Ozzie Virgil Sr. Passes Away
Longtime big league player and coach Ozzie Virgil Sr. passed away today at age 92. A veteran of nine MLB seasons from 1956-69, Virgil has a historic legacy as the first Dominican-born player to ever appear in Major League Baseball.
Virgil broke into the majors with the New York Giants at the tail end of the 1956 season, appearing in three games for his newfound hometown team. A native of Monte Cristi, Virgil’s family moved to New York when he was a teenager, and he went on to serve in the Marines for three years before beginning his career in pro baseball. After spending his first two seasons with the Giants, Virgil was traded to the Tigers during the 1957-58 offseason, and in 1958 became the first black player in Tigers history.
The big majority of Virgil’s career was spent with the Giants (142 games) and Tigers (131 games), as Virgil also spent his last two seasons back with the Giants after they’d moved to San Francisco. Virgil also played for the Athletics, Orioles, and Pirates over his 324 career games in the Show, with a slash line of .231/.263/.331 over 798 plate appearances.
Upon retirement, Virgil then spent 19 years as a coach, forming a long working relationship with manager Dick Williams. Virgil coached with the Giants for all but one season from 1969-75 before joining the Expos’ staff in 1976, and he then worked as the third base coach on Williams’ staffs with the Expos, Padres, and Mariners from 1977-88.
Virgil’s legacy extended most directly to his son Ozzie Jr., who was a two-time All-Star catcher during a distinguished 11-year run in the majors. In the bigger picture, the elder Virgil was a trailblazer in the history of baseball in the Dominican Republic, the country that has produced more MLB players than any other country besides the United States. We at MLB Trade Rumors send our condolences to Virgil’s family, friends, and many fans.
NL West Notes: Gonsolin, Freeman, Bryant, Snell
Unless “something really unforeseen” happens, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that Tony Gonsolin probably isn’t going to be part of the team’s postseason roster. Gonsolin underwent Tommy John surgery about 13 months ago and was considered a longshot to pitch any big league innings this season, though Gonsolin did return in time to pitch 7 2/3 innings over three Triple-A rehab appearances. As Roberts implied to the Los Angeles Times’ Jack Harris and other reporters, however, Gonsolin is still viewed by the Dodgers as something of an emergency option, as it would be asking a lot of any pitcher who go from a year of inactivity right into the tension of important postseason relief innings.
While Gonsolin likely won’t factor into the L.A. playoff plans, Roberts was less concerned about Freddie Freeman‘s bad ankle, as the manager was very optimistic Freeman would be ready for the start of the NLDS a week from today. Freeman suffered a sprained ankle in the Dodgers’ 7-2 win over the Padres on Thursday, and was seen on crutches and in a walking boot later that night. X-rays were negative on the ankle, however, and Freeman benefits from some extra time off before the Dodgers play their first postseason game.
More from the NL West…
- With $104MM still owed to him over the 2025-28 seasons, it isn’t surprising that Kris Bryant isn’t at all considering retirement, as he told Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. Bryant went into detail about the back and arthritis issues that have plagued his tenure with the Rockies, and how he is already pursuing a new workout plan to strengthen his core and get his back in playing shape. Since signing his seven-year, $182MM free agent deal with the Rox in March 2022, Bryant has been limited to only 159 games, leaving him both “guilty” about his lack of production and determined to turn things around as he enters his age-33 season. “I’m not going to sugarcoat it, it’s been terrible. It’s been terrible on me, physically and emotionally,” Bryant said. “I feel like I’ve let a ton of people down. There is nobody who feels worse about this than me. There are a lot of nights when I’m upset, I’m depressed. I want to be out there with the guys. It sucks. I want to be on road trips, I want to play.”
- After facing a notoriously quiet free market last winter, Blake Snell figures suitors will “be more aggressive earlier” in their pitches this offseason, as Snell told NBC Sports’ Alex Pavlovic and other media. Traditionally a slow starter even with a standard offseason, Snell didn’t sign with the Giants until more than halfway through March, thus essentially erasing his Spring Training and leading to a disastrous first three months of the 2024 season. Since the start of July, however, Snell has been spectacular, thus reigniting the expectation that he’ll opt out of the final year of his contract with the Giants in search of a longer-term deal in free agency. A return to San Francisco certainly seems possible, as Snell said he plans to speak with ownership and the front office, and again stated how he enjoyed playing with the club in 2024.
Giants’ Reggie Crawford Undergoes Shoulder Surgery
Giants prospect Reggie Crawford has undergone shoulder surgery. “Will never be beaten,” Crawford said in a post on X along with a picture of himself recovering from the procedure. “Thank you to Dr. ElAttrache for taking care of the shoulder. I will be back soon [emoji of hands making a heart shape]” The club later announced to members of the beat, including Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic (X link), that the labrum surgery comes with an estimated recovery timeline of 10 to 12 months. He will therefore miss most or perhaps all of the 2025 season.
Crawford, now 23, was selected by the Giants with the 30th overall pick in the 2022 draft. A two-way player in college, the Giants let him both pitch and hit last year, though his workload was limited. He had undergone Tommy John surgery late in 2021 and didn’t pitch at all in 2022, then dealt with various other ailments during the 2023 season including mononucleosis and a strained oblique. He tossed 19 innings on the year and made 19 plate appearances, splitting his time between Single-A and High-A. He went to the Arizona Fall League but didn’t pitch, hitting .138/.282/.276 in his 71 plate appearances there.
The Giants decided to have him focus exclusively on pitching in 2024. He hadn’t hit much in a small sample of work since being drafted but he had impressed with his stuff from the mound. His fastball is in the triple-digit range while both Baseball America and FanGraphs praised his curveball earlier this year.
Crawford tossed 18 1/3 innings this year, split between Double-A and Triple-A. He allowed 2.95 earned runs per nine while striking out 38.5% of batters faced. His 15.4% walk rate was quite high, perhaps unsurprising for a guy with so much missed time.
But his last appearance was in June and he’s now slated for another lengthy absence. Crawford is clearly talented but the numerous bumps in the road are less than an ideal for a pitcher who is still developing and harnessing his stuff. At this point, between college and the minors, he’s only thrown 53 2/3 of official gameplay.
He’ll be eligible for the Rule 5 draft after sitting out the majority, or perhaps the entirety, of the 2025 campaign. Given his talent and status as a key prospect in the organization, the Giants will likely still protect him by giving him a roster spot. Still, this is a notable development for Crawford and the club. Getting the best version of Crawford was already going to be a project for the Giants and now he’s going to be on ice for close to a year, putting his development on pause.
Farhan Zaidi Discusses Job Security, Snell, Middle Infield
Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi met with reporters this evening. San Francisco pulled back to .500 with a win over the Diamondbacks tonight, but they missed the playoffs for the fifth time in Zaidi’s six-season tenure. That has led to speculation about his job security — which only ratcheted up in recent weeks amidst conflicting reports about ownership’s role in handling negotiations on Matt Chapman’s $151MM extension.
Zaidi declined to speculate about his job status but acknowledged that ownership is considering its options. “Anytime you have a disappointing season, it’s my job to evaluate everything in my purview, and it’s their job to evaluate everything in my purview, plus me,” the baseball ops leader said (link via Andrew Baggarly of the Athletic). “And so I think that process is happening, and I understand it.”
The Giants and Zaidi agreed to an extension last winter that coincided with Bob Melvin’s hiring as manager. Both the manager and baseball operations leader are on guaranteed contracts for next year with options for the 2026 season. That certainly doesn’t ensure job security — teams regularly dismiss coaches or executives before the end of their deals — but it kept Zaidi from operating on a lame duck basis in 2024.
Any doubt about his status with the organization can’t stop Zaidi from planning the team’s approach to the upcoming offseason. That starts with Blake Snell, who has pitched at a Cy Young level for the better part of four months. The star left-hander is set to decline his $30MM player option and take another shot at a long-term contract.
Zaidi admitted the Giants expect Snell to opt out. He said the Giants will remain in the market but conceded they’ll face stiff competition. “I think it’s going to be a priority for everybody. He’s been the best pitcher in baseball the second half of the season,” Zaidi said of Snell’s market (relayed by Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle). “And I think he’s going into free agency the same way he did last offseason. He wants to keep an open mind. We’re encouraged about what he said about how much he likes being here, how much he likes San Francisco and playing for Bob. We’ll be pretty high on his list, but we’re respecting the fact that he’s going to want to play out free agency.”
Snell turns 32 in December. He’ll probably take aim at a six-plus year deal that approaches $200MM. That kind of investment in starting pitching would be out of character for Zaidi. As shown on MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, the Giants haven’t gone beyond the $90MM Logan Webb extension for a starting pitcher. The $62MM guarantee they awarded Snell late last winter is their biggest free agent rotation investment.
The Giants have been much more comfortable with short-term upside plays for starting pitchers who want to retest the market than they are with lengthy commitments. That operating procedure made them a strong fit when Snell’s market didn’t materialize the way he’d envisioned last winter, but it’ll present a challenge to keeping him around. San Francisco was content to let Kevin Gausman and Carlos Rodón walk after striking gold on short-term plays for both pitchers.
If Snell were to depart, Webb would retake his spot as the unquestioned staff ace. He’ll be followed in the rotation by Kyle Harrison and Robbie Ray (who is unlikely to opt out of the $50MM remaining on his contract). The Giants could try to stretch Jordan Hicks back out as a starter while giving opportunities to younger arms like Hayden Birdsong, Landen Roupp and Keaton Winn. They’d surely add to that group in some capacity after dealing with a number of rotation injuries this season.
Zaidi also addressed the position player mix, specifically saying the Giants will “definitely be in the middle-infield market” (via Rubin). Tyler Fitzgerald has had a fantastic rookie season since taking over at shortstop. The Louisville product connected on his 15th homer tonight and is up to a .287/.338/.510 batting line through 325 plate appearances. His 31.1% strikeout rate is cause for some concern, but Fitzgerald’s power and defensive flexibility have earned him a role somewhere on the diamond.
That could come on the other side of the second base bag. The Giants waived Thairo Estrada last month after he hit .217/.247/.343 in 96 games. Estrada will be a minor league free agent at season’s end. Zaidi lauded Estrada’s professionalism and expressed some confidence that the infielder could rebound in another setting, but he indicated the Giants will go in a different direction.
Moving Fitzgerald to second base while bringing in an established shortstop is an option. Willy Adames and Ha-Seong Kim are the potential regulars in the free agent class. Zaidi expressed a desire to add “an established, plus defender in the middle infield” via free agency or trade. Adames and Kim would each fit the bill (although the former has had an uncharacteristic spike in errors this season). Both players are going to decline qualifying offers from their current teams and would require draft pick forfeiture. Adames might command a guarantee north of $150MM, while Kim’s deal could land in the $75-100MM range.
Bo Bichette has been the top speculative shortstop trade target. The Blue Jays didn’t seem inclined to move him even before he went on the injured list just before the deadline. Unless the Toronto front office reverses course, they probably won’t sell low during the winter.
There aren’t a ton of obvious middle infield trade candidates. The Reds may listen on Jonathan India, but he’s not the caliber of defender to which Zaidi alluded. That’s also the case with Tampa Bay second baseman Brandon Lowe. The Pirates would probably listen on Isiah Kiner-Falefa, whose offensive production has cratered since a deadline trade with Toronto. There’s a chance the Mariners could move on from J.P. Crawford as they try to reshape their offense.
A free agent pursuit of Adames or Kim, though, would be more straightforward. That’d allow the Giants to use Casey Schmitt in a utility capacity and potentially free them to play Marco Luciano in the outfield. Zaidi said tonight that they’re not closing the door on Luciano winning the second base job, but they’ll need to see improvement (especially defensively) next spring for that to happen.
One area where the Giants don’t seem inclined to make a long-term play: first base. Zaidi indicated the team was reluctant to make an investment that would impede the path for top prospect Bryce Eldridge, their 2023 first-round pick. Eldridge is still a month shy of his 20th birthday, but he mashed at a .335/.442/.619 clip in High-A. He has made cameos at the top two minor league levels, and while he’s unlikely to break camp next year, Zaidi suggested there’s a path for him to debut at some point in 2025.
“Once a guy is in Double-A, Triple-A, they’re in the picture,” Zaidi said (relayed by Baggarly). “I think it behooves us to have a roster that’s flexible enough that if he’s ready next year, even early in the year, there’s a spot for him. So that’s going to be really important for us. I don’t anticipate us really locking up the first base and DH spot.” There’s a solid group of free agent first basemen, headlined by Pete Alonso and Christian Walker, but that doesn’t appear to be a priority for San Francisco.
Of course, these preliminary plans could go in any number of directions if ownership decides to make a front office change. That should be determined within the next few weeks. Giants fans will want to check out both The Athletic and The Chronicle columns in full for more quotes from Zaidi about his vision for the winter.
NL Injury Notes: Glasnow, Hicks, Wicks, Kinley
The Dodgers moved Tyler Glasnow to the 60-day injured list on Wednesday, all but officially ruling him out for the rest of the season. The lanky right-hander spoke with reporters (including Jack Harris and Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) and essentially confirmed he won’t be back in the playoffs. Glasnow called it “extremely frustrating” to be dealing with an elbow sprain, though he indicated he’s confident he will not require any kind of surgical repair.
Glasnow tossed 134 innings across 22 starts in his first season with the Dodgers. He established new career marks in both categories, though the season-ending elbow injury isn’t going to quiet concerns about his durability. Glasnow remained effective as ever before the injury, turning in a 3.49 ERA with a 32.2% strikeout rate.
A few more Senior Circuit injury notes as noncompetitive teams shut some players down:
- Shoulder inflammation sent Jordan Hicks to the injured list, ending his season. The Giants recalled Austin Warren to take his spot in the bullpen. Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that Hicks will go for an MRI tomorrow. The first season of his four-year, $44MM free agent deal was a mixed bag. Hicks moved to the rotation for the first extended stretch of his career. The sinkerballer pitched well early, carrying a 2.70 ERA in 12 appearances through the end of May. He seemed to wear down quickly thereafter, allowing a 6.37 ERA over his next eight starts. The Giants moved him back to the bullpen at the end of July, but he continued to struggle in relief. Hicks allowed nearly five earned runs per nine with six strikeouts and walks apiece over 11 frames out of the ‘pen.
- The Cubs placed left-hander Jordan Wicks on the injured list with a right oblique strain. Trey Wingenter is up from Triple-A Iowa in a corresponding move. Wicks had returned from a stint on the 60-day IL at the start of September. That was also on account of a right oblique strain, while the southpaw also missed time with an early-season forearm problem. It’s a frustrating second season for the former first-round pick. Wicks struggled when healthy enough to take the mound, allowing a 5.48 ERA across 46 innings in 11 appearances (10 starts).
- Rockies closer Tyler Kinley landed on the shelf with elbow inflammation. Colorado recalled Jake Bird to take the open bullpen spot. It’s his second elbow-related IL stint in as many months. Kinley missed the second half of 2022 and most of last season after undergoing elbow surgery. He was healthy for most of this year but hasn’t found anything close to the success he enjoyed before the surgery two years ago. Kinley allowed a 6.19 ERA over 64 innings. He fanned a quarter of batters faced but walked more than 11% of opponents while struggling with the home run ball.
Charlie Culberson Announces Retirement
Long-time utility player Charlie Culberson announced his retirement in an Instagram post today. He gave his thanks to his fans, coaches, teammates, agent, friends and family members for all the contributions they made to his journey. He also spoke to Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about his career and what might be next. He has considered coaching and broadcasting but thinks the latter is more likely.
Now 35, Culberson was drafted by the Giants in 2007 out of high school at the age of 18, going 51st overall. He developed into a notable prospect, getting attention for his ability to contribute in multiple facets of the game and at many positions. He made it to the majors with that club in cup-of-coffee fashion. He got into six games during the 2012 season and hit a meager .136/.136/.136 in his 23 plate appearances.
He was sent to the Rockies in the July 2012 trade that sent Marco Scutaro and cash considerations the other way. With Colorado, Culberson was able to get a bit more playing time, serving as a light-hitting utility guy. Over the 2013 and 2014 seasons, he got into 142 games for the Rockies, hitting .227/.273/.327 while playing all four infield positions and the outfield corners.
2015 was mostly a lost season for Culberson. He had surgery to repair a herniated disc in his back and didn’t play in the majors. He tells Toscano that he started thinking about his post-playing days at that time, as he didn’t know if any club would want him after the long layoff.
However, his best days as a player were still ahead. He had lost his roster spot with the Rockies and became a free agent, signing a minor league deal with the Dodgers going into 2016. His role with that club was fairly similar to his time in Colorado. He got into 49 games for the Dodgers over the 2016 and 2017 seasons, slashing .263/.289/.350 while bouncing between the outfield corners and the three infield positions to the left of first base. Perhaps the most memorable moment of his time in Los Angeles saw him hit a walk-off, 10th inning home run to clinch the West division for the club that year (YouTube clip from MLB). He also hit an extra-inning home run in Game Two of the 2017 World Series to pull the Dodgers within 7-6, though the Astros would keep the score there and win that game (YouTube clip from MLB).
In December of 2017, Culberson went to Atlanta in five-play swap largely motivated by financial considerations. Matt Kemp was sent to the Dodgers while Culberson, Adrián González, Scott Kazmir and Brandon McCarthy went the other way. This kicked off what was arguably the best part of Culberson’s career. A Georgia native, he became a fan favorite in Atlanta after hitting a couple of pinch-hit walk-off homers, earning the nickname “Charlie Clutch” (YouTube clips of those walk-offs from MLB).
Over the 2018 and 2019 campaigns, Culberson got into 221 contests for Atlanta and produced a league-average batting line of .267/.316/.457. As usual, he bounced all around the diamond, playing all four infield spots, the outfield corners, and even taking the mound for mop-up duty a few times. He was non-tendered after that 2019 season and re-signed with Atlanta for 2020 on a minors deal, eventually getting into 10 games in the shortened season.
He spent 2021 and 2022 with the Rangers, doing his usual utility thing. He hit .246/.292/.373 in 161 games over those two campaigns while playing every position except for center field and catcher. He was back in Atlanta for 2023 but bounced on and off the roster and only got one plate appearance. It was reported in January of this year that he was going to attempt to move to the mound and signed another minors deal with Atlanta, but he was released in March. He tells Toscano that he knew he was done at that time.
Culberson wasn’t a star player but clearly endeared himself to many fans by his still of play and penchant for coming through when it counted most. He got into 590 big league games and stepped to the plate 1,312 times. He collected 300 hits, including 30 home runs. He scored 140 runs, drove in 145 and stole 21 bases. Per Baseball Reference, he earned a bit over $5MM as a big leaguer. MLBTR salutes him on a fine career and wishes him luck for whatever is over the horizon.
MLBTR Podcast: The Chapman Negotiations, Dodgers’ Pitching Injuries, And Strengths And Weaknesses Of Playoff Contenders
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The report that Buster Posey negotiated the Matt Chapman extension for the Giants. This was recorded prior to the subsequent report that pushed back on the notion that Posey and Chapman went behind the backs of Farhan Zaidi and Scott Boras. (1:05)
- The Dodgers are probably going to be without Tyler Glasnow for the rest of the year and are considering sending Shohei Ohtani to the mound in the playoffs (13:00)
- The Angels and Mike Trout considering plans for keeping him healthier (21:55)
Plus, we answer your questions, including…
- For each of the teams currently in postseason position, what is their biggest strength? What could power them through a postseason run? And what would you consider to be their biggest weakness? What might prove to be their ultimate downfall? (26:30)
- What should the Braves do in the offseason? (44:55)
Check out our past episodes!
- Matt Chapman’s Extension, Star Prospect Promotions, Bo Bichette’s Future In Toronto – listen here
- Royals’ Reinforcements, Promoted Angels, And The Terrible White Sox – listen here
- Scott Servais, Perry Minasian, The Orioles’ Rotation, And Joey Votto – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Latest On Matt Chapman Extension Negotiations
About two weeks ago, in the late hours of September 4 Pacific Time, it was announced that the Giants and third baseman Matt Chapman agreed to a six-year, $151MM extension to keep him from opting out of his contract and returning to free agency. In recent days, a report from Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic characterized the negotiations as unusual, with former player Buster Posey dealing directly with Chapman, working around Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and Chapman’s agent Scott Boras. Posey is a minority owner of the club and a part of its board of directors.
This seemed to suggest that the club’s ownership group was losing faith in Zaidi as its top baseball decision maker. Today, a report from John Shea and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle frames the negotiations differently. Per the report, which readers are encouraged to check out in full, Zaidi has been in the hospital a couple of times lately with an undisclosed medical issue, conducting business from there, and the involvement from other staff members was fairly normal in the context of his health-related absences. Today’s report from the Chronicle suggests that the previous reporting from The Athletic overstated Posey’s role in the whole affair. Both Boras and Zaidi spoke to the Chronicle and admitted that Posey was involved, which they both welcomed, but they pushed back on the idea that this was some kind of subterfuge operation.
“Any report that suggests that Farhan and I did not negotiate the financial package is inaccurate,” Boras told the Chronicle. “The years and guarantee totals presented to Matt were a product of a two-week negotiation conducted with Farhan and me while he was in and out of the hospital. As with most long-term contracts, once you have agreement on financial terms, there are ancillary contract terms – guarantee language, no-trade provisions, charitable donations, signing bonus and salary payment structure – that are commonly completed by other team officials. Once the ancillary terms were completed, Farhan and I exchanged a letter of agreement Monday afternoon (Sept. 2), and the agreement was concluded.” Zaidi framed things similarly.
Despite the different picture of the negotiations, the report does acknowledge that Zaidi appears to be on the hot seat. Per the Chronicle, the club’s board of directors wants to wait for the final weeks of the season to play out before deciding on Zaidi’s future. If his job security is tied to the Giants’ on-field performance, he may indeed be in trouble. They have gone 5-9 in September, bringing their season-long record down to 73-78. The remaining schedule is fairly strong. They play the Orioles twice more before three games each against the Royals, Diamondbacks and Cardinals.
There has been plenty of smoke around Zaidi and the front office lately, on the heels of a few years of tepid results. The club went 107-55 under his watch in 2021 but that record fell to 81-81 in 2022, then 79-83 last year and might be even lower this year. A week ago, a report from Shea revealed that the contracts of Zaidi and manager Bob Melvin are only guaranteed through 2025 and not 2026, as previously believed. Both contracts have some sort of club option structure for 2026 but nothing is locked in and the details of the options aren’t publicly known. That was followed by the report from The Athletic suggesting that the ownership group grew frustrated by a lack of progress in the Chapman talks and dispatched Posey to take the reins.
Today’s report frames things in a way that’s less detrimental to Zaidi but still doesn’t back away from the notion that he is in trouble. Per Shea and Slusser today, the owners will do whatever they think is best for the team, regardless of Zaidi’s contract situation and are “taking a hard look” at him. Whether all this smoke is indicative of a firing is something that will perhaps be revealed in the coming weeks and months.
Report: Buster Posey Spearheaded Extension Talks With Matt Chapman
The Giants’ six-year, $151MM extension for third baseman Matt Chapman marked a departure from the organization’s reluctance to commit to players on long-term deals under president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, though perhaps there’s an explanation for that. Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports that Giants ownership was “frustrated” by the lack of progress in talks between Zaidi and Chapman’s agent, Scott Boras, and intervened. Franchise icon Buster Posey, who bought a minority stake in the team in 2022 and is one of six members on the board of directors, took a lead role in the talks and negotiated the framework of the deal with Chapman himself, according to Baggarly. Readers are highly encouraged to check out the piece in full, as it contains a slew of details on the unusual nature of the Chapman negotiations.
Posey personally taking on such a prominent role in a franchise-altering negotiation is a potentially damning indictment on Zaidi’s status within the organization. The sixth-year president of baseball operations signed an extension just last year, but what was originally reported as a three-year contract has since been revealed to be a two-year contract covering the 2024-25 seasons and containing what’s effectively a club option for the 2026 season.
It’s not clear that the pair of reports, which surfaced within a week of one another, is evidence that Zaidi is on the proverbial hot seat. At the same time, it seems fair to infer — particularly in light of the revelation regarding his contract — that he’s not on quite as steady ground as it may have seemed even a few weeks ago. Giants ownership has publicly backed Zaidi whenever given the opportunity, but Posey’s prominent role in Chapman’s extension only raises questions of potential dissatisfaction. The Giants won’t be reaching the postseason this year, and they’re tracking toward what would be a fifth losing season in six under Zaidi’s tenure.
While the end result is the same regardless of who’s negotiating the contract, the journey to that agreement is notable. Maybe this was just a one-off where the board felt Posey, as a former player, could appeal directly to a player he’s gotten to know over the course of the current season. If things have reached the point where ownership has genuinely lost faith in Zaidi’s vision and/or his ability to close deals, that would be a far more alarming development and likely the portent for a change of note in the front office.
It’s worth noting, of course, that the Giants have signed plenty of free agents under Zaidi’s watch (MLBTR Contract Tracker link). The majority have been short-term pacts, however. The Giants let successfully rehabilitated pitchers like Kevin Gausman and Carlos Rodon walk rather than pay market price for either pitcher. (The latter decision seems wise; the former is regrettable.) They pursued Bryce Harper in free agency but reportedly stopped just $20MM or so short of Harper’s eventual contract with the Phillies. A pursuit of Aaron Judge ultimately only served to drive up the price for the Yankees, who kept their homegrown star. A massive 13-year deal with Carlos Correa was scuttled when the Giants raised concerns about Correa’s physical.
Center fielder Jung Hoo Lee (six years, $113MM) is the only free agent the Giants have signed for more than Jordan Hicks‘ four years or more than Blake Snell‘s $62MM guarantee. The aversion to long-term deals has certainly kept the Giants’ payroll outlook clean, but the results on the lower-cost free agent deals made have frequently failed to pan out. Mitch Haniger and Jorge Soler both signed three-year deals and were both dumped in salary-driven trades before the second season of said contracts commenced. Tommy La Stella was released two years into a three-year contract. The Giants dumped the final season of Anthony DeSclafani‘s three-year deal on the Mariners along with Haniger. The second season of Ross Stripling‘s two-year deal was sent to the A’s in a salary dump deal. Michael Conforto has been a roughly league-average bat over the life of his two-year, $36MM deal. Smaller-scale two-year deals for Luke Jackson (dumped along with Soler) and Tom Murphy have backfired.
Zaidi undoubtedly built plenty of goodwill with home-run signings of Gausman, Drew Smyly, Derek Holland and (the first time) DeSclafani. Low-cost pickups of Mike Yastrzemski, LaMonte Wade Jr., Joc Pederson, Darin Ruf, Donovan Solano and Thairo Estrada (among others) have also been unmitigated successes. But many of those early success stories have since moved on, while others have seen their effectiveness fade. And the recent low-cost acquisitions haven’t had the same level of impact on the organization, while the farm has seen several top prospects stall out.
All of that is vital context when trying to ascertain what the Chapman report signals for Zaidi and his future with the organization. Zaidi himself downplayed the scenario to Baggarly, suggesting he and ownership worked “in sync” and telling Baggarly that ownership involvement is to be expected on a contract of this magnitude. That’s true, broadly speaking, though ownership circumventing both the front office and the player agent to hammer out a deal is not typical business.
Given the Giants’ likely interest in keeping Snell — another Boras client — the manner in which the Chapman deal came together is all the more intriguing. The Boras Corporation also represents a significant number of free agents this offseason: Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes, Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, Yusei Kikuchi, J.D. Martinez, Nick Martinez, Sean Manaea and Tyler O’Neill are among the most notable Boras clients that could be on the market this winter (as can be seen in MLBTR’s Agency Database).
Nori Aoki To Retire At NPB Season’s End
Former big league outfielder and current member of Nippon Professional Baseball’s Yakult Swallows Nori Aoki is set to retire following the 2024 campaign, per an announcement from the Swallows yesterday (hat tip to The Yomiuri Shimbun). Aoki, 42, spent parts of six seasons in the majors in addition to a lengthy career in Japan.
Aoki’s career first began with the Swallows back in 2004 when he debuted at the age of 22. He made it into just ten games with Yakult that year, going 3-for-15 at the plate with a walk, a stolen base, and six strikeouts. That tiny sample size did nothing to suggest what Aoki would go on to do in his first full season with the club, however, as he slashed an excellent .344/.387/.417 in 144 games during the 2005 season, becoming just the second player in NPB history (after Ichiro Suzuki) to collect 200 hits in a single season.
He improved to even greater heights throughout his mid-20s, slashing 15-to-20 homer power to go along with fantastic contact and baserunning skills. As his plate discpline developed, he even began to walk more than he struck out, leading to a dominant stretch of seasons from 2007 to 2010 where he walked at a 10.6% clip against a minuscule 9.8% strikeout rate in addition to his aforementioned solid power and impressive base-stealing abilities, and even crossed the 200-hit barrier for a second time in 2010 to become the only NPB player in history to achieve the feat twice.
Given the excellence he had demonstrated throughout his time with the Swallows, it was hardly a surprise when he was quickly snapped up by the Brewers on a two-year deal after being posted for major league clubs prior to the 2012 season. In Milwaukee, Aoki was a slightly above average hitter with a solid .287/.355/.399 slash line. While he only hit a combined 18 home runs over his two seasons with the Brewers, he swiped 50 bags while hitting 57 doubles and 7 triples in that same period. That was a strong enough performance for Milwaukee brass to pick up Aoki’s club option for the 2014 season, but he did not last the offseason with the club and was swapped to the Royals in a deal that brought lefty Will Smith to the Brewers.
After departing the Brewers, Aoki wouldn’t stick around with an MLB club for more than a season at the time for the rest of his time in stateside ball. After acting as the regular right fielder in Kansas City for the club’s AL pennant-winning 2014 season, Aoki departed in free agency to sign with the Giants but was limited to just 93 games when he suffered a broken leg and a concussion in two separate hit-by-pitch incidents. Aoki then signed a one-year deal with the Mariners in 2016 but began to show some signs of decline, notably stealing only seven bases in sixteen attempts with the worst strikeout and walk numbers of his MLB career, though he did display his best power numbers since his rookie 2012 campaign with the Brewers.
Aoki’s final season in the big leagues came back in 2017 and saw him change uniforms several times. The veteran outfielder was claimed off waivers from the Mariners by the Astros during the 2016-17 offseason. Aoki struggled somewhat through 70 games with Houston, however, and ended up traded to the Blue Jays at the deadline that year alongside Teoscar Hernandez in a deal that brought Francisco Liriano to Houston. Aoki managed to catch fire down the stretch, however, and while his playing time was further split between the Blue Jays and Mets over the final two months of the season he slashed .281/.294/.594 for Toronto in August before slashing .284/.371/.373 in Queens that September.
Following the end of his MLB career, Aoki returned home to the Swallows and has played for the club in each of the past seven seasons. Now 42, the veteran is the league’s oldest active player and has collected more than 7,000 plate appearances with a .313/.392/.445 slash line in 1,713 NPB games. Between NPB and MLB play, Aoki has stepped up to the plate more than 10,000 times with 2,765 hits, 470 doubles, 51 triples, 179 homers and 279 stolen bases. We at MLBTR congratulate Aoki on a fine career and wish him all the best in his post-playing pursuits.