Triangulating the Giants’ alleged targets

Don’t worry, I’m as skeptical as you are when it comes to Jim Bowden’s reporting, but he very clearly does still have a few friends around the industry. So, when he put in a piece for The Athletic yesterday that the San Francisco Giants are in the market for a shortstop and starting pitcher, it got picked up by NBC Sports and became more truth than rumor.

Jon Morosi previously reported that the Giants had inquired about Justin Verlander, sort of confirming the starting pitching part of Bowden’s report. The Giants really need a bat, though. Like, really really. We haven’t heard a peep from any of these national reporters about players who might be in that mix, but let’s see if we can come up…