Free Agents Could Significantly Bolster The San Francisco Giants

The San Francisco Giants are in a state of transition.

In 2021, the Giants won 107 games, the most in Major League Baseball.

This past season, the Giants finished with a record of 81-81, giving them a dismal third place finish in the National League West. They were 30 games behind the division winning Los Angeles Dodgers.

According to Fangraphs.com, this past season, the Giants had an estimated payroll of $162M.

The Giants drew 2,482,686, for an average of 30,650 per home date at Oracle Park. They increased their per game attendance from 2021 by 9,916 spectators per game.

But the team failed to perform on the field anywhere close to the 2021 season.

The team was not the same without retired Buster Posey, who was a clubhouse and field leader. Now they need the type of spark Posey provided for years.

Now, fast forward to the coming season.

Starting pitcher Carlos Rodon is a free agent. He was paid $22.5M in his final contract with the Giants.

The Giants held a club option for $13M on third baseman Evan Longoria. The team declined that option, making Longoria a free agent.

Outfielder Joc Pederson and pitcher Jose Alvarez have also entered free agency. Alvarez underwent Tommy John surgery in September.

There is the possibility the Giants may still extend contracts to both Longoria and Pederson. That remains to be seen.

Fangraphs lists the Giants estimated 2023 payroll will be $115M, providing plenty of salary space for the team to bolster their roster with high priced, high profile players.

The Giants have holes to fill on their roster. They have to find a way to score more runs.

Unless they make a trade for a higher paid player, or sign an expensive free agent, the highest paid player on the 2023 Giants will be shortstop Brandon Crawford. Crawford, who will turn 38 before the season starts, will be playing on the final year of his contract. He will be paid $16M.

At this early point of the offseason, RosterResources lists the following potential starting lineup for the 2023 Giants:

Thairo Estrada-2B

LeMonte Wade Jr.-LF

J.D. Davis-1B

Mike Yastrzemski-CF

Wilmer Flores-3B

Brandon Crawford-SS

Luis Gonzalez-RF

Joey Bart-C

Tommy La Stella-DH

The rotation proposed by fangraphs.com lists the following:

Logan Webb-RHP

Alex Cobb-RHP

Alex Wood-LHP

Anthony DeSclafani-RHP

Jakob Junis-RHP

Looking at rosters throughout MLB, to this scout, the Giants are among the MLB teams with the greatest need for improvement across the diamond.

The Giants team as currently constructed will fail to bring fear to the opposition.

To this writer, it will be difficult for the Giants to be competitive in the National League if they field the lineup and rotation noted above.

Potential Free Agent Position Player Acquisitions:

The Giants fortunes would be improved considerably if they sign any of the following free agent position players:

Aaron Judge-Outfielder (Age 30)

Aaron Judge might be the Giants biggest offseason acquisition target. By far.

The New York Yankees have their sights set on getting a deal done with Judge, who hit 62 home runs, scored 133 runs, drove in 131, and walked 111 times.

That doesn’t mean the Giants won’t make a substantial offer to bring Judge back to his home state of California. He grew up in Linden, California, a small town near Stockton. Judge was a Giants fan.

Judge would help the Giants regain fan interest. He would be a formidable presence in the middle of a Giants lineup that lacks power and potential run production.

With payroll flexibility, the Giants could probably meet the contract demands of Judge and his representatives.

Giants President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi has stated, “From a financial standpoint, nobody is out of our capability. And then it’ll just be a question of whether there’s mutual interest.”

The entire San Francisco landscape would change if Aaron Judge decides to return home to California and sign with the Giants.

Free Agent Position Player Targets Beyond Aaron Judge:

Carlos Correa-Shortstop (Age 28)

Trea Turner-Shortstop (Age 29)

Xander Bogaerts-Shortstop (Age 30)

Dansby Swanson-Shortstop (Age 28)

Even though the Giants have another year remaining with Brandon Crawford under contract, they could offer a high value, long-term contract to one of the four shortstops noted above.

The four are among the most consequential free agents in the current class.

Crawford remains a very good defensive shortstop, and perhaps one of the four players above would have to spend one year at third base or second base. Or maybe Crawford moves over in the infield.

Signing any of the four shortstops would markedly improve the Giants ability to score runs.

Correa was an All Star twice with the Houston Astros. He hit 22 homers this past year with the Minnesota Twins.

Turner hit 21 homers and drove in 100 runs, while stealing 27 bases in 30 attempts with the rival Los Angeles Dodgers this past season.

Bogaerts hit .307 with 15 homers and 73 RBIs for a Red Sox team that finished last in the American League East, 21 games behind the New York Yankees.

Swanson hit 25 homers and drove in 96 runs for a very strong Atlanta Braves team.

Josh Bell-First Baseman (Age 30)

Switch-hitter Josh Bell could provide the Giants with a middle-of-the-order hitter with power potential from both sides of the plate.

Since 2020, Bell has gone from the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Washington Nationals to the San Diego Padres.

Bell struggled mightily with the Padres, hitting only .192 in 210 plate appearances. He did hit with the Nationals and the Pirates. He has some power, and can hit the gaps from both sides of the plate.

Andrew Benintendi-Outfielder-(Age 28)

Andrew Benintendi could give the Giants a formidable presence at the top of the lineup.

He won’t offer much in the way of power, but he can provide a good on-base percentage and some speed on the bases.

A good defensive outfielder, Benintendi could add a spark to a Giants lineup that has to come to life and score more runs to contend.

Benintendi made the All Star team while playing for the Kansas City Royals last season. He was traded to the New York Yankees in July. Combined, Benintendi hit .304/.373/.399/.772.

Benintendi would provide a nice option for the Giants at a relatively low annual salary.

Jurickson Profar-Outfielder (Age 29)

Like Benintendi, Jurickson Profar could add some spark and quality play to the Giants offense.

After missing considerable time with the Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres due to injuries, Profar has made a comeback as an interesting, versatile player with more raw ability than he has shown so far.

Once thought to be a promising prospect, a severe shoulder injury that required surgery robbed Profar of playing time. In parts of nine seasons, Profar has only 3,102 plate appearances in 836 games. To this scout, he still has plenty of offense to offer.

A fairly reliable contact hitter, Profar may make a reasonably priced, high-reward, low-risk option for the Giants outfield.

There is a huge gap between the skills of an impact hitter like Aaron Judge and a good, average ability player like Jurickson Profar. However, the Giants need more than one new face to change and update the future of their club.

Conclusions:

From a pure run production standpoint, the San Francisco Giants are a team with a roster in need of upgrades and improvement.

Churning their big league roster may be made easier due to a relatively low potential 2023 payroll. They may have sufficient resources to fish in the biggest MLB free agent ponds.

To this writer, slugger Aaron Judge would make a monumental difference to the Giants.

However, if they can’t land Judge, there are several other position players that could add spark and offensive production the Giants seek in an offseason that could be very busy.

Pitching upgrades are an entirely different matter, and one the Giants will probably look to the free agent class to as well for improvement.