Giants, Harper: a match or mismatch?

Giants fans are booing Bryce Harper whenever he’s introduced at China Basin this week. A year from now, if Harper is with the Giants, everyone could look back at this and chuckle.

That’s a colossal if, of course, especially because Harper is expected to blow by Giancarlo Stanton’s $325 million contract, and most big-revenue teams will be on his trail. It’s questionable whether Harper would even want to play in San Francisco.

Here’s a Q&A regarding Harper and the Giants.

Can they afford him? The only two words you need to know: Mission Rock. Once the Giants start developing the 28 acres on the site of parking lot A, they’ll own two ATM machines, not just one. The stadium mortgage is paid off, and Forbes ranks the Giants fourth in franchise value (an estimated $2.85 billion), fifth in revenue and fourth in operating income. So, yes. How can the Giants make it work? They’re staying under the luxury-tax threshold to avoid extreme penalties, giving them a better chance and more incentive to make a splash in next year’s market when outfielders Andrew McCutchen and Hunter Pence are off their books.

What about Hunter Strickland? No reliever stands in the way of signing the best player in the National League.

What about Madison Bumgarner? Tough one. The lefty will be a free agent after next season, and if the Giants get Harper, they might choose against taking on another mega-contract. Would Harper be OK with the elements? He got AT&T’d in the opener when his blast to left field died at the warning track. The man shattered his bat on a recent swing — and the ball traveled 406 feet. So the park wouldn’t contain him, and he’d quickly move up the McCovey Cove-on-a-fly standings. Plus, it’s believed weather isn’t expected to be a factor.

What are Harper’s other options? The Dodgers might be No. 1. Cubs. Yankees (his dad was a Mickey Mantle fan). Phillies, maybe. Of course, Nationals. In other words, the bidding will get ridiculous, and the Giants ought to be in the thick of it. After all, Harper gets walked regularly, and where better to get the Bonds treatment than in San Francisco?