The Giants finished 2025 at an even 81-81, their fourth consecutive season without posting a winning record. The club, which recently hired Tony Vitello as its new manager, is clearly hoping to improve that performance in 2026. General manager Zack Minasian said as much in speaking to John Shea of the San Francisco Standard, noting that the Giants will be active in acquiring pitching depth during the offseason.
“Right now there are holes,” Minasian said. “It’s not to say that some of those holes can’t be filled from within… But obviously, if we can bring some pitching in from the outside to continue to build up depth and try and find quality, we’re going to look at that as much as possible.” Minasian later added that the club will be cautious of adding pitchers on long-term deals due to the risk of injury.
San Francisco pitchers had a 3.84 combined ERA in 2025, ranking 10th-best in the majors. The team’s 45.3% ground ball rate was the third-highest in the league, and they also did well at limiting hard contact, with a 39.6% hard hit rate that was sixth-best. In the rotation, much of that success came from ace Logan Webb, who posted a 3.22 ERA in 207 innings and got grounders at a well-above-average 53.2% clip. He was worth a career-high 5.5 fWAR.
Robbie Ray, Justin Verlander, and Landen Roupp gave solid performances behind Webb, each having an ERA under 4.00. However, the club’s depth was sorely tested throughout the season. Hayden Birdsong had a 4.80 ERA in 11 starts before he was optioned in July. Jordan Hicks made nine starts before being sent to the Red Sox as part of the Rafael Devers trade. Beyond Webb, Ray, Verlander, and Roupp, no other Giant reached 100 innings. Roupp went on the injured list twice with right elbow and left knee inflammation, and 10 pitchers (including Hicks) made between one and nine starts.
The Giants could also use a few more arms in the bullpen. That unit was a strength for the team until it was gutted by trades and injuries. San Francisco shipped Camilo Doval to the Yankees and Tyler Rogers to the Mets at the trade deadline. Standout setup man Randy Rodriguez stepped into the closer role, only to suffer an elbow injury that ultimately required Tommy John surgery. The Giants ranked second in bullpen ERA through July. They sank to 13th over the final two months of the season. As Shea pointed out, Ryan Walker and Spencer Bivens were the only relievers on the Opening Day roster to make it through to the end of the season.
Minasian and company have plenty of names to choose from on the free agent market, though any long-term commitments seem unlikely. Team chairman Greg Johnson recently mentioned trepidation about signing a pitcher to a nine-figure deal, and Minasian echoed those sentiments. “I would just say it’s important for us to make good decisions no matter what players are making,” Minasian said, “but also understanding when you’re getting into very lengthy deals, I think you do approach it with some caution because if there is a major injury, it becomes a very difficult hurdle.”
San Francisco hasn’t handed out more than $100MM to a free agent pitcher since handing Johnny Cueto a six-year, $130MM deal back in 2015. The approach could rule out the Giants from shopping in the Dylan Cease/Framber Valdez tier, making them more likely to dabble in the Zack Littell range. A reunion with Verlander would fit the short-term strategy, and president of baseball operations Buster Posey has said he’d be open to bringing the veteran back.
Johnson didn’t give a firm answer regarding spending, though the club’s financial situation is in a decent spot. FanGraphs’ RosterResource tool has them at around $170MM for next year’s payroll. The recent signings of Willy Adames, Matt Chapman, and Jung Hoo Lee, along with the midseason addition of Devers’ massive contract, will eat up a significant portion of the payroll for the next several seasons, but Webb is the only pricey commitment on the pitching side. Ray’s deal is expiring at the end of 2026. There should be room for additions in the rotation and in the bullpen.
Photo courtesy of D. Ross Cameron, Imagn Images.
They should sign Tucker, Imanaga, a few cheaper bullpen arms, and call it an offseason.
As a Giants fan I would be both thrilled and surprised if this happened.
Tucker’s numbers don’t scream 450 million. He had to get hot in the second half, and no guarantee that would translate at Oracle park.
Easy peasy
I fear that this would put them in an Angels type position where they are spending a lot, but never a complete enough team to win with a mountain of long term commitments limiting future flexibility.
A team with long term deals to Tucker, Devers, Adames and Chapman needs to win ASAP as each year that core is likely to decline.
guilderc—
Signing Tucker would be a costly mistake. He’s a LH hitter and injury prone. Better to sign Bichette, and two solid rotation arms.
It’s highly doubtful Bichette will be available. There’s mutual interest in him staying, and the Jays can easily afford him.
based off the article it more sounds like the Giants are getting Imanaga, Scherzer, Deven Williams and Ryan O’Hearn
They aren’t signing Williams or ohearn
I could see them signing Devin Williams, but why in the world would they sign Ryan O’Hearn?
start the season on 1B, then play RF when Eldridge gets the call..Matos will get his chance to start RF to sink or swim..plus O’Hearn would be cheap
Even if Eldridge doesn’t break camp on the ML roster, and my guess is he will, he’ll be up soon enough. With Devers and Eldridge switching between 1B and DH most of the season, O’Hearn seems superfluous. I’d rather they give Matos a full-time shot in RF. The money spent on O’Hearn would be better used elsewhere IMO.
the thing about the outfield is that the only guy who should have a safe spot is lee though it is debatable whether keeping him in center is as good of an idea as moving him to right. ramos is a guy that could be a good trade chip for a team that needs an OF/DH so if you can add someone in free agency or a trade he could be traded for something of value that is a need. mccray/matos/gilbert could then cover either a corner or center if you move lee and try him in right
I didn’t think Tucker is going to be a giant even though it would be nice. Imanaga does make a lot of sense as well as overseas arms, though I think in the bullpen the #1 priority ought to be bringing Rogers back
Are we just pretending QO don’t matter?
@steph
Yes. That’s kinda what big market teams do.
One year of Freddy Peralta then? That’s immediate depth, albeit short term.
Walker is a marginal closer. They might make due with him. Time will tell. But, their bullpen is thin. They need to add a couple arms. They also need another good starter … or two.
Walker is not a closer IMO.
Would rather see them give Miller a shot over Walker. If he returns to form.
The pen is not as big an issue as some tend to think. They were decent, and there is some ML depth there.
Two starters, one good bat & they are at least in WC contention.
I am so done seeing Walker blow games.
Teams are looking for pitching in the offseason, film at eleven.
My unsolicited wish list:
Steven Kwan (trade)
Michael King
Brandon Woodruff/Zac Gallen
Tyler Rogers
Ryan Helsley
Gallen would be good
@AndyWarpath
My guess is that Steven Kwan gets traded to the Dodgers and I’m not trying to make a joke about that; I’m serious.
King, Woodruff, and Gallen are off the table if they are only looking for depth and Johnson refuses to spend on anything longer than a year or two as he indicated in multiple interviews.
He said he wants to avoid long term deals. I’m sure 2-4 year deals are on the table for the right arm. All 3 could easily accept a shorter deal to rebuild their value. I’m sure the idea of throwing to the best catcher in baseball in the friendly confines of Oracle park has its appeal.
An easy add for bullpen is bring back Tyler Rodgers who would probably love to come back home. If so what a steal for the Giants for loaning him out for a couple of months for some very promising prospects. This is a no brainer.
Might have cost them a playoff birth. But yes, I agree, nice prospect return and the right decision at the time.
I think the Mets offer him something the Giants won’t go to.
They should as he’s worth a big contract for a reliever but after the Mets gave up a lot to get Rogers they’ll offer him a bunch to stay. Unfortunately.
That would be a very nice deal for the Giants. No QO strings attached either!
Bit off topic, but Jordan Hicks was mentioned in the article. What a net positive to acquire Devers and move Hicks (and his salary).
You never hear Red Sox fans say they’re happy to have Hicks. They’re not! But I do wish him well. He has tremendous “Stuff”. Command is the issue.
Giants are laying in the weeds for another good bat though. It’s obvious they need more pitching but they really need one more above average bat to lengthen the lineup. Might have to trade for a bat or overpay but I think they’ll add a bat.
I agree. People talk about Devers salary, but don’t mention that some of it was offset by unloading Hicks contract.
A full year of Devers alone may get them into a WC spot. Another decent bat would probably seal the deal.
Devers is a net negative. His presence, regardless of his hitting, brings teams down.
So many “teams” he’s played for.
Bad handling by one team.
That’s it. Sox loss, Giants gain.
Bad handling by one player. All of that situation in Boston was Devers fault. The guy came to camp not able to even face live pitching let alone play in the field and then got upset when the team asked him to play DH instead of going on the IL. The Red Sox didn’t sign Bregman until after they were certain that Devers could not physically play any position in the field to start the season. Then when asked to practice at 1B because they lost their 1B for the season to injury Devers threw another tantrum. He is a cancer, and it showed in SF.
Notice which team was in the playoffs and how their fortunes changed once Devers was gone and how the Giants started to fade. Yes, there were other changes made, but it’s not a coincidence.
Time will tell.
For now, I’m happy to have him.
The past does not concern me no matter how much bs you spew.
Said the internet narcissist who obviously didn’t watch a single Giants game. You got to laugh. Forget the reality of the vibe in the Giants dugout that was there for all to see if you bothered to watch. I’m going with my opinion rather than what actually happened. I’ll just use different playoff results as my excuse. Hopefully people won’t realise the myriad of other factors at play there.
Yeah…that’s not what happened. Boston absolutely failed to communicate with their star player and disenchanted him with their insincerity. If Devers was a free agent today, he is 100% bagging a contract north of 200m.
Your perspective is skewed. Devers wasn’t the first guy, and won’t be the last, to show up at ST physically unable to perform right away. It’s called injury, and teams use MiL depth to cover situations like that until the player is ready. In fact Devers was ready to play, and did, on opening day for the Sox.
Saying Bregman was signed because of that injury is absurd. Teams don’t sign guys like Bregman to cover an injured player until his return. There’s is no doubt that Bregman was signed to replace Devers at 3B.
The Sox bear responsibility for the souring of the relationship because no one talked to Devers. Devers finds out second-hand that the team has signed a top FA 3B.
Every player at the MLB level has pride and an ego. All they had to do was talk to him, but they didn’t. They treated him like he’ll just have to do as told. That wouldn’t fly with just about any ML player of his stature.
Devers’ OPS+ was the highest on the Giants. It wasn’t his fault they fell short. In his time in SF he was the model team player. playing wherever he was asked to, and being a positive force in the clubhouse and dugout. Boston’s loss is SF’s gain.
Bo Bichette.
Would really be nice, but it would be shocking if Buster actually pulled it off.
The only hope is if the Blue Jays overplay their hand knowing he wants to play there, and try to lowball.
It seems that subtlety is lost on these writers, AJ Eustace and Charlie Wright. They automatically ruled out the Giants signing a pitcher from the Cease and Valdez tier, because both Johnson and Minasian have said they’ll be cautious about a long-term deal for a pitcher.
Planning to be cautious is not the same as determining not to do something. Minasian even indicated that the caution they’d use in signing a pitcher would involve looking at injury history.
Every team should be cautious about giving a pitcher a long term deal, even without a bad injury history. But that caution doesn’t completely rule out signing a pitcher like Valdez or Suarez, both of whom have been durable, to a 5 year deal.
Yeah. Nah. I think the messaging from the Giants is clear. “Hey there fans. We are flexible, but heads up. Don’t get your hopes up on us dropping another 9 figures on someone.” 3 team statements in a row with that messaging. I’m taking their advice and avoiding disappointment.
Well, they didn’t say they aren’t signing a top tier pitcher. Seems like they would if the wanted to prepare fans for disappointment.
I’m not counting on them signing a TOR type guy. If I was betting I’d bet against. But, they will add pitching, and I think they know that guys like Tyler Mahle or Zac Littell, aren’t needle-movers.
I could see them prioritizing a trade. But if they can’t land Ryan, or Lopez, or someone similar, then pivoting to someone like Suarez or Valdez is a possibility.
a Verlander reunion, or signing Max, isn’t going to be enough. They need a solid #2 or #3 at worst if they want to compete. I don’t think they’re willing to throw the season in the hopper to avoid signing a pitcher to a 5 year deal, if they can’t land a guy by trade.
3 times in a week. That’s a message. I sort of think they are saying it, just in a nice gentle fan friendly let down kind of way. An absolute definitive “no”would have the internet raging. I think they know the audience. The word “depth” also has some meaning imo.
I’m not sure the needle needs to move that dramatically for a wild card spot. They were in it for a long time last year. Johnson downplayed Scherzer and Verlander due to old guy injury risk so I’m with the author in the Littell range. I think they need to hit again on one or two Gausman or Rodon type of deals. The 2 year come to our park and build your FA case type of arrangement.
We’ll see what happens.
Prepared for the Ponce deal.
Then maybe a nicer starter by trade.
I looked at Ponce on the very very handy MLBTR top 50 FA list after you mentioned him. Yeah. I’m prepared.
Seems like a very Giantsy type of guy they usually do well with. Affordable, high upside, short term expected, and needing a good ballpark to make his comeback.
I’m keen on Littell. I liked him. He was great before that tough stretch which rattled him and got him punted. The punting was fair enough, but in the man’s defence, Kap isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. He has bounced back well as a starter. If he would consider a return, I’d be all over it.
I have to disagree. They’ve stated pitching is their priority. After saying that, if they have no intention of signing a pitcher who will make a difference, they should say so, not leave the possibility open with ambiguous terms like cautious and hesitant. I’m sure there are others that sees the signing a pitcher of note as still being a possibility based on what was said.
They need needle-movers if they aspire to bigger things than just making it in to the PS as a WC team. Signing a guy like Littell, who’s decent but only slightly above league average, is like aspiring to not lose by a lot, instead of winning.
I get it. Just can’t ignore the repetition. May the best crystal ball win. I’m hoping it’s yours.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not predicting anything.
Maybe you’re right though and it is them trying to soften the blow. That’s entirely possible. It’s just the way I read it, that they aren’t closing the door completely.
I do think they’ll explore trades as the first option. If they land the guy they want, then the rest of my theory, that they’ll be forced to look at signing someone, becomes moot.
Johnson said no to long term deals for starting pitching. He didn’t say they would be cautious; he ruled it out entirely. Even King, Woodruff, and Gallen are not going to be possible without going longer than Johnson has said the Giants are willing to go.
“Johnson said no to long term deals…”
No he didn’t. This is exactly what he said, copy/pasted from the article: (Johnson) would “be very cautious about” signing a pitcher to a nine-figure contract.”
Johnson also said this, copy/pasted: “As Buster has said, I think we’re hesitant about any pitcher on long-term deals when we have a young core sitting there. So it’s a question of what is available in the marketplace and what we can do on a shorter term basis.”
Saying they’d be cautious, and hesitant about long-term deals is not the same as saying no. IMO Johnson’s desire for short-term deals is aspirational. But with pitching as their priority, they’ll see, when reality hits and they try to address that priority, that they won’t get who they want how they want. When that happens Johnson may change his tune
Yes, we need pitching. Couldn’t agree more. Can we get some more offense too?
Any number of a couple of free agents could put them in the tournament.
Lee and Whisenhunt to the Tigers for Olson, Meadows or Jung and Montero.SF gets a #3 and #5 starter and a CF or 2B replacement. Tigers get a CF and another arm to develop.
Sign Chris Bassit and Tyler Anderson to start. Brandon Finnigan to close. Randall Grichuck to serve as a RH hitting option in the OF and maybe bring back Estrada as 2B was a mess last season and they would have a decent off-season
Bassit would be a great fit. While Helsley got blasted in Queens, I think he would do well in Oracle Park. Grichuk is a good call, although he will expect a salary that is bigger than the $5 million he just gave up to opt out. Will the Giants pay him $6-8 million to take the short side of the platoon in the OF?
Bullpen pieces I’d look into –
Matz
Devin Williams
Pierce Johnson
Rogers – Bring him back
Pomeranz
Diaz – Closer
Gallen – Starter I would definitely look into signing !
There are a few former top prospects that haven’t lived up to their potential that I believe a change of scenery would do them well. St. Louis’ Nolan Gorman comes to mind. He is only 25 years old and for his career he averages a home run once every 18.9 at bats. To give you a comparison, this year Vladimir Guerrero averaged a home run once every 25.6 at bats, so the kid can mash. I believe if he played everyday he would hit .270 30+ hr, 100 rbi. Also, the Mets have a log jam in their infield with Mark Vientos, Jeff McNeil, Brett Baty, Mauricio, & Acuna. I think Baty can be an above average player. If he played every day I believe he would give you .275, 20 hr, & 80 rbi. This year he hit a HR once every 21.8 ab’s. He’s 26, can play 1st, 2nd, 3rd, & he’s athletic enough to play corner outfield too. He could be our starting 2b. Also, the Reds have a stud, Christian Encanarcion-Strand that if he can stay healthy can be an All-Star. 26 years old, for his career he hits a HR once every 22.2 abs. He has had some monster years in the Minors. In 2022 he slashed .304/.368/.587 with 32 hr & 114 rbi. That year he hit a hr every 15 at bats. The next year he slashed .331/.405/.637 with 20 hr & 62 rbi (then got hurt) but he was hitting bombs once every 13.9 ab that year. Dude is 6’1″ 225lbs can play 1st & 3rd & could DH as well. If he played everyday (in my opinion) he would hit .260 26+ hr, & 90+ rbi. I believe all 3 of these guys would be really good as everyday players, they just need the opportunity. SF could acquire them for a Casey Schmitt & a pitching prospect I’m guessing. I would take a flyer on one of these guys rather than overpay for a 30+ year old free agent.
I’d be surprised if Gorman could hit .270. He averages 230 Ks per 600 ABs.
Wishful thinking