Insider Likes San Francisco Giants Chances at Bringing Ace Back in Free Agency

The San Francisco Giants have a big decision to make this offseason.

Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants head into the offseason with a renewed sense of urgency to win after the dismissal of president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and subsequent installation of franchise legend Buster Posey in his place.

In Posey's first offseason as an executive, he is tasked with fixing the roster of a team that has missed the playoffs in seven of the last eight seasons and really just not played competitive baseball since they were winning championships in the early 2010s. As someone who witnessed first hand what it took to bring World Series titles back to the Bay Area, there may be no one better equipped to bring the Giants back to prominence than Posey.

One of the first big decisions he will have to make comes with free agent two-time Cy Young ace Blake Snell. After opting out of his $30 million player option from the two-year deal he signed with San Francisco last offseason, Snell is clearly looking for a nine figure mega deal.

Starting his Giants tenure disastrously, Snell spent a stint on the injured list before coming back and being arguably the best pitcher in baseball down the stretch. With a healthy market looming for Snell, MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post predicts the ace to sign a five-year, $160 million contract and said that San Francisco has a good chance to land him.

"He has a much-improved market after a second straight great season and especially big second half," Heyman wrote. "Decent chance he winds up back in San Francisco. The Yankees, Dodgers and Red Sox are spots that make sense, too."

As undoubtedly one of the best pitchers in the entire game, Snell has established a level of consistency that will make him desriable to every team on the market. Seeing him end up in Los Angeles or New York would be devastating, and the Giants have the capital to bring him back without batting an eye.

Snell will turn 32 years old next month and after some injury concerns this past season, being wary of giving him a blank check would be understandable. But if Heyman's number prediction proves accurate, it's not a deal that San Francisco should even hesitate in offering.