The San Francisco Giants have been involved in a lot of high-profile free agency sweepstakes in recent years. A couple years back, they nearly pulled off a massive move to sign Aaron Judge away from the New York Yankees. They were also involved in the Shohei Ohtani free agency saga.

While they have been involved in a lot of big free agency negotiations, they have failed to seal the deal of late.

Looking ahead to the upcoming offseason, it seems likely that the Giants will again get involved in a massive free agency scenario. Juan Soto is the name to keep an eye on this time around.

ESPN recently put together a panel of 28 MLB executives to discuss a plethora of different topics. One was about the upcoming offseason and where Soto could end up signing.

Both the New York Mets and Yankees were listed as the favorites to land the 25-year-old superstar. However, behind those two teams, there are a few other suitors lurking.

San Francisco and the Texas Rangers were mentioned “multiple times” as potential suitors for Soto. It makes sense, as both teams will have money to work with and a need to acquire a superstar that can turn a franchise around.

If the Giants were able to pull off a move to sign Soto, everything would change about the outlook of the franchise. He is the kind of player that can take a team and turn them into a contender.

So far during the 2024 MLB season, Soto has put up monstrous production for New York. He has a slash line of .317/.432/.593 and has hit 17 home runs to go along with 53 RBI. Very few players in Major League Baseball have put up those kind of numbers.

Remembering that Soto is just 25 years old adds even more intrigue to the upcoming offseason. Soto is going to have offers coming in from as many teams that can afford him.

While a lot of the attention is on tthe upcoming MLB trade deadline for the Giants, free agency is even more important. It seems very unlikely that this years team has what it takes to win a World Series, even with an addition or two.

However, if San Francisco was able to go into the offseason and come out with Soto, everything would be different next season. The front office would then be wise to go all-in on competing.

Expect to continue hearing speculation and rumors about where Soto will end up in the offseason. There are quite a few potential suitors, but right now it seems that the Giants have another chance to swing big on a prized free agent.

San Francisco has declared itself a “sanctuary city” for transgender and non-binary people.

The city’s Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday in favor of the sanctuary status, making San Francisco one of the first major cities in the nation to do so.

The declaration means the city is now officially a place of safety for transgender, nonbinary, gender nonconforming and Two-Spirit people — an umbrella term used to describe Indigenous and Native individuals who possess both a masculine and feminine spirit — to seek transitioning health care.

“We have seen an influx of refugees, not just from other countries, but from other states who are seeking care and seeking sanctuary,” San Francisco’s director of the Office of Transgender Initiatives, Honey Mahogany, said.

The pronouncement comes as 40 states across the country are considering anti-LGBTQ legislation, nearly half of which targets transgender youth, according to the resolution.

Dozens of states are making moves to limit access to gender-affirming care, with just over 600 bills intended to target transgender rights considered in 2023, according to the Trans Legislation Tracker, while nearly 600 have been considered so far in 2024.

Lawmakers in Tennessee passed a bill in April criminalizing adults who help minors get transgender procedures.

Meanwhile, in Florida, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed a measure banning transgender treatments for minors, though a federal judge recently ruled key parts of that law unconstitutional.

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who represents the Castro — one of the first gay neighborhoods in the country — told The San Francisco Chronicle that the measure was directly inspired as a rebuke to conservative attacks on transgender people.

“A majority of these laws specifically target transgender people, including youth,” he said. “As other cities and states turn up the hate, places like San Francisco need to turn up the love.”

“With this resolution, we are reaffirming that our City has been and will continue to be a sanctuary and a beacon for our transgender and gender non-conforming siblings,” he continued.

Mahogany added that due to an “unprecedented level of attacks” on trans rights and bodily autonomy, “more and more people will be flocking to places like San Francisco.”

“We are already seeing the impact of these policies lead to an increase in demands for services.”

San Francisco has a long history with the LGBTQ community. It has been home to one of the first gay neighborhoods in the country, The Castro District, since the 1960s. It is also home to the country’s first transgender cultural district, known as Compton’s Transgender Cultural District. The district was founded by three black trans women in 2017, including Mahogany, and honors the site of a 1966 riot against police violence towards transgender people.

Sacramento and West Hollywood have also declared themselves sanctuaries for transgender people.