How do you know this on the first part?
As to the 2nd part that tells me the opposite. They are really interested in the guy and they wanted to get him here even in a worthless year to try to sell him on coming here. That is real interest.
I am impressed how you can manage to call bullshit, and then type an outright falsehood in the very next sentence. The history of playing signing huge contracts with awful teams is incredibly well documented. If you don't see it, it isn't because it isn't true, it is because you don't want to see it.
It felt to me like they want to make a run at him, but they also don't want to raise expectations for it to happen when the odds are that it does not happen.
Opening day 2019, yes.
July 1, 2019, probably
September 1, 2019, maybe.
Opening day 2020, probably not.
July 1, 2020, if he isn't blocking someone the rebuild has bigger problems than not signing Gio.