Giants chairman Greg Johnson recently spoke to reporters, including Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle, regarding the contract status of president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi as well as the club’s plans heading into the home stretch of the offseason.
On Zaidi, Johnson revealed that the extension the club announced back in October that would keep Zaidi in San Francisco through the 2026 season has not yet been finalized. That’s something of a surprise, given Johnson said at the time of the announcement that the deal had been “agreed [upon] in principle” and would be formally announced in the near future. That, of course, didn’t come to pass, though Johnson nonetheless noted that the extension is a “done deal.”
“It’s effectively done,” Johnson said (as relayed by Kroichick). “He probably has signed it; I’m probably the one who hasn’t because I haven’t been around enough. But we’re done.”
The extension for Zaidi, whose current deal runs through the end of the 2024 campaign, came as something of a surprise given the club’s inconsistency during his tenure in San Francisco. The Giants posted losing seasons in his first two campaigns with the club before mustering a phenomenal 107-win 2021 season that propelled the club to its first NL West title since 2012. Since that strong showing, however, the club has been marred by middling performances. The club finished the 2022 season with a .500 record before slipping back underwater in 2023 with a 79-83 season that resulted in the club swapping out Gabe Kapler in favor of Bob Melvin in the manager’s chair.
Beyond the comments on Zaidi’s contract status, Johnson also spoke about the club’s ability to make further additions to the roster via free agency after spending on outfielder Jung Hoo Lee, catcher Tom Murphy and right-hander Jordan Hicks earlier this winter while also picking up southpaw Robbie Ray in a trade with the Mariners last month. Johnson was quick to emphasize that the club still has the capacity to continue improving the club via free agency, noting that “there are a lot of good players out there” who the club remains “very interested in.”
While Johnson didn’t specify any particular targets, previous reporting has indicated that the Giants view third baseman Matt Chapman as their top target on the positional market. Chapman, 31 in April, would substantially improve the club’s defense as a four-time Gold Glove award winner at third base who leads all big leaguers with +92 Defensive Runs Saved at the hot corner since he first debuted back in 2017. Chapman would also provide the club a substantial boost in terms of power. While he veteran hit just 17 home runs last season, his .203 isolated slugging since the start of the 2020 season could nonetheless provide a dramatic boost to a Giants lineup that posted an anemic .149 ISO last year, good for just 23rd in the majors. Among all Giants with at least 100 plate appearances last season, only Wilmer Flores and Mike Yastrzemski posted an ISO of .200 or more.
By contrast, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle notes that comments from Zaidi in the wake of the Hicks signing last month indicated the club may not pursue further starting rotation additions. Johnson somewhat backed that notion up, with Shea quoting Johnson as having said that he thinks the club is “going to have to rely on some younger pitching” headed into the season with veterans Alex Cobb and Ray both expected to start the season on the shelf. Those signals from both the front office and ownership seemingly cast doubt on the likelihood of San Francisco making a splash at the top of the rotation market, where southpaws Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery are the consensus best arms remaining.
If the Giants truly are unlikely to make a run at further rotation upgrades, it would be something of a surprise. After all, after trading away both Anthony DeSclafani and Ross Stripling while watching Alex Wood and Sean Manaea depart via free agency, the Giants have seen their starting pitching depth take a major hit this winter. While both Cobb and Ray could provide reinforcements later in the season, the club currently figures to go with rookies Keaton Winn and Kyle Harrison, youngster Tristan Beck, and Hicks to round out the club’s rotation alongside Logan Webb.
Only Hicks debuted in the majors prior to the 2023 campaign among that quartet, and the righty has made just eight starts in the majors to this point in his career. Adding a reliable arm to the mix alongside Webb would give the club a significantly deeper and more stable rotation mix to open the season with while lessening the club’s need to rely on speedy returns from Cobb and Ray as they rehab from their respective surgeries. If the club doesn’t have the financial wherewithal to stomach a nine-figure commitment to Snell or Montgomery, a handful of decent mid-to-back of the rotation arms such as Mike Clevinger and Michael Lorenzen also remain available.
I’m ok with letting the kids play. We need some power for sure in that lineup though
@Balk
Well, O’s let them play and they won 100 games but then collapse under playoff pressure to a more veteran squad from Texas. So, let them play but don’t expect that championship with just kids playing.
Old York, Them winning those 100 games was ahead of schedule. They added Burnes, and now the kids have another year of experience. Their chances this season are excellent, and most teams would be more than happy to be in their situation. If the Giants playing the kids even approximates the O’s success, then why not?
The O’s winning 100 games was more about other teams not performing than O’s being outstanding. Good team for sure but looking for some regression. Good thing they got some pitching. You can only count on starting pitching band-aids for so long.
Not sure I understand how the O’s winning 100 games isn’t equal to 100 wins by another team. Every team played every other team. Did those other teams somehow play worse when facing the O’s?
The Rays, in the same division won 99 games. Was that also because of other teams not performing? The ALC was 46 games under against the ALE. The ALW was 18 games under against the ALE. So the division was not weak by any means.
The O’s were 12 games over .500 in the division, 12 over against the ALC, 10 games over against the ALW, and 6 over against the NL. So for those 100 wins to be illusory every team would have had to perform below their capabilities when playing them.
Regression is likely. They may never hit that number again. And that might be just fine. They may not need to. Some of their fans should temper their expectations.
retire21, I agree. Regression is likely. Using the number of 100 games is just a symbol of their achievement in 2023. They still have potential to compete in 2024. Maybe they win only 90 games this season but take the WS title? That would be regular season regression, but more successful overall. Tempering expectations is good advice for fans of every team.
That’s all I was saying. I’m looking forward to see what they can do but I wanted them to stop getting starters with an era of 4.60 to 5.47 over a season. It worked but I’m sure the fans would feel better with a little more run suppression.
The team needs a core beyond Webb and Bailey. If that means letting the youth fly then I am all for it.
And Doval.
What kids did the Orioles let play? The only guys with a significant role under the age of 25 were Gunnar, Grayson, and Westburg. The Rangers had a 20-year-old Evan Carter and rookie Josh Jung in their playoff lineups, so they were letting the kids play as well. Don’t let facts get in the way of this “collapsing under playoff pressure” narrative, though.
@old York, if the Giants win 100 games but fall short of a championship I will be super disappointed as it stands now. This is a stacked lineup that should cruise to its 4th ring of this century. Seriously though if this team as it is goes .500 I’ll be surprised, it’s going to be a hard watch after Memorial Day.
I am too, but at a certain point you need someone to soak up innings. Those young guys have never pitched more than 150 innings in a professional season, and the in-house veteran replacements are coming off of major surgeries. The Giants need at least one guy they can plug into the rotation for the whole season, or else they risk running their young pitchers ragged.
Let’s not forget, too, that the A’s spent last season letting the untested kids play before collapsing, reversing course, and eventually, acquiring Alex Wood and Ross Stripling (ironically, both Giants) to pave over their missteps.
I’m not okay with handing over hundreds of innings to pitchers who pitched to middling results in extremely limited MLB outings (Harrison, Winn, Beck) or who have no track record as a reliable starter (Hicks). Heck, I’m reluctant to count in Cobb or Ray, both of whom are injured and with unknown timelines back and question marks when they do return.
So you are saying that you think it is a bad idea to go forward with a youth heavy rotation (Winn and Beck are second year and Harrison has seen some time last year so not rookies) but also don’t rely on the veterans that will be joining the rotation mid season that are former all star and cy young winning? I mean you can’t have it both ways.
Scottn59c, I thought the same thing about the D’backs last season. I didn’t think, turning over 100s of innings to untested rookie pitchers was a good idea. They went into the season with Gallen, Kelly, and the awful Zach Davies, looking to fill out the rotation with Ryne Nelson, Brandon Pfaadt, and Tommy Henry. I disputed AZ as a popular choice to make the PS. I didn’t see how going unto the season with 3 guys that had a total of 47 ML innings between them would get them to the playoffs. I was wrong.
Happy Willie Mays Day – 2/4/2024 – gotta like the Say Hey Kid!
@MannyBeingMVP
Next year, on 2/5/2025, will we be celebrating Barry Bonds Day? Bonds was 19% better than Willie Mays at run creation.
I have no problem with a day to celebrate Barry Bonds.
But no way, Bonds is Mays’ equal, watch them both play defense.
Probably in the bay we will and then a bunch of dummies on the Internet will say he was only good with steroids
Not really a “feel good “article at all..
Feeling the pressure I would say.
You either let the kids play or trade them away, maybe this is their shot to stick if not it’s their audition for a new team.
Fourth place team in division in 2024.
Still, three pennants this generation makes it hard for their fans to gripe too much.
Montgomery looks like a good fit for them.
A better fit than Snell. Monty is clutch, and that’s hard to find.
I agree on that. They have Harrison, Hicks, and when Ray is back with control issues. Adding Snell isn’t the answer especially at what he’s asking. After the Zito and Shark contracts I doubt they’d entertain such a contract on a player like Snell. He’s a great pitcher but not 250-270 mill great. Maybe 3 years-85-90mill with a few extra mill with incentives.
I just don’t like what the Giants have done this offseason. They gave the guy from the KBO 19 million a year when for a little more they probably could have signed Bellinger. The Robbie Ray trade was stupid. Jordan Hicks isn’t a starter at least he has upside but using him as a starter will be a mistake. They gave away Stripling and money after they just signed him.
And on top of all the Giants bad moves the Dodgers went and got the top 2 free agents plus more and look like the best team in baseball on paper.
It all comes down to the best team on grass tho.
I agree with everything you said. My only counter-argument is that with the Dodgers so stacked and San Diego and AZ also really good, they arguably should have done a mini-rebuild. Except I really don’t buy that any big city team ever needs to do that. I give their off-season a D.
I would give them a C- but the off season aint over yet.
Yeah a mini rebuild could have made sense and they wait until Haniger, Stripling, and Descalfini are off the books. Instead they picked up long term bad money in the Ray deal and signed a couple high upside but low floor types in Hicks and KBO guy.
The funny thing is that everyone says that Lee is a low floor high upside guy but all of the prediction systems agree on roughly a 2-3 WAR with a BA around .290 which is kind of the opposite – consistency and a productive major league
Do you actually understand anything?
Toilet paper.
How quickly everyone forgets that the Giants just won 3 world series. Dynasty franchise. Dynasty stadium and city too.
Quickly? That was 12-16 years ago. They haven’t “just” won anything. Dumpster fire fits better than dynasty franchise.
They would have won at least 2 more if not for divisional cheating.
Well they no longer seem to care about winning. And the city is in the same boat as the Giants, once great, now garbage.
The Giants have the most underrated farm for pitching.
Kyle Harrison #1 LHP prospect in baseball
Keaton Winn has one of the best splitters in the world
Landen Roupp has one of the best curveballs in the world
Carson Whisenhunt has one of the best changeups in the world
Moving on from DeSclafani and Stripling opens up spots for these guys along with Hicks/Ray/Cobb
Underrated af
The Giants will never get the respect they deserve. Doesn’t matter how many world series they win or how much they make the rest of mlb look like chumps year in and year out
Those are quite some hyperbolic words you are using there. I do sincerely hope SF has figured how to draft & develop pitching prospects but I get skeptical when I see these bandboxes they are forced to pitch in at obscene elevations in the driest of air where the balls just fly…that has to mess with some guys.
All of those pitchers have a lot of proving to do before you can claim that they have “best in the world” stuff.
Yes and none of them are stretched out to quality starts across a full MLB season. I am high on the pitching prospects too, but SF should add at least 1 more veteran who can pitch in the first half. The prospects will need time to build that endurance.
I watched roupp when he was in San jose and that dude impressed the hell out of me, with all the guys that get the press, he is one that gets overlooked and deserves more credit.
As a long time Giants fan in the Bay Area I can tell you that a large part of the fan base just doesn’t care anymore and is disgusted.
I live in the Bay Area. We just attended their Fanfest in SF, SJ and Napa. It was packed. I have no idea what are part of the Bay Area you are referencing- maybe Oakland?
There has been declining attendance at games these past few years. Last year was the lowest attendance in Oracle Park history:
sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2023/09/25/san-…
Baseballs popularity is declining in every city around the country. That’s not unique to San Francisco.
The stadium certainly wasn’t packed the last couple of years. They aren’t putting an entertaining product on the field, so people have stopped caring/going to games. When Wilmer Flores is your best offensive player, you have big problems.
Tell ‘em CALgoldenBears! I live in SF and I love the Giants! The opposite of disgusted! This is just the same stupid negative vitriol from a small group of vocal social media trolls, don’t listen to them, go Giants!!!!
Everyone is mixing up Greg Johnson with his father. Charles is the one with the objectionable politics. Greg is not a problem. And we need another experienced starter.
Put Barry
Correct – Charles B. Johnson is the principal owner and Greg is his son.
While Greg presumably has his job thanks to his 90 year-old father, I have no idea what Greg’s politics are.
Everyone’s political views are objectionable, it’s fair to not like ones point but to think one person’s opinion is the only right opinion is when dictatorships come. We should be talking baseball not politics
Opinions end at the point that it impacts someone else’s ability to live freely. Johnson’s views (at least based on his donations) include conversion therapy and supporting insurrections. We should be talking about baseball, yes, but living free should be a presumption not an aspiration.
“ Opinions end at the point that it impacts someone else’s ability to live freely.”
Wasn’t is old Joe that pushed for more irs agents and now your Venmo PayPal and third party accounts will trigger tax forms at $600 dollars cause you’re considered a “business”? Use to be either 25k or 50k.
Seems like taxing people more for trying to make a few extra bucks in an already inflated market where prices for things like gas groceries rent mortgage rates etc have become astronomical really interferes with the “ability to live freely” mantra you have. But why let facts get in the way of a bed time story about the spooky conservatives.
Not everyone, just one moron whose name begins with GSW is getting them mixed up.
Bary does need to be in the hall though
Sir, is your screen name referring to Barry Bonds, Barry Zito, or Barry Goldwater…just curious, thnx
Does anyone know if that guy we got in the stripling trade is any good?
I think he has good upside, speedy, good bat control. No power.
Awesome, thanks for the response. I saw that his strkeout rate is pretty high but with our coaching staff that can be fixed.
SS/OF young and athletic.
Too soon to tell. He’s a lottery ticket years away. Apparently he had strikeout issues in A ball, but MLBTR says that BA praised his bat to ball skills. That sounds paradoxical to me. He does have some tools. Whether he develops or not is the question.
Who cares they got rid of stripling
Sorry giants fans, the roster is set except for one relief pitcher spot available for a guy in their farm system. There will be no Chapman, no Bellinger, no Montgomery and no Snell. Sorry delusional Giants fans. Not gonna happen.
Dire prediction JHoff. That said, very possible scenario. Here’s one thing though; can’t believe Melvin signed on for this. Something good has gotta be in the works.
If Melvin sucked it up for all those dumpster-fire A’s teams, he can hack it. It’s got to be better than SD, where they were actively shopping him to the Giants.
Is Jeff Hoffman = Old York burner account …??? hmmmmmmm
The problem I see is there is no depth to the rotation. If there is an injury or two early in the season they don’t have arms to cover it. This is compounded because while the back end of the bullpen is solid they haven’t addressed middle relief. Hicks is a five inning guy at best and the rookies haven’t really been stretched out in the minors.
Didn’t Zaidi pitch in Travel Ball or Boy Scouts Auxiliary??? I mean, in a pinch he could do it.
As a life long Giant fan living in Utah, I used to take my boys to see SF play all over the country. They loved Buster, MadBum, Craw, & Pence. We refuse to spend our money on them anymore. If the owners don’t care, why should we. Sorry, but paying money to watch a middle order of Wilmer, LaMonte Wade, & Michael Conforto just doesn’t do it for me. Look at who Farhan has brought in: Tommy LaStella, Descalfani, LaMonte Wade, Mitch Haniger, Ross Stripling, & other scrubs. Meanwhile our competitors have brought in Shohei, Betts, Trey Turner, Sherzer, Soto, Bogartts, Freeman, Darvish, Snell, & other All-Stars. Absolutely unacceptable!
It’s a complete joke. And not a single 30-HR hitter since Bonds.
Not a single 70-HR hitter since Bonds.
Haniger is not a scrub. Hardest working man in baseball. Just unlucky with freak injuries. Perhaps he’s cursed.
It’s too bad we saw the worst of him in SF. I wish the guy well, but was happy that SF found a taker for that contract.
You may not be so happy when Haniger hits 30 HRs for Seattle this year.
Pete, he could do that if he’s healthy. But whether he’ll be is another question.
BondsAway, I feel sorry for you and your kids, way to focus on the negative! You sound like a fair weather fan and embarrassingly spoiled. Get some perspective. Giants moved to SF in what 1958? Didn’t win it all until 2010!!! 52 years of futility! Many many very thin years in there with massive heartbreaks. Did fans give up then? No! They were true fans. Sabean was hired and it took him 14 years to win it all, and much of that was a lucky windfall in the draft of Cain, Lincecum, Bum, Craw, Buster. That doesn’t happen often, ask other teams!
Sabean then drained the farm to near death. Zaidi has been slowly building up the farm. He did that without tanking the major league team. He could have and then the process would have been faster by getting top ten picks but keeping the major league team somewhat competitive while building the farm is a slower process but we now have a ton of exciting prospects on the way and just arriving. Did you not see Patrick Bailey? Kyle Harrison? These are kids, give them time. Be patient. My god most teams fans would give anything to have ‘10, ‘12, and ‘14 and now watch their team rebuild.
Enjoy life BondsAway, it’s short and if you can’t see the beauty and fun in the world and our team, you are going to have a bitter miserable time here on earth
If Zaidi had been honest about rebuilding, that would be one thing. But to pretend like you’re actually trying to compete – what he’s done the last several years is a joke. He’s torn the Giants down in everyone’s eyes, making it next to impossible to lure top-tier talent here. Sure maybe Kyle Harrison will get somewhere this year, but these are not the top level prospects we developed when we won three WS: Bumgarner, Lincecum, Posey, Cain.
” He’s torn the Giants down in everyone’s eyes…”
First of all, speak for yourself, not everyone. You forget, the season before Zaidi took over the Giants had a 73 and 89 record. The season before that, they lost 98 games. Every year since then they’ve had a better record, so I don’t see how he’s torn them down, when they were worse before
There is some talent coming up but is it enough or just enough to keep their level?
The giants farm system is ranked 14th by mlb and 17th by the fangraphs money value rating. That means it isn’t bad and some talent is coming up but if they want to reach the dodgers and braves level or at least 95% of that level imo they need a top3 farm system (with like 7+ top 100 prospects).
Imo they need to tank for 2-3 years.
Concerned Giants fans would do well to read and contemplate the analysis of Michael Baumann over at Fangraphs. blogs.fangraphs.com/the-two-rubensteins/
His article uses the recent Orioles sale to explore the risks associated with wealthy, private equity fund owners purchasing sports teams.
If Charles Johnson has the sensibilities of the worst actors Baumann describes, this could be troubling for fans. I’m no fan of the Giants; but, I would NOT wish this outcome on any team. It’s not good for baseball in the long run.
Great article. It certainly seems like some version of that worst-case scenario is what the Giants are engaged in now. They show signs of trying to get out of it, but we’ll see if that actually happens.
Thanks for reading and commenting. I can’t imagine that Farhan would want to be a knowing tool for this kind of cynical strategy. That said, his cautious approach is perfect for the kind of owner Michael Baumann describes.
Org is aimless. Development pipeline sucks, they can’t sign free agents, have zero vision as an organization. Both Johnson and Zaidi should be replaced. It ain’t the city that is the problem folks. It’s the organization. Kinda sad but they need to hit the restart button.
good vibes only, you need to change your name to bad vibes only. I would hate to see life with your eyes, you couldn’t be more wrong
I like the free agent signings Zaidi has done for SF. They are gambles but safe gambles.
Johnson is 2 years removed from dropping 60m plus on a state of the art development centre. It would seem that it’s time to see what the investment has produced. Fair enough. Let them play.
You don’t understand timelines in terms of player development. Don’t confuse your impatience with reality.
I’m far from impatient. True regarding the not understanding baseball development timelines. Obviously guessing based on the reality of their moves and what they are saying.
Besides the flukey 2021 season, what have they achieved? Not a whole lot. Farm system is ok, had a good draft last year. AJ Preller made some big trades and signings, still managed to rebuild their farm system quicker than what FZ has done. My patience is running thin but I will give the benefit of the doubt this season. If they are out of it by the deadline, they need to sell some pieces.
I’d like everyone who believes that “Ringz!” are all that matters to look how miserable the fans of a team that has 3 recent championships are.
I’ll take being a fan of a team that is competitive every year, thank you
They aren’t competitive every year. They are over 100 games behind the Dodgers since Farhan took over.
ted, Give it up on the 100 games behind LA schtick. It’s about the dumbest stat I’ve ever seen. Apparently you computed that for the Giants only, so I looked at some other team’s W/L records in respect to the Dodgers. Over the past 5 years:
The Astros are 39 games worse than the Dodgers.
The Braves are 41 games worse than the Dodgers.
The Rays are 45 games worse than the Dodgers.
The Yankees are 57 games worse than the Dodgers.
The Phillies are 98 games worse than the Dodgers.
The Padres are 109 games worse than the Dodgers.
The D’backs are 126 games worse than the Dodgers.
The Rangers are 148 games worse than the Dodgers.
There’s not a single team in MLB with a better record than the Dodgers over the past 5 seasons. And only 5 with a delta less than 100, and Phillies only ducked under that by 2.
Zaidi has rubbed off on Johnson – talking out of both sides of his mouth & nothing but excuses. Other words don’t expect anymore additions just going with what roster looks like. If so, Giants will compete with Rockies for last place in NL West. Sounds like Johnson is ok with that.
Johnson & Zaidi have become the laughingstock of MLB & made the Giants patsies for other teams.
1) Why is Johnson now saying Zaidi’s contract not been finalized?
2) Has Johnson tied Zaidi’s hands & told him how much he can spend?
3) Is Johnson saying Zaidi’s offseason has been good enough to stop pursuing other players?
4) If (Chapman) is main target why hasn’t he been signed yet?
5) Why not going after top of rotation SP?
6) if rotation is decided just to give youngsters an opportunity is it just to save $$$?
7) Why waiting for Cobb & Ray to return & not sign Snell or Montgomery (top of rotation SP) or trade for Cease Luzardo Valdez?
8) Offense still weak & filled with platoon players & no stars. Why not sign/trade for impact bats?
Well, they did overpay early for JH Lee, so there’s that. Seriously, Lee’s ceiling is Arraez and his floor is Akiyama…
Think he’s more like a poor man’s ichiro than Arrez. Way more speed and more pop
Johnson made his point. He & Zaidi don’t care what the fans think.
Agree. It’s up to the fans to make them care.
Agree 100 percent
No they don’t. Thank goodness for that.
Does Johnson really think fans are so dumb to believe that he doesn’t know whether or not Zaidi’s signed his contract extension?
If he thinks that then he’s just as dumb?
Makes no sense. Every business uses Docusign, Adobe sign, or any number of similar e-sign software programs. Johnson is a CPA who is executive chairman to one of the world’s largest investment funds likely managing over a trillion in investments globally. They’re one of the most valuable franchises in the sport. We’re supposed to believe his forgetfulness or flightiness means contracts aren’t being executed?
There’s a glitch in the contract. It’s likely minor. But there is a glitch. Curious what it is.
Honestly, it sounds like he’s hedging. Hopefully it means that Zaidi can be given the boot after this season.
They keep lying all the way. And I don’t think is only Johnson and Zaidi. I don’t believe anyone. And I hope the new manager and coaches are not just a new set of puppets.
It’s done is pretty definitive.
But sure, pin your hopes on some admin tardiness.
Honestly you need a couple guys who can hit around .300 and a guy who can hit around 30 home runs. Trade for them, sign them, develope them, but you need those guys. If you’re not making a concerted effort to get them you’re giving up on winning. Just trotting out the same lineups every year of number seven hitters is ridiculous. I won’t blame this all on Zaidi either, it’s been going on for years.
Bart or Ramos for Reds SS Jose Barrero – he’s out of options and has been awful in MLB but tore it up big time in AAA Louisville (neutral ball park). The Reds tried converting him to CF like they did with Senzel and both were ok, but Barrero is a fine fielding SS.
Giants ownership and Zahdi leave us Giants fans with a team that is the equivalent of watching paint dry.
Giants look like they’re headed for a similar record to that of 2023. Based on WAR, their projected W-L record will be 77-85. Not sure if that was the plan of the off-season but they are slightly below league average for payroll. It’s just sad that the O’s and Rays have much lower payrolls and had more success, last year.
How could the Giants possibly end their offseason moves here and conclude that they are one iota better than last year, which the article reminds us, resulted in the manager getting canned, as well as the worst attendance in Oracle park’s history?
I think this team looks notably worse than last year with its paper mache rotation of untested youth (Webb notwithstanding). They also lost a lot of power with the departure of Joc and Haniger.
The only thing they have going for them is the unknown factor of how a fresh injection of youth will fare. But honestly, I was not convinced with the performances of any of the youth that reached MLB last year beyond Patrick Bailey. Even Bailey, skilled with the glove, looks like hitting is going to be a weak spot.
If the offseason ends now, it’s a punt on 2024.
The overwhelming majority of young players don’t just come up and start killing it. They need some time. Like Webb did. Doesn’t matter how much the internet gets all butt hurt and cranky, if you are investing in youth you have to give them that time. Deal with it or watch something else is the choice.
Old York, Last season they were a winning team three-quarters of the way through the season. They were 7 games over .500 with a solid hold on the 2nd WC berth. They were on pace to win 86 games.
Then they collapsed over the final 41 games. Why are you and many others defining the team based on the final quarter of the season, and not the first three-quarters? It’s certainly debatable that the collapse was due more to Kapler and clubhouse issues than it was them just suddenly being bad.
Plus, despite what many say replacing Stripling, Wood, and Haniger, with Hicks, Murphy and Lee, and giving more innings to Harrison, Beck and Winn, with the possible promotions of Whisenhunt and Roupp, plus mid-season help from Cobb and Ray makes them improved over 2023.
The media makes the Giants relevant. Average minor league system and average MLB talent, at best. Carry on.
Zaidi is a dumpster diver recruiter who goes to the Alameda Antiques Fair to find players. Extending him sends a message to fans that mediocrity is enough and they are more focused on low payroll than winning. It doesn’t matter that they took a run at big name free agents, they didn’t sign any! Results matter.
The Giants have been the most boring team to watch the last few years, no personality, no consistency, a different lineup, every night, playing math ball, powered by ChatGPT.
I’m over them.
See you later, Deke. Enjoy the new hobby.
@foppert2 your post makes no sense. I can’t criticize my own team and expect them to do better?
Deke, Every single team in MLB claims guys off waivers and signs marginal guys to MiL deals. If Zaidi is a dumpster diver so is every other exec running a ML baseball team.
Just this week the Dodgers signed Dinelson Lamet, who hasn’t been close to good for 3 straight seasons. I don’t mind legitimate criticisms of Zaidi, but to complain about him doing what is SOP throughout the game is biased and unfair.
Sorry. I thought you said you were over them. In my world, that means…..you are over them. Anyhow, apparently it doesn’t mean that. My mistake.
I’ve found some diamonds in the rough at Alameda Antique Fair, you gotta know what you’re looking for though.
FANS NEED TO PUT EVEN MORE PRESSURE ON JOHNSON BAER POSEY ZAIDI & EVEN MELVIN. DON’T LET UP MAKE THEM FEEL THE HEAT
DON’T SETTLE FOR A MEDIOCRE TEAM & A REPEAT OF 2023.
FIRE ZAIDI BEFORE HE DESTROYS A ONCE PROUD & RELEVANT GIANTS TEAM
No need to yell, bro; but yes, we feel your pain.
0h look. He has upped the internet pressure game to include writing in Caps. How will they cope with this ?
MLBTR is bad for mental health
I think ya got the cart before the horse on that one.
As a fan of Chapman, I hope he doesn’t sign with the Giants. Giants’ stadium is a horror able, place to play because bad weather and bad place for home runs. Would like to see him play about anyplace but giants’ stadium.
As not a fan of Chapman, I agree with you. Let Chapman play any place OTHER than SF.
As a Cubs’ fan, Chapman would be a perfect fit on a one year over-pay deal, or two years over-paying and with an opt-out. We need a bridge to Matt Shaw, but not if it requires a 4-5 year deal. Not sure the Giants, Angeles or Blue Jays will swoop in for Chapman unless the price hits rock-bottom.
If he’d accept a one or two year deal he’d be signed already, Not only the Cubs, but the Giants and probably the Jays would be all over that, even with a high AAV.
His price doesn’t have to hit rock bottom for the Giants to sign him, it just needs to be more reasonable. The Giants have a lot of payroll space.
Sounds like the Giants, bidding against themselves, will sign Chappy to a heart-warming 6 to 8 year contract. He will be reunited with Bob Melvin. Everyone will be in their happy place.
Nothing’s changed, it’s time to move on. Fire him now!!!
FYI to anyone that cares my opinion is my own but I love the Giants and dislike Johnson. He lies to his fan base
Not sure why the giants are doing wrong. Zaidi is a smart guy and he spends a lot on coaching, analytics and technology and yet the giants struggle to develop players, especially hitters.they had some highly touted prospects but they mostly failed or underwhelmed at the mlb level.why is that not working better?
Imo they are kinda stuck in between. They try to be somewhat competitive with a high but not top shelf payroll (last year 12th at 187 mil) and they neither really buy nor sell.
Result is that except for 2021 they have been mostly a 75-80 win team the last 5+ years.
Not sure what the plan is. They kinda try to be the rays on steroids using a lot of “tricks” like platooning, bullpenning and so on to maximize the wins but unlike the rays their player development doesn’t give them enough of a boost.
The seem to be unwilling to got to the 230+ mil range of payroll and instead prefer to stay around 190 or so but they also don’t want to sell and build a really top notch farm system. Their farm isn’t terrible but not enough to challenge the dodgers and to a lesser extend the padres (now probably more the dbacks).
Not sure why it isn’t working, a lot of the process stuff (like investing into coaching, tech….) seem to be right but it clearly isn’t working.
I think the best solution probably would be to tank for two years and acquire as many top prospects as possible but it seems the giants ownership doesn’t want to go there and rather sell enough tickets on a semi competitive team.
If they continue like this they probably say a 500 team the next 4 years too, unless they have a really lucky year where everything goes right.
2021 was that year, not saying that team wasn’t great but really everything went right. Maybe if 2021 never happened they would be in a better spot now because the owners would be more inclined to allow a 2-3 year rebuild.
Venn Diagram:”The Dodgers are ruining baseball” people and “fire the dumpster diving GM” people
We Need Pitchers!
February 5, 2024
Last season we led “wild card” before trade deadline ! Farhan did nothing to improve team & we lost all playoff hopes. It’s been 10yr.s since last world series! We need to get rid of “moneyball” mentality & WIN THE WORLD SERIES!