Making cents of it all

What would you do if you found an extra $6 million in your pocket?

Buster Posey made his first notable trade this week, and it's notable for all the wrong reasons.

Taylor Rogers—the Rogers brother who throws overhand—pitched a lot of inconsequential innings last season, but pitched them well. He posted a 2.40 ERA across 60 innings as one of two lefties in the bullpen. He was also slated to make $12 million next season.

Now he's going to make $6 million from both the Giants and the Reds. He's only going to pitch for one of those teams, and it's not the orange one. How'd that happen?

Posey described the deal to The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly: "It’s a chance for us to get a look at some other arms.”

Hm, OK. Rogers was a pretty decent arm. But how about using that cool $6 million you just saved?

“We’ll keep looking,” Posey told Baggarly. “I will say, we feel pretty set with the roster the way it is right now.”

Ah, so that'll be that. A salary dump trade is one thing, but what does it say when you're about to field your lowest payroll in a decade?

The outcome of 2025 was never going to hinge on Taylor Rogers. But the outlook on 2025 and beyond absolutely hinges on this kind of trade. It's a deal that says everything about your priorities, and winning isn't at the top of that list.