It’s only been a year since the Giants jettisoned Andres Torres to the Mets for the newly-extended Angel Pagan, but now they’re bringing him back to assume a part-time role. Torres and the Giants have agreed to a one-year deal worth $2 million. It’s becoming really likely that Brian Sabean is in love with this type of player, as there are plenty of similarities between Torres and Gregor Blanco, and in some ways Pagan is a superior version of the same prototype.

Torres will turn 35 before the 2013 season starts, and he’s coming off a thoroughly gross season at the plate in which he hit .230/.327/.337. Thankfully he knows how to draw a walk , he still holds value as a defensive player, and he can run the bases. Torres will do just fine as a fourth outfielder and a guy who can step in for any of the three starters whenever the need happens to arise. He’s never going to recapture whatever it is he temporarily had in 2010 that made him a very short-lived star, but that’s okay.

This is a solid signing by Sabean, as that $2 million is reasonable and Torres has his uses. We can all safely assume at this point that the Giants are mostly set for next season, and they should be in the thick of things even with the Dodgers increasing their payroll beyond what mathematics claims is possible. It would have been interesting to see the Giants go out and land a seriously dangerous bat to compliment Buster Posey, but Sabean has never really focused on his offense. Maybe that’s a good thing, because that whole Aaron Rowand thing happened when he did.

Tagged: Andres Torres, MLB free agent signings, MLB hot stove, MLB transactions, San Francisco Giants