Notoriously, it has been a struggle for the San Francisco Giants to recruit free agents to the team. That is a trend they began to buck in the offseason leading into the 2024 regular season.
Reigning Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and third baseman Matt Chapman were both hoping to land lucrative long-term deals. Those offers never came, and the Giants took full advantage signing them late in the offseason.
Both have performed at a high level, as Snell is likely to opt out of his contract and hit free agency again. Chapman could have done the same, but he instead decided to sign a long-term deal to remain with the franchise.
The two sides worked out a six-year, $151 million extension in early September, ensuring they locked in a key member of their lineup for years to come.
The 2024 campaign is the best for the platinum glove third baseman in years. He continues to have incredibly slick work at the hor corner but has been mashing at the plate as well as being one of the best players in the National League.
Ace Logan Webb has taken notice of the impact his new teammate can have.
Admiration for the star third baseman from the pitcher began when they faced off against each other in a scrimmage in the fall of 2014. Webb was taken deep by the then-Oakland Athletics slugger.
It was a welcome to professional baseball moment for the All-Star pitcher, who wanted to be teammates with Chapman ever since.
That became a reality this past offseason and will remain the case for years to come. Hopefully, there will be more success on the scoreboard during their tenure together.
For that to occur, more talent needs to be added to the roster. Webb believes that Chapman will be key in that happening.
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed it, but (Chapman) is saying hi to everyone who gets to third base,” Webb said via Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. “Every player is going out of their way to say something to him. Maybe that’s a small thing. But I think that’s important for us in future offseasons. It’s been tough sledding (with free agents). I’ve been part of the conversations and it’s hard when you put effort into a guy and he goes somewhere else. So having Chappy will help for sure. It won’t just be a right-handed sinkerball pitcher trying to get a position player to come hit here, right? I can’t tell them what it’s going to be like.
“We’re still going to miss on guys. There are 29 teams who won’t sign (a free agent). But he’s very respected around baseball and they see how hard he plays every day and they want to be like that. It’s the same thing you saw with the Brandons and Buster and Longo (Evan Longoria). People around baseball wanted to play with those guys.”
Locking Chapman into a long-term deal not only solidifies one place in the lineup, it could help improve others. Given Webb’s glowing review of the talented third baseman, he may be able to help recruit other players to the Bay Area.
If that happens, an already solid contract will present the franchise with even more value.
