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Giants To Select Daulton Jefferies

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The Giants will select the contract of right-hander Daulton Jefferies prior to Sunday’s game against the Padres, manager Bob Melvin announced the team’s beat in tonight’s postgame session (X link via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle). He’ll get the start. Since Jefferies isn’t on the 40-man roster and the Giants don’t have a vacancy, they’ll need to clear space.

It’ll be an emotional day for Jefferies, whose last MLB appearance came nearly two years ago as a member of the A’s — the only team for which he’s ever pitched. The 28-year-old righty has undergone both thoracic outlet surgery and Tommy John surgery (in that order) since walking off the mound that day. The two procedures were performed only months apart; Jefferies suffered a torn UCL while working back from that TOS operation. Considering that was the second Tommy John procedure of Jefferies’ career, his return to a big league mound is all the more remarkable.

The A’s selected Jefferies with the No. 37 overall pick back in 2016. He was long considered one of the system’s more promising arms, even after that first Tommy John procedure slowed his development. Between those two UCL surgeries, the TOS and the canceled 2020 minor league season, Jefferies has pitched only 231 2/3 professional innings — just 11 more than he pitched in his three-year college career at Cal.

Jefferies may not have a large volume of innings, but at least in the minors, the work he’s turned in has been strong. He sports a solid 3.93 ERA in his minor league career, with a strong 25.7% strikeout rate and a superlative 3.1% walk rate. He’s been roughed up for a 5.75 ERA in 56 1/3 big league innings, with far fewer missed bats in the majors but still very strong command (5.8% walk rate) and an above-average 45.5% ground-ball rate. Jefferies was excellent for the Giants this spring, pitching 14 innings and allowing just four runs (2.57 ERA) on 14 hits and three walks with 16 strikeouts.

Tomorrow’s appearance could go down as a spot start when all is said and done. The Giants currently have Logan Webb, Jordan Hicks, Kyle Harrison and Keaton Winn in the rotation. Reigning Cy Young winner Blake Snell, who signed late in spring training, tossed 74 pitches against Double-A hitters in an extended spring training game yesterday, tweets Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. The quality of competition obviously wasn’t MLB-caliber, but Snell still punched out 11 batters in a four-inning appearance. The Giants are still determining his next step. It’s possible Snell will get a minor league start to finish off his tune-up, but it doesn’t sound like he’s too far from game readiness.

Scott Boras Discusses Recent Free Agent Contracts

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The latter stages of the 2023-24 offseason were focused on the so-called “Boras Four.” Each of Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, Cody Bellinger and Jordan Montgomery lingered on the open market beyond the start of Spring Training and signed deals below the forecasts from the early winter. Agent Scott Boras, who represents all four of that group, discussed the matter with Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times, noting that he and the players were likely going to be deciding between long-term deals or shorter pacts but with higher annual salaries.

“I don’t think their predictions included what we were fully aware of,” Boras said of media predictions coming into the winter, “and that is, clubs were going to come to us and say, ‘We’re not going to look at length with premium AAVs (average annual values) because of what preceded their performance prior to 2023.” He used Snell and Bellinger as examples of how clubs could look past the 2023 season and focus on prior seasons.

“Blake Snell has $30 million a year for a couple of years to go out and just show durability,” Boras said. “Blake Snell doesn’t have to go out and win the Cy Young every year. He’s an extraordinary pitcher. The market viewed him as, what happened in ‘21 and ‘22? The market viewed Cody as, what happened in ‘21 and ‘22? So we knew going into this process that choices were going to be most important. You’re either going to get the appropriate AAV, but you’re not going to get the length, or you’re going to get the length at a much lower AAV, so what do you choose?”

The comments provide an interesting look into the sorts of tough decisions a free agent has to make. Even if a player is incredibly talented and lucky enough to stay healthy beyond their arbitration years, they are likely to only sign one really significant contract in their career. While some players in that position may just take the best guarantee available when the opportunity arises, others seem willing to kick the can down the road if they can’t find the ideal deal.

Snell was surely looking to cash in after a Cy Young-winning season wherein he posted a 2.25 earned run average for the Padres. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Snell could ride the momentum of his trophy win to a deal of $200MM over seven years, with other media outlets making similar prognostications.

It appears that type of deal never materialized, with the largest reported offer he received being a six-year, $150MM deal from the Yankees. In the end, he pivoted to a two-year, $62MM deal from the Giants, which allows him the chance to opt-out midway through. As Boras alluded to, Snell hasn’t been the most consistent pitcher in his career. He fell short of 130 innings in both 2021 and 2022, with an ERA of 4.20 in the former and 3.38 in the latter.

Bellinger was in a somewhat similar position. He was the National League’s Most Valuable Player in 2019 but went through a real rough patch after suffering a shoulder injury. He hit just .193/.256/.355 over 2021 and 2022, getting non-tendered by the Dodgers. A one-year deal with the Cubs gave him the opportunity to bounce back, which he did, hitting 26 home runs and stealing 20 bases while providing quality defense in center field and first base.

It would appear that clubs used the inconsistency of those players to justify not maximizing their offers this winter, so Snell pivoted to the aforementioned short-term deal. Bellinger got a three-year deal worth $80MM to return to the Cubs, with opt-outs after each year. Both players can bank some money this year and hopefully return to the open market next winter, with the extra years on the deal providing a bit of a safety net in the case of renewed struggles or health problems this year.

It’s a tactic Boras has taken before, with Carlos Correa perhaps being the best example prior to this winter. Correa first hit free agency in the winter of 2021-22, which was impacted by the lockout. He didn’t find a deal to his liking prior to the stoppage and hired Boras during the transactions freeze. After the new collective bargaining agreement was agreed to, he signed a three-year, $105.3MM deal with the Twins which allowed him to opt-out after each season.

After another strong season in 2022, he triggered his opt-out and returned to the open market. He finally found the mega deal that he was looking for when he and the Giants agreed to a 13-year, $350MM framework. That deal eventually got scuttled when the Giants grew concerned by Correa’s medicals, as did another pact with the Mets, but Correa still got himself a sizeable $200MM guarantee to return to the Twins. That deal can also max out at $270MM via four vesting options.

That is the type of playbook that each of the Boras four will be looking to follow, though obviously without the part where deals gets thrown out by physicals. Chapman got three years and $54MM from the Giants, also with opt-outs. Montgomery got one year and $25MM from the Diamondbacks, with a vesting player option valued at $20MM if he makes just 10 starts this year.

The hope will be that each can continue to perform well in 2024 and hopefully find better conditions next winter. The 2023-24 offseason saw many clubs scale back spending, either due to competitive balance tax concerns or uncertainty around television revenue. “One billion dollars was removed from the ability to contract players,” is the way Boras frames it. He and his clients will be hoping some of that money is back on the table next winter.

Giants Recall Kai-Wei Teng For Major League Debut

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The Giants announced a series of roster moves today, with outfielder Luis Matos and right-hander Kai-Wai Teng recalled from Triple-A Sacramento. Teng will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. In corresponding moves, outfielder Mike Yastrzemski has been placed on the paternity list while right-hander Luke Jackson goes on the 15-day injured list with a lower back strain. Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase had reported earlier that Matos would be taking Yastrzemski’s place on the roster. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle first relayed that Teng was at the ballpark tonight.

Jackson departed last night’s game with an apparent back issue. He didn’t seem terribly concerned with the severity but the club evidently feels he will need at least a couple of weeks to get back on the mound.

His injury will pave the way for Teng to be called up to the big leagues for the first time. The 25-year-old was signed by the Twins as an international amateur out of Taiwan. He came to the Giants in the 2019 deadline deal that sent Sam Dyson to Minnesota.

He has climbed the rungs of the minor league ladder since then, showcasing strikeout stuff but also control issues. He split last year between Double-A and Triple-A, making 28 starts and one relief appearance, tossing 126 1/3 innings. He struck out 29.8% of batters faced but also gave out free passes at a 12.4% clip, leading to a combined earned run average of 4.42.

He was added to the club’s 40-man roster in November to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He didn’t make the Opening Day roster but Jackson’s injury will allow him to come up just after. He’ll likely be in a long relief role out of the bullpen. The club is currently operating with 14 positions players and just 12 pitchers, meaning that eating multiple innings from the bullpen will be valuable for the club.

Injury Notes: Twins, E-Rod, Dodgers, Jackson

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The Twins won their season-opener against the Royals yesterday, jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead with a first-inning homer off the bat of burgeoning star Royce Lewis. The former No. 1 overall pick singled in his next at-bat but departed shortly thereafter, coming up lame when going first-to-third on a Carlos Correa double. The Twins announced that Lewis had a quadriceps injury. He underwent an MRI last night, per Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Further updates figure to be available before tomorrow’s game, though Miller notes that Lewis was optimistic and described the feeling as cramping more than severe pain.

In many ways, it’s a three-inning microcosm of Lewis’ career. The 24-year-old is a .313/.369/.564 hitter in 284 plate appearances — not including last year’s four postseason homers in 26 plate appearances — but he’s also twice torn his ACL and had IL stints for oblique and hamstring strains. A healthy Lewis has superstar potential, but injuries have been far too frequent early in his career. If Lewis requires a trip to the injured list, top prospect Brooks Lee won’t be an option to replace him. The 2022 No. 8 overall pick is dealing with a back injury, and Triple-A skipper Toby Gardenhire tells KSTP’s Darren Wolfson that he’ll be down for about three to four weeks (X link). Minnesota also had an injury scare with right fielder Max Kepler, who exited the game after fouling a ball into his leg. X-rays came back negative, per the Star-Tribune’s Bobby Nightengale (X link).

A few more injury situations worth monitoring as they unfold…

  • The Diamondbacks lost Eduardo Rodriguez to a lat strain late in spring training — a discouraging development for the left-hander, who inked a four-year deal worth $80MM over the winter. No timetable was provided at the time of the injury, but manager Torey Lovullo told the team’s beat yesterday that Rodriguez could throw off a mound in about five days (X link via Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic). Jon Heyman of the New York Post, meanwhile, writes that the Snakes expect Rodriguez to be down for about a month. That’d be a notable absence but far from a worst-case scenario, as lat strains for pitchers can often result in multiple months on the shelf. In 152 2/3 frames last season, E-Rod notched a 3.30 ERA, 23% strikeout rate and 7.7% walk rate for the Tigers.
  • Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts provided a series of updates on some injured pitchers yesterday (X thread via Jack Harris of the L.A. Times). There was good news on both Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw, each of whom Roberts described as ahead of schedule. The Dodgers have made clear they’re being cautious with Buehler’s rehab from a second career Tommy John surgery, but the right-hander’s progress so far is encouraging enough that he’ll be back “sooner than I think we anticipated,” per Roberts. Kershaw, who had shoulder surgery in early November, is long-tossing from 120 feet and ahead of initial rehab projections. Roberts’ updates on righties Brusdar Graterol and Blake Treinen were far less encouraging. Both are playing catch but are “a ways away” from activation. Graterol was slowed by hip and shoulder troubles during camp, while Treinen suffered a bruised lung when a comeback liner hit him in the chest. The Dodgers originally suggested that it wouldn’t require a lengthy absence, but Treinen has yet to even throw a bullpen session.
  • Right-hander Luke Jackson exited last night’s game with Giants trainers after suffering some degree of back injury. Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that the 32-year-old Jackson underwent an MRI and will be further evaluated today. Jackson missed just under a month with a back strain last year but said following last night’s injury that the initial pain this time around was not as severe as it was in 2023. The Giants inked Jackson to a two-year, $11.5MM contract in the 2022-23 offseason while he was rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. He made his team debut late last May and was excellent when healthy enough to be on the roster: 33 1/3 innings, 2.97 ERA, 30.1% strikeout rate. Last night, however, Jackson’s velocity was down more than a mile per hour from his 2023 average, and he allowed all three hitters he faced to reach base. All three came around to score.

Giants Option Marco Luciano, Select Nick Ahmed, Release Pablo Sandoval

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The Giants announced a huge slate of transactions Thursday as they set their Opening Day roster. Shortstop prospect Marco Luciano and outfield prospect Luis Matos were optioned to Triple-A Sacramento to begin the season. San Francisco selected the contract of veteran shortstop Nick Ahmed and right-hander Landen Roupp, who’ll both make the Opening Day roster. The Giants also recalled lefty Erik Miller from Triple-A, placed righties Sean Hjelle and Alex Cobb on the 15-day IL (as expected), designated catcher/outfielder Cooper Hummel for assignment, placed lefty Ethan Small on the 60-day injured list and released infielder Pablo Sandoval. Out of options catcher Joey Bart made the roster.

Luciano, 22, is widely considered to be among the game’s top 100 prospects. He made a brief MLB debut last year and was in competition for the Opening Day roster nod throughout the entirety of camp, but the Giants will defer to the veteran Ahmed as their Opening Day shortstop.

Luciano heated up toward the end of camp, perhaps making the decision a bit tougher, but he finished with a .227/.364/.432 slash and a 34.5% strikeout rate in 55 plate appearances. Those strikeout troubles have been an issue for some time; Luciano fanned in 29.8% of his Double-A plate appearances last year and 35.9% of his Triple-A plate appearances. He’ll head back to the upper minors to continue to work on that area of his game.

In his place, the Giants will turn to longtime division foe Ahmed, who’s spent his entire 10-year career with the Diamondbacks. Ahmed, who’s won a pair of Gold Gloves in his career, has always been a defensive-minded shortstop. He’s long ranked as one of the premium defenders in the game, regardless of position. However, his already modest offensive production has taken a stark downturn over the past two seasons due to a shoulder injury that eventually required surgery.

Ahmed has looked sharp this spring, however, turning in a .355/.459/.645 slash with a pair of homers in a small sample of 37 plate appearances. The Giants bid adieu to their own longtime premier defensive shortstop, Brandon Crawford, this offseason. (Were it not for Crawford, Ahmed may have a few more Gold Gloves on his mantle.) Ahmed will bring a similar skill set to the table, though he’s three years younger. And, since he doesn’t have such a storied history with the franchise, it’ll be easier to cut him loose or significantly reduce his playing time if he struggles and/or if Luciano forces the issue with a big Triple-A performance.

Roupp, 25, was San Francisco’s 12th-round pick in the 2021 draft. He posted a 1.74 ERA and fanned more than a third of his opponents in 31 Double-A frames last season and will jump straight from that level to the big leagues. He earned that promotion with a huge spring showing, holding opponents to a pair of runs on two hits and four walks with 13 punchouts in eight innings.

Hummel, 29, is a career .166/.264/.286 hitter in 227 plate appearances at the big league level. He carries a far more impressive Triple-A track record, including a .262/.409/.435 batting line and a massive 18% walk rate there last year. He bounced from the Mariners, to the Mets, to the Giants via the DFA circuit this winter. Hummel still has a minor league option remaining, and the Giants will have a week to trade him or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.

Sandoval, 37, singled in his final at-bat of Giants spring training earlier this week. That game was played at Oracle Park, giving “Kung Fu Panda” the opportunity to suit up (at least) one more time in front of the Giants fans who revered him for his peak run as a middle-of-the-order slugger for the Giants even-year dynasty that saw them bring home World Series titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014. An emotional Sandoval said after the game what a special experience it was to take the field and be embraced by the San Francisco faithful one more time. Whether he continues his playing career remains to be seen, but if not, it was a fitting sendoff to a beloved member of the franchise who’ll long be remembered as a fan favorite.

NL West Notes: Sandoval, Black, Grichuk, Dodgers

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When veteran infielder Pablo Sandoval signed a non-roster deal with the Giants last month, it was reported that the deal was not meant to be a ceremonial end to the 37-year-old’s storied career akin to the deal right-hander Sergio Romo took with the club before retiring last spring. Rather, Sandoval hoped that the deal could be a stepping stone toward returning to the majors. After the Kung Fu Panda slashed just .250/.323/.250 without a single extra-base hit in 16 games with the club this spring, it appears unlikely that will come to pass for the time being. That still doesn’t mean that Sandoval has any intention of retiring, however. As relayed by MLB.com’s Henry Schulman, Sandoval has indicated that he intends to keep playing even if he does not make the major league roster in San Francisco to open the season. Instead, he intends to report to Triple-A Sacramento and play for the Giants in the minor leagues.

A veteran of 14 big league seasons who last played in the majors back in 2021, Sandoval is a two-time All Star who earned World Series MVP honors with the Giants in 2012 while also playing a key role during the club’s championship seasons in 2010 and 2014. Sandoval initially departed San Francisco to sign in Boston prior to the 2015 season, but that disastrous contract saw him released partway through the 2017 campaign. He returned to the Giants afterward and enjoyed a pair of resurgent seasons with the club in 2018 and 2019 as he slashed .259/.311/.466 in a combined 200 games. His most recent big league appearances came with the Braves, with whom he hit .178/.302/.342 in 69 games in a bench role three seasons ago.

While Sandoval clearly intends to continue his professional career into his age-37 campaign, it’s unclear what the Giants’ plans are regarding their World Series hero at this point. Indeed, Sandoval noted to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area yesterday that he has not yet discussed his plan to continue playing in the minor leagues with Giants brass. Even so, Sandoval emphasized to Pavlovic that he has no intention of hanging up the cleats at this point. “Everyone thinks I’m retired,” Sandoval said (per Pavlovic). “I’m not retired.”

More from around the NL West:

  • Sticking with the Giants, the club made a surprising move yesterday by re-assigning right-hander Mason Black to the minor leagues, as noted by MLB.com’s Maria I. Guardado. While the right-hander’s 6.97 ERA in 10 1/3 innings of work with the Giants this spring certainly presents a clear case for the 24-year-old starting the season in Triple-A, the move came just over a week after manager Bob Melvin indicated to reporters that the club was likely to turn to Black as a member of their Opening Day rotation. Of course, San Francisco’s rotation plans were altered the very next day by the addition of reigning NL Cy Young award winner Blake Snell, but it’s still something of a shock to see Black sent to Triple-A given the club’s need for innings in the bullpen due to injuries suffered by Tristan Beck and Sean Hjelle this spring. Instead, it appears the long relief role will be offered to non-roster veteran Daulton Jefferies, who impressed with a 2.57 ERA in 14 innings during camp.
  • The Diamondbacks will begin the season without outfielder Randal Grichuk, who manager Torey Lovullo confirmed will begin the season on the injured list to reporters (including Alex Weiner of AZ Sports) earlier today. That’s hardly a surprise, as Grichuk did not make it into game action this spring while rehabbing from offseason surgery to remove bone spurs from his ankle. Upon signing with Arizona last month, Grichuk indicated that the issues wasn’t expected to cause a lengthy absence, adding that if he were to miss Opening Day due to the issue he may be ready to return as soon as a week into the regular season. The 32-year-old veteran slashed a roughly league average .267/.321/.459 in 118 trips to the plate in Colorado and Anaheim last year and is slated to act as a right-handed complement to the likes of Corbin Carroll, Alek Thomas, and Joc Pederson in Arizona’s outfield mix this year.
  • While the Dodgers are set to turn to veteran superstar Mookie Betts and second baseman Gavin Lux up the middle this season, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) yesterday that veteran shortstop Miguel Rojas will get some starts at short as well, at least against left-handed pitching. On those days, Betts will slide over to second base and push Lux to the bench. While Robert emphasized that the situation won’t be a strict platoon, Lux’s career .586 OPS against same-handed pitching and Rojas’s strong defense at shortstop make sitting Lux against certain southpaws in order to improve the club’s infield defense a sensible strategy. Rojas, 35, hit a paltry .236/.290/.322 in 124 games with the Dodgers last year but slashed a much more respectable .286/.331/.406 in 145 trips to the plate against lefties.

NL West Notes: McCarthy, Barnhart, Molina, Slater

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The Diamondbacks have gotten a lot of trade interest in outfielder Jake McCarthy but Arizona isn’t yet interested in dealing the 26-year-old, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale writes.  This isn’t the first time McCarthy’s name has surfaced in trade rumors, though the buzz quieted after McCarthy turned in a lackluster 2023 season.  The outfielder finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2022, but followed up that breakout campaign by hitting only .243/.318/.326 over 312 plate appearances last season.  McCarthy’s struggles resulted in a loss of playing time and even a demotion to Triple-A, plus an oblique injury kept him from being a part of Arizona’s postseason rosters during the team’s run to the World Series.

Randal Grichuk is expected to begin the season on the injured list, so McCarthy should probably land a job as the Diamondbacks’ fourth outfielder for at least the start of the year.  He also has a minor league option remaining, so the D’Backs could stash him back at Triple-A if necessary.  It is worth noting that the D’Backs were reportedly open to moving either McCarthy or Dominic Fletcher in February’s trade with the White Sox that sent Fletcher to Chicago, though in the wake of that deal, Arizona might not be willing to further deplete their stock of young outfielders by also moving McCarthy in another trade.  Nightengale feels McCarthy might be more of a trade chip later in the season, if the Diamondbacks are having trouble finding playing time or a roster spot available for him.

More from around the NL West…

  • Minor league signing Tucker Barnhart looks to have won the Diamondbacks’ backup catching job, as The Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro (X link) was among those to note that the D’Backs optioned Jose Herrera to Triple-A today.  Herrera acted as Gabriel Moreno’s backup last season once Carson Kelly was let go in August, but Arizona will now turn to the veteran Barnhart as a more experienced bench option.  Barnhart has won two Gold Gloves over his 10 MLB seasons, spent mostly with the Reds before one-year stints with the Tigers and Cubs over the last two seasons.
  • Right-hander Anthony Molina will make the Rockies’ Opening Day roster, according to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding (via X).  Selected as the third overall pick of the Rule 5 Draft last December, Molina was an international signing for the Rays who posted a 3.64 ERA over 301 2/3 innings in Tampa Bay’s farm system, including a 4.37 ERA in 55 2/3 Triple-A frames last season.  The 22-year-old worked mostly as a starter last year but now looks slated for a bullpen role in Colorado.  As per the stipulations of the Rule 5 Draft, Molina will have to remain on the Rockies’ active roster for the entire season in order for the Rox to claim his rights, or else Colorado will have to offer him back to the Rays.
  • Austin Slater returned to the field yesterday and is also set to play in today’s game, marking the Giants outfielder’s first action since last weekend.  Slater has been bothered by discomfort in his right elbow, which is a troubling sign since Slater underwent surgery on that same elbow last October to both remove a bone spur and address some nerve problems via an ulnar nerve transposition.  His recovery led to a slower start to his Cactus League work, and Slater has played in only six games this spring, so manager Bob Melvin told the San Francisco Chronicle’s Shayna Rubin and other reporters that Slater might need to start the season on the injured list.  As Slater himself told Rubin and company, “The quantity of at-bats, I’m not super concerned about.  It’s more about feeling healthy and being able to bounce back the next day which, at this point, I haven’t been able to do.”  If Slater isn’t available for Opening Day, Luis Matos is the likeliest candidate to step into the backup/platoon outfield role.

Offseason In Review: San Francisco Giants

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It was a bit of a slow burn, but the Giants ended up being the main beneficiary of the tepid offseason, as they were able to sign three star players after February had already begun. Since they had also signed a significant deal with a Korean superstar and traded for a former Cy Young winner, it added up to the most significant winter the club has had in years.

Major League Signings

2024 spending: $73.755MM (not including Lee’s posting fee or Snell’s 2026 signing bonus)
Total spending: $324.005MM (not including Lee’s posting fee)

Option Decisions

Trades and Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

  • None

Notable Losses

Many recent offseasons for the Giants have been defined by who they didn’t acquire. They were in the mix for superstars like Bryce Harper and Aaron Judge but ultimately didn’t get those deals across the finish line. They had an agreement in place with Carlos Correa before the team got scared off by his physical and walked away.

The result has been that the clubs of the Farhan Zaidi era have mostly been middling, sputtering by while cobbling together some decent role players, compiling some passable platoon pairings and oscillating almost every pitcher between the rotation and bullpen. Since Zaidi took over as president of baseball operations in November of 2018, the Giants have mostly hovered below .500, apart from a 107-win campaign in 2021 that now looks like a clear outlier.

Gabe Kapler won manager of the year for that surge, but the club fell to 81-81 in 2022 and then 79-83 last year. Before last year’s campaign was even finished, the club decided to move on from Kapler, as he was shown the door at the end of September.

Thankfully, a solution to their managerial vacancy fell from the sky, which was perhaps an omen of how the rest of their offseason would play out. Across the division and the state of California, rumors started to percolate out of San Diego about discord within the Padres organization. That club’s manager Bob Melvin had reportedly been clashing with president of baseball operations A.J. Preller. They initially planned to put their differences aside and continue working together, but the Giants came calling and asked to talk to Melvin, which the Padres agreed to.

Melvin was the manager of the Athletics when Zaidi was working in that front office, prior to joining the Giants. Presumably, the two were at least passingly familiar with each other from then and Melvin decided to skipper his ship up the coast to the Bay Area. Melvin’s contract with the Padres ran through 2024, as did Zaidi’s with the Giants. But the Giants decided to give the two some extra job security by extending both through 2026.

With the decisions made about the decision makers, the focus could turn to the roster. Starting pitching was a clear target after a season in which the club was quite nonchalant about moving guys between the rotation and the bullpen. Logan Webb, Alex Cobb and rookie Kyle Harrison were the only pitchers to work exclusively as starters, as Sean Manaea, Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, Jakob Junis and others were oscillated between starting and relieving gigs, with Wood later expressing some frustration with that inconsistency.

That hodgepodge rotation got even thinner this offseason, with Manaea opting out of his deal and returning to the open market. Wood and Junis also became free agents while Cobb required hip surgery at the end of October, with a recovery timeline that would keep him out of action into the 2024 season.

Zaidi acknowledged early on that starting pitching would be a priority, as well as outfield defense. At shortstop, Zaidi said in October that rookie Marco Luciano would have the chance to be the everyday guy, though the club’s commitment to that plan would later prove to be weak.

At first, the club set its sights high, seemingly looking for the superstar it had failed to land in previous offseasons. All eyes were on Shohei Ohtani in the early parts of the offseason and the Giants stayed involved in that market the whole way through. They were apparently willing to offer Ohtani the same heavily-deferred contract that he eventually signed with the Dodgers, but it nonetheless went down as another miss.

And it wasn’t the only big whiff of the winter, as the club was also connected to targets like Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Juan Soto, Cody Bellinger and others, but none of that group would be coming to San Francisco either.

In mid-December, they did make one notable strike. Jung Hoo Lee, a star in Korea, agreed to join the Giants on a six-year, $113MM deal. The 25-year-old outfielder is not a star in North America, at least not yet, but it was easily the biggest free agent deal of the Zaidi era. Previously, that was the $44MM over two years given to Carlos Rodón, who ended up opting out after just one year. It’s a bit of a gamble since there’s some uncertainty about whether Lee’s approach will translate to the majors, but his youth and athleticism could allow him to serve as a solid everyday center fielder and leadoff-hitting type.

As for the rotation, the club’s signing of Jordan Hicks sat as the most notable addition for a long time. In mid-January, he and the club agreed to a four-year, $44MM pact. That contract was roughly in line with expectations for Hicks as a reliever but it was a surprise to hear that the Giants were going to plug him into the rotation.

Hicks has youth on his side, still just 27 years old, but counting on him to provide bulk innings is no guarantee. He was a starter as a prospect but never logged more than 105 innings, which came back in 2017. Since reaching the majors, the Cardinals have mostly kept him in relief. They gave him a chance to try starting again in 2022 but he suffered a flexor strain in May and the club moved him back to the bullpen once he was healthy.

He has triple-digit heat but has been more passable than dominant, with a career ERA of 3.85 thus far. His 28.4% strikeout rate last year was strong but he still walked 11.2% of batters he faced. He compensates for those free passes with heaps of ground balls but it remains to be seen whether he can do that for multiple innings and for an extended stretch of time.

There was another significant rotation move that came in January, though one that wouldn’t be able to help in the short term. The Giants sent Mitch Haniger and Anthony DeSclafani to the Mariners in exchange for lefty Robbie Ray. The signing of Lee had given the Giants a bit of an outfield surplus, as Mike Yastrzemski would be pushed into the corner mix with Michael Conforto, Luis Matos and others. DeSclafani, meanwhile, had likely fallen out of the club’s plans as he had been injured for much of the previous two seasons and the younger Giants pitchers neared the majors.

Getting a former Cy Young winner for a couple of spare parts is a nice coup, in theory, but there are some asterisks. Ray underwent Tommy John and flexor tendon surgery in May of last year and won’t be available to them until the All-Star break, even in a best-case scenario. It’s also possible the Giants will remain on the hook for his contract, which runs through 2026. Ray can opt out after 2024 but he won’t be able to log many innings before making that decision, so he would likely have to be in great form for him to consider walking away from two years and $50MM.

In addition to the DeSclafani trade, the Giants further thinned out their rotation by sending Ross Stripling to the Athletics in early February. They got outfielder Jonah Cox in that deal but it was mostly a salary dump, as it saved them $9.25MM.

Just as Spring Training was about to begin, the Giants made a strong move to upgrade their lineup. Joc Pederson had been their primary designated hitter last year but he hit free agency and moved across the division to the Diamondbacks. The Giants replaced him by signing Jorge Soler to a three-year, $42MM deal. Soler is a streaky hitter but is one of the best power bats in the league when at his best.

He hit 48 home runs with the Royals back in 2019. That was the “juiced ball” season but that number led the American League and Kauffman Stadium is one of the hardest ballparks to hit it out of. He hit another 36 for the Marlins last year and opted out, eventually signing with the Giants. Oracle Park is also a tough venue for the long ball and no Giant has had a 30-homer season since Barry Bonds in 2004, a pretty stunning statistic. If Soler stays healthy and has one of his good years, he has a solid chance to break that streak.

As Spring Training ramped up, the Giants still hadn’t addressed their shortstop position. Though Zaidi initially said Luciano would get a chance to be the everyday guy there, the club was rumored to be looking around for other options throughout the winter. Franchise icon Brandon Crawford was out there in free agency but it seemed the Giants were ready to move on. In the last week of February, the Giants added Nick Ahmed on a minor league deal and Crawford joined the Cardinals.

He and Zaidi later spoke of the parting of ways, with Crawford expressing frustration at not coming back. A Bay Area native who grew up a Giants fan, Crawford has been synonymous with the franchise for his entire career. But Zaidi believed having such an iconic player on the bench wouldn’t be comfortable for the other players, so the club will proceed without Crawford for the first time since he was drafted in 2008.

Around the baseball world, a key storyline of the spring revolved around how many notable free agents remained unsigned in what turned out to be an incredibly slow offseason. The Giants were able to take advantage by signing third baseman Matt Chapman, who was pegged for a nine-figure deal at the start of the winter, for just three years and $54MM with opt-outs.

The Giants had J.D. Davis at the hot corner, but Chapman is a far superior defender and roughly comparable hitter. With an uncertain shortstop situation, it was a sensible swap for the club, especially at such a bargain rate.

The club then tried to shop Davis and his $6.9MM salary but found no takers. The free agent market had collapsed to such a point that solid infielders Gio Urshela and Amed Rosario each signed deals for just $1.5MM, which gave Davis little appeal at his price point. Arbitration salaries are not guaranteed if the sides go to a hearing, which Davis and the Giants had done, the player coming out victorious. But since it wasn’t guaranteed, the club was able to release him while only paying 30 days’ termination pay, which amounted to about $1.1MM.

This was obviously an unpleasant outcome for Davis, who eventually signed with the A’s for a guarantee of just $2.5MM. The unfair nature of the proceedings has seemingly been an inciting incident for the MLBPA, with players understandably upset by how things played out.

Despite all this activity surrounding the Giants, they arrived at the middle of March with the major target area of the rotation relatively unanswered. Cobb and Ray would be starting the season on the injured list, leaving the club with little certainty beyond ace Logan Webb. They had the converted reliever Hicks and then unproven young guys like Harrison, Triston Beck, Keaton Winn and Sean Hjelle. As Spring Training opened, Beck, Winn and Hjelle all battled injuries of varying degrees, highlighting the flimsiness of the group.

But they were able to take advantage of the weak free agent market once again, as they signed Blake Snell to a two-year, $62MM deal with an opt-out after the first season. Snell is the reigning National League Cy Young winner and was surely hoping for a massive nine-figure deal but was never able to land it.

There’s still plenty of uncertainty in the rotation picture but Snell makes it much stronger in the short term. And in the long term, it’s possible to imagine the season finishing with a San Francisco rotation consisting of Webb, Snell, Ray and Cobb, with one spot available for Hicks, Harrison or someone else. A lot has to go right for that to happen, but it’s wonderful to dream on for now.

In the end, the offseason could hardly have played out much better for Zaidi and the Giants. As mentioned, they have been incredibly averse to long-term free agent deals. Though they have made significant offers to players like Judge, Correa, Ohtani and others, they came into this winter having never given out more than the two-year, $44MM deal for Rodon. But they were able to add two Cy Young winners, one of the game’s best defenders, one of its best sluggers and a Korean star. And they did all of that without really breaking the bank in the present or in the future. The only guys who got more than three years, Lee and Hicks, are 25 and 27 years old, respectively. They are set to pay the competitive balance tax for the first time since 2017, but they are not far over the line and will face modest penalties as a “first-time” payor.

They still have some questions on the pitching staff and it seems as though the light-hitting Ahmed might end up as their everyday shortstop, but a lot of talent has been added to the roster this winter. They’re in for a battle since they share a division with the juggernaut Dodgers, the reigning N.L. champion Diamondbacks and the pesky Padres, but there’s more to be excited about than there was last year or even a six weeks ago.

Giants Release Amir Garrett

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The Giants announced Thursday evening that they’ve released veteran reliever Amir Garrett from his minor league deal (X link via Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle). He had been in camp as a non-roster invitee but wasn’t going to make the Opening Day roster.

That’s not a surprise given the left-hander’s numbers this spring. Garrett allowed nine runs over 6 1/3 innings. He surrendered 13 hits and issued seven walks while recording three strikeouts. The Giants could use lefty relief help, but Garrett simply hadn’t performed well.

The 31-year-old should nevertheless find interest on a minor league deal elsewhere. His fastball sits in the mid-90s and he has an above-average 26.4% strikeout rate over 325 1/3 career innings. Garrett fanned a quarter of batters faced with a 3.33 ERA in 27 appearances for the Royals last season, but Kansas City cut him loose because his walk rate had jumped to a near-18% clip. He finished the year in Triple-A with the Guardians, where he struggled in a very small sample. While Garrett is unlikely to get a season-opening opportunity in a major league bullpen, he’s a sensible target for teams looking for upper minors relief depth based on his velocity and bat-missing ability.

San Francisco only has one left-hander who is a lock for their bullpen: Taylor Rogers. They optioned Erik Miller earlier in camp, while Ethan Small is headed to the injured list after straining his right oblique. There are no other lefty relievers on the 40-man roster.

If the Giants want a second left-hander, non-roster invitee Juan Sanchez has seemingly pitched his way to the top of list. The 23-year-old has punched out 11 against two walks with a massive 60% ground-ball rate over nine innings in camp. He has allowed four runs, two of them earned.

MLBTR Podcast: Mutiny In The MLBPA, Blake Snell Signs With The Giants And The Dylan Cease Trade

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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 Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

  • The recent news of the divide in the MLBPA (2:15)
  • The release of J.D. Davis and its impact on the MLBPA situation (8:45)
  • Recent collective bargaining agreement history and its relation to current MLBPA strife (11:30)
  • Giants sign Blake Snell (17:25)
  • Padres acquire Dylan Cease from the White Sox (23:15)

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • Will the Blue Jays make a run at Juan Soto when he hits free agency next year? (33:35)
  • I don’t understand some of the outfielder signings this offseason. How does Hunter Renfroe command $6.5MM when Adam Duvall only gets $3MM? Why would the Twins trade for Manuel Margot when they could have just re-signed Michael A. Taylor? Is there a logical explanation? Or did the Twins and Royals front offices just screw up? (39:45)
  • Do you think that Emmanuel Clase could be traded at the deadline if the Guardians out of it? If so, what do you think he’d fetch at full strength? (43:00)

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

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