San Francisco Giants' 'Good Optics' Offseason Yields Curious Evaluation

The San Francisco Giants have made several good moves this offseason, so why is one MLB writer unimpressed?
Dec 12, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants shortstop Willy Adames reacts during his introductory press conference with president of baseball operations Buster Posey (left) and manager Bob Melvin (right) at Oracle Park.
Dec 12, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants shortstop Willy Adames reacts during his introductory press conference with president of baseball operations Buster Posey (left) and manager Bob Melvin (right) at Oracle Park. / Robert Edwards-Imagn Images
In this story:

The San Francisco Giants are wrapping up the offseason and getting prepared for what they hope will be a successful campaign in 2025.

For the last few years, the Giants have struggled in the National League West. With their arch rivals seemingly building a dynasty and getting any player that they want in free agency, San Francisco has struggled in that area, resulting in their current unfavorable situation.

That is one of the main reasons why the franchise decided to turn the keys to the castle over to Buster Posey to become the new president of baseball operations. After having an impact on getting Matt Chapman to sign an extension during the season, he has made two notable moves this winter.

The first significant move was to sign shortstop Willy Adames to a lengthy and lucrative contract. Also, after losing Blake Snell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in free agency, he was able to bring in future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander.

It has certainly been a busy winter for Posey and the Giants, but how much they have improved has yet to be determined.

Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report recently graded the offseason for the Giants. He gave it a ‘C’ and wrote about how while they have made some nice moves, they might not have gotten all that much better.

“Despite the good optics, even the Adames signing is suspect. He's a power-first hitter who's moving to a stadium that kills power. Per Statcast, he'd have 31 fewer homers if he'd been a Giant for his whole career," he wrote.

As Rymer mentions, the optics of the offseason are good for San Francisco.

When looking at Adames, he is a power-hitting shortstop, which certainly fills a massive need for the team. However, Oracle Park is one of the toughest places to hit home runs, and that could affect his game and his value. Now, if he hits 25 home runs, sees his batting average go up, and maybe his on-base percentage as well, it wouldn’t be a bad thing.

In terms of the pitching staff, the loss of Snell might be felt more than the Giants would like to admit.

Before signing Verlander, San Francisco was very much in the mix for Corbin Burnes before he ultimately signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks to be close to his family.

While Verlander has had an amazing career, he is coming off an injury-plagued season in which he did not pitch well when he was on the mound. There is certainly the possibility that the poor performance was all because of the injury. However, it’s probably more likely that Father Time is catching up.

The grade of a ‘C’ seems fair for what they have done this offseason, as their biggest need to improve their lineup was accomplished.


Published