San Francisco Giants Could Reunite Their Skipper With Resurgent Starting Pitcher

One pitching option for the San Francisco Giants could be reunited with his former skipper.

Oct 20, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York Mets pitcher Sean Manaea (59) pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second inning during game six of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Dodger Stadium / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

There is a good chance the San Francisco Giants are going to see their best starting pitcher depart this offseason after he put together an elite back half of the year that should earn him the megadeal he was searching for last winter.

At first, it appeared like the Giants would have Blake Snell back in 2025 based on how much he struggled to start the campaign.

It would have been crazy for him not to opt-into the player option he had available to him if his ERA continued to be around the 6.31 mark he produced across his eight starts ahead of the All-Star break, but once he got healthy and into a rhythm, he reminded everyone why he's a two-time Cy Young winner with a ridiculous 1.45 ERA in 12 starts following the Midsummer Classic.

San Francisco could bring back Snell if they want to keep him at the top of their rotation alongside Logan Webb for the foreseeable future, and based on comments made by new president of baseball operations Buster Posey, that is something they are weighing.

However, if they do decide to let him walk, they will need to replace his production if they truly plan on competing for a playoff spot next season.

Someone they could target in free agency is Sean Manaea.

The left-hander is not only familiar with the organization from his time with the Giants in 2023, but he has also played under manager Bob Melvin during his stints with the Oakland Athletics and San Diego Padres.

While Manaea has been inconsistent throughout his career, he completely turned the corner this year with the New York Mets after they tweaked his delivery to be more sidearm that mirrors how Chris Sale throws.

His 114 ERA+ was the second-best of his career, similar to the 2018 season he had with the Athletics when he posted a 3.59 ERA and 118 ERA+ across his 27 starts.

Manaea looks to be a completely different pitcher at 32 years old than he was prior to making that arm angle adjustment, and if this is how he performs going forward, he should be someone San Francisco looks into this offseason.

There are risks that come with handing him a lucrative deal that he's likely searching for, something the Giants know all about from his time with the franchise, but his performance this year would give them a top-end starter who could replace the production of Snell if he departs.