It has not be an ideal season for the San Francisco Giants, as they have been hovering around the .500 mark for most of the year.
Despite spending a good amount of money on their roster this season, the Giants arguably didn’t live up to expectations. As we wrap up the season, San Francisco is going to be a team to watch in the offseason, as they have a lot of potential players coming off the books.
Recently, the Giants did address one of those players who was potentially going to test free agency this winter, as they locked up third baseman Matt Chapman to a six-year deal.
Chapman was signed by the Giants this past offseason, and has had an excellent first season in San Francisco. The strong season thus far by Chapman made it pretty clear that he was going to opt out of his contract and test free agency. However, San Francisco made sure that didn’t happen.
Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report recently spoke about what the payroll for the Giants could like going into next season, and predicted them to be big spenders in free agency.
“That 2025 payroll of $143.8M for some reason does not yet include the estimated $25M to Chapman, but it does include the combined $63.5M theoretically due to Blake Snell and Robbie Ray. Snell is very likely going to opt out, though, and it’s at least plausible that Ray will join him in free agency. If that happens, that payroll (after factoring in Chapman’s $25M) drops to just $105.3M, and the Giants would be on the prowl for several of the top free-agent pitchers.”
This offseason will certainly be an interesting one for San Francisco. As we have seen this season, the offense needs to be addressed. Keeping Chapman is a step in the right direction there, but if they want to contend, they need to add more bats.
With a lot of money coming off the books, it will be interesting to see if the Giants pursue Juan Soto in free agency. San Francisco was very much in on Aaron Judge a couple years ago, and they might try for Soto this offseason.
Even if Soto isn’t in the cards, there are a lot of other talented bats out there that could help the Giants. Furthermore, it will also be worth monitoring to see if they elect to bring Blake Snell back, as he has been pitching really well of late and will likely be opting out of his contract.
While San Francisco might not have the reputation of being big spenders, the franchise has shown that they don’t mind making big offers for star players.
