Giants Baseball Insider

San Francisco Giants Receive Surprisingly Strong Marks in Offseason Report Card

A former MLB executive gave the San Francisco Giants a surprisingly strong mark for their offseason work.

Kenneth Teape

Dec 12, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants shortstop Willy Adames listens 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 listens 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
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This winter marked the dawn of a new era for the San Francisco Giants, who got the offseason started with a bang when they overhauled their front office.

President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi was relieved of his duties and replaced by the legendary Buster Posey.

He will be looking to get the team back to the level of prominence it experienced when he was a player when he helped the Giants win three World Series titles. Since he retired after the 2021 campaign, the team has yet to even make the playoffs.

It is a tall task that Posey is facing as San Francisco is stuck in a brutal division with some very good rivals.

The defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers are who everyone is chasing after they loaded up their roster in the offseason. The Arizona Diamondbacks also improved with their additions of ace Corbin Burnes and first baseman Josh Naylor.

The San Diego Padres suffered a few losses but finished 13 games ahead of the Giants in 2024 and there looks to still be a bit of a gap between the two teams.

However, San Francisco did start closing the gap with some of the moves made over the winter.

Their biggest splash was signing shortstop Willy Adames away from the Milwaukee Brewers. The two sides agreed to a seven-year, $182 million contract, the largest in franchise history.

They cooled down considerably after that, making only one more Major League addition, signing future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander to a one-year, $15 million deal. He will help offset the loss of Blake Snell, who opted out of his contract and then signed with the Dodgers.

Those are two moves that will have an impact on the field in 2025, as they should be right in the running for a wild card spot.

However, Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required) believes that the Giants missed out on an opportunity to really make a move up the standings.

“They didn’t do enough. They need to continue trying to improve the middle of their lineup, and they just weren’t aggressive enough in the boardroom,” the former MLB executive wrote.

Despite the seemingly negative comments, Bowden still gave San Francisco a solid grade of a B.

Optimism is certainly on the rise within the organization. There have been a lot of encouraging performances in Cactus League, hinting at a potential breakout for a few players in the regular season.

What will determine how much success they have is how much the offense can outperform expectations. Adames and third baseman Matt Chapman are the only ones viewed as impact players entering the year, but there is some upside with Jung Hoo Lee, Patrick Bailey, Heliot Ramos and Tyler Fitzgerald.

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Kenneth Teape
KENNETH TEAPE

Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.

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