Weighing Pros and Cons for San Francisco Giants Pursuing Corbin Burnes

Here are some pros and cons if the San Francisco Giants were to sign Corbin Burnes

Oct 1, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) throws a pitch against the Kansas City Royals in the first inning in game one of the Wild Card round for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. / Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants have wrapped up the Winter Meetings and are staying aggressive in free agency. 

So far this offseason, the Giants have seen a lot of changes to their roster, as Buster Posey begins to have his team take shape. After losing Blake Snell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in free agency on a monster deal, San Francisco completed their top priority goal by signing shortstop Willy Adames. 

The talented shortstop was one of the best hitters available and that was certainly the No.1 need for the Giants this winter. Now, they have appeared to shift their focus back to pitching and have their eye on another big prize in Corbin Burnes. 

Burnes came into free agency as arguably the best pitcher available. While some of the other aces have already signed, the right-hander remains available. San Francisco appears to be very interested and has a good chance of landing the former Cy Young Award Winner. 

Here are some pros and cons for the Giants if they were to sign Burnes. 

Pros

There is certainly a lot to like about the talented right-hander. After being traded to the Baltimore Orioles last season, Burnes totaled a (15-9) record and 2.92 ERA in his first season in the American League. In his one playoff start last season, he dazzled, but got no support from his team. 

The 30-year-old has been an All-Star the last four seasons, and has pitched at least 165 innings in each of them. For the last three years, the fewest number of innings he has pitched has been 193.2. 

Furthermore, while he is not only elite when he’s on the mound, he will take the ball every fifth day. Being a workhorse pitcher in the league now is rare, and Burnes is certainly one of the best innings eaters in the game. 

If the Giants were to add Burnes, they would be paring the best free-agent pitcher with one of the best free-agent bats this offseason. That would be quite impressive for Posey in his winter as President of Baseball Operations. 

Cons

Anytime a player gets a massive contract, there is going to be risk. Seeing how much starters have been receiving so far this offseason, it likely indicates that Burnes should be getting north of $200 million. A deal with that amount of money, which will likely be for at least 6–7 years, could end up being a bad one down the road as father time comes knocking. 

In addition to the contract amount and length, the right-hander did see a significant drop in his strikeout rate this season. While striking out fewer batters didn’t hurt his effectiveness, it could be a sign of decline. However, if Burnes is reinventing himself on the fly, he pitched quite well last season even if he didn’t have elite strikeout stuff.