But it’s a new direction, to be sure.

Trading Webb might make the Giants worse tomorrow, sure. But honestly, how much further down is there to go?

It gives them a legitimate shot at being dominant tomorrow when Eldridge matures, and the farm system finally pays off. Posey does deserve credit for helping improve the minor leagues, and with that, the possibilities are blinding.

Is it risky? Of course. No minor league prospect is a sure thing in the show.

But why is this status quo at the big-league level worth protecting?

Call Dombrowski today. Demand shortstop Aidan Miller, right-hander Gage Wood, and Single-A prospect Ramon Marquez.

And if he doesn’t want to bite, well, then start the bidding process.

Re-establish the timeline to something realistic.

Because you can sell wins or hope in the big leagues.

Right now, the stuck-between-stations Giants can’t push either.

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This story was originally published June 16, 2026 at 5:41 AM.