San Francisco Giants, Corbin Burnes In Serious Free-Agency Talks ...

The San Francisco Giants have been in serious talks with Baltimore Orioles superstar ace Corbin Burnes as his decision draws near according to a Wednesday afternoon report from Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Nightengale relayed his conversation with super agent Scott Boras, who will leave the Winter Meetings on Thursday with some of the biggest contracts ever seen signed by his clients including a record-breaking deal for Juan Soto to the New York Mets.

The report includes the fact that Burnes is expected to receive a deal that tops $250 million after now former Atlanta Braves lefty Max Fried came to terms with the New York Yankees on Tuesday night on an eight-year, $218 million deal.

"Boras has been in serious talks with the San Francisco Giants for Burnes, and has spoken to the Boston Red Sox and others, acknowledging the possibility that Burnes’ deal could soon be agreed upon," Nightengale wrote.

If the Giants really can land Burnes as it seems they have a very good shot to do, it would be one of the best offseason weeks the Giants have had in franchise history. Over the past weekend ahead of the Winter Meetings, the team landed Milwaukee Brewers star shortstop Willy Adames, filling a huge need that San Francisco entered the offseason with a desire to fix.

Landing a former Cy Young ace like Burnes would be the cherry on top, especially given the need at the top of the rotation following the departure of Blake Snell to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Snell signed a five-year, $182 million deal with the Giants most hated rival after just one season with the team in a move that was an absolutely devastating blow from the defending champs to San Francisco. But if Buster Posey could counter back with the younger and more reliable Burnes, losing Snell to Los Angeles would feel like a distant memory.

Burnes is coming off another stellar season after being acquired last winter by Baltimore from Milwaukee. In his first season with a new franchise ahead of hitting the open market, the 30-year-old posted an ERA of 2.92 with a 15-9 record over 32 starts and 194.1 innings. The thing to like most about Burnes - which is ironically something that can't be said about Snell - is his reliability.

Since becoming a full-time starter, Burnes has never made less than 28 starts in a season and has thrown over 190 innings in each of the last three seasons. Snell in comparison has reached the 180 inning mark just twice in his career and never above that number.

By the sounds of it, the Giants are pushing hard to land the 2021 National League Cy Young. Time will tell if they can actually get it done.