Bob Nightengale

USA TODAY Sports

SAN DIEGO -- The San Francisco Giants made it no secret how badly they wanted Jon Lester, but Tuesday night, were given the dreaded news.

Lester informed the Giants they were out and went on to sign a six-year, $155 million deal with the Chicago Cubs.

Now, the defending World Series champions are left with Plan B.

If you can't beat them with pitching, how about out-slugging everyone?

The Giants have had trade talks with the Atlanta Braves to acquire All-Star right fielder Justin Upton and third baseman Chris Johnson, according to three club officials with direct knowledge of the negotiations.

The officials talked only on the condition of anonymity because discussions are ongoing. The teams have had preliminary discussions, officials from each club told USA TODAY Sports, but neither club was overly optimistic a deal can be finalized.

The Giants would love Upton, who would immediately become their best hitter, but they really want no part with Johnson, even though they need a third baseman.

The Braves, meanwhile, are skeptical whether the Giants could provide the necessary prospects to pull off a deal.

This is why the Braves told the Giants, and other teams at the winter meetings, they would lessen their demand for prized prospects if they take Johnson along with Upton.

The Braves would save $32 million by moving Upton and Johnson together. Upton will earn $14.5 million in the final year of his contract in 2015 while Johnson is owed $17.5 million over the next two years.

The Giants certainly have a need for a third baseman and a power-hitter. They lost power-hitting third baseman Pablo Sandoval to the Boston Red Sox in free agency, and Upton could be their starting left fielder and cleanup hitter. Johnson hit .263 with 10 homers and 58 RBI last season, nearly a 60-point drop from the 2013 season when he batted .321.

Upton, 27, hit 29 homers with a career-high 102 RBI last season for the Braves, and the Braves have not explored the possiblity of signing him to an extension. Upton likely would receive at least $150 million in the free-agent market after the 2015 season.

The way the Giants see it, with Lester giving them the bad news Tuesday, they have a cheaper alternative with Upton and Johnson, and could still be a contender to win their fourth World Series in the last six years.

With Lester headed to Chicago, the Giants once again finished second in their free-agent pursuit, just like they did with Sandoval and Cuban outfielder Yasmany Tomas.

"We finished first in the most important area,'' assistant general manager Bobby Evans said, referring to the World Series. "Sometimes you choose second because you ultimately see the advancement of where a deal is going, and you're given an option to play at that level, and you have to figure where your cutoff point it.

"So sometimes you choose second just because it just doesn't fit for you to finish first, given where the market took the deal. I think in this case it's a little different. … There are some things that just feel there are other clubs he has a little more attachment to. I don't know who exactly is, but it probably has some connection to some of the deep relationships that he has with other places."

And at the end of the day he chose the Cubs. Lester spent his entire career with the Red Sox after being drafted in 2002 before being traded to Oakland in July at the trading deadline. Cubs president Theo Epstein was the GM of the Red Sox the first nine years of Lester's career.

"I think there are somethings that (were) attractive about our situation,'' Evans says, "but I think heartstrings can play a role there. I don't know how much of a role it plays for Jon relative to Boston, but I know he's a passionate guy who has some strong and deep relationships that are really with two clubs at this point.''

Lester, who rejected a four-year, $70 million contract extension from the Red Sox in spring training, became one of the richest pitchers in baseball history.

The Giants, who believed that Lester and World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner would give them perhaps the finest 1-2 punch in the National League, now will look elsewhere for a starter.

If they can't find their man, with Max Scherzer and James Shields still on the marketplace, they could simply try to beat up people with their offense, led by Upton. The Giants had only one player hit more than 20 homers last season, Buster Posey, and only Posey drove in more than 75 runs.

Upton has hit 26 or more homers four times in his career, while driving in at least 86 runs in three seasons. He would replace Gregor Blanco as the starting left fielder.

The Giants would also inherit a third baseman, who would be a significantly cheaper option than free agent third baseman Chase Headley, who has already received a four-year, $65 million contract offer by an unknown team. GM Brian Sabean told Bay Area reporters, "We're not head over heels on Headley.''

Who knows what will ultimately happen. The Braves are also engaged in trade talks with the Baltimore Orioles and Seattle Mariners for Upton.

Yet, the Giants now have no choice.

It's time to make contingency plans.

Upton may be their man.