Post by Rog on Feb 23, 2017 7:03:52 GMT -5
Most free agent signings came in lower than expected. Reasons included draft pick compensation for players who received a qualifying offer, and lowered perceived for one-dimensional power hitters as home runs last season hit historic highs.
One of the few free agents who signed for more than expected was the Giants' Mark Melancon. Melancon was projected at 4/$52, but the Giants seemed to have target him as the least expensive of the three top closers on the market and also a signee who didn't require draft pick compensation. The Giants moved quickly to meet their need, and wound up paying $10 million above projection.
The Giants were on the other side of the equation though when they signed backup catcher Nick Hundley for 1/$2, far less than his 2/$10 projection.
Signing free agents is a tricky proposition, since if a team waits too long, it can get shut out as other options evaporate. Overall though, this off-season was a good one for teams with patience, as most contracts came in below projection. That was especially true of one-dimensional power hitters. Hundley didn't exactly fit that mold, but he was in that general category, and the Giants' patience regarding him was rewarded.
The Giants filled their most pressing need for a closer, and they shored up a backup catcher position that had been lacking since the since-traded Andrew Susac became injured in 2015. They decided to wage an internal battle for their second priority of left field, and their outfield depth appears to be lacking. Never a strong suit in recent years because of injuries to Hunter Pence, Angel Pagan and others, the outfield is now easily the Giants' biggest question mark.
The only notable outfield additions included former World Champion Giant Michael Morse, a first baseman/outfielder who has been limited by injury since leaving the Giants for the Marlins, and well-traveled backup outfielder Justin Ruggiano. Morse has a power bat but is very limited in the field. Ruggiano has played mostly center field but at age 35 is slowing down and for some reason hasn't found a regular position very often despite a decent bat, one that excels against southpaws.
As discussed, the Giants may need a platoon partner for Denard Span, whose OPS against southpaws has been in the .500's three of the past four seasons, including the past two. Ruggiano seems to have the bat for the job, but may no longer have the center field range. Gorkys Hernandez has the glove, but his bat has limited him to brief patches of major league work.
Of the returning outfielders, Jarrett Parker is the best-equipped to play center field, but he is mostly suited to be an emergency replacement there.
Former Giant Angel Pagan remains an unsigned free agent. Pagan was the Giants' center fielder through the 2015 season, but injuries and declining defense moved him to left field last season. He was healthy enough to start 125 games and rebounded with a .277/.750 season. With 24 net bases, he was easily the Gaints' best base runner.
One would think the unsigned Pagan would still remain too expensive for the Giants, who have said they are committed to giving relatively young outfielders Mac Williamson and Parker the chance to win the left field job. But if Pagan's contract falls enough, the Giants might still re-sign him to compete for the left field job, or perhaps to back up both left and center fields.
A switch hitter, Pagan has hit a mediocre .267/.709 against southpaws over his career and hit at almost exactly that level last season, finishing at .266/.717 against lefties. Still, that is quite an increase over the paltry figures Span has put up against lefties over the past four seasons. Pagan might not add a lot more in left field than a Williamson/Parker platoon, but he would provide a platoon option for center field and would greatly increase the Giants' outfield depth. Obviously the 11-year vet would add considerable experience, and he is generally considered to be a strong clubhouse presence.
How much would we be willing to pay for Pagan? Or would the Giants simply be better off seeing how Williamson and Parker fare, and save their money to apply at the trade deadline if possible? The Giants were said to be the other finalist on Franklin Gutierrez, who wound up signing with the Dodgers for 1/$2.6, so perhaps they would bite on Pagan if the price comes down enough. Just as the Giants made a bargain signing with Hundley, the Dodgers have come up with bargains in Gutierrez and former Giant Sergio Romo, who signed for 1/$3.
Romo has had difficulties the past two seasons against lefty hitters, but he remains tough against right-handers and if handled properly, could be a valuable weapon given his experience in a variety of roles. Former fellow Giants closer Santiago Casilla also appears to be a reasonable bargain at the 2/$11 price he signed for with the A's.
The Giants desperately needed to sign a closer, but it is intriguing to consider that they spent $62 million to replace two failed closers who went on to sign for a combined $14 million.
Regarding deadline trades, keep an eye on minor league first baseman Chris Shaw this season. Shaw is likely ticketed for a return to AA Richmond after hitting .285/.902 last season at San Jose before being promoted to AA with a .246/.722 result. Shaw is the Giants' most powerful prospect, and as a left-handed hitting first baseman whose power is likely to be blunted by AT&T Park and who appears blocked by Brandon Belt, he might provide some trade value if he performs well in his first full season at Richmond. If he can find his way to Sacramento at some point, he might show off his power in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
If Shaw matures as a prospect, he will likely force the Giants to trade him or possibly even Belt, since the two are essentially duplicative. Shaw might have the power edge, and Belt is by far the better fielder and more well-rounded player. Shaw has 33 homers in 761 minor league at bats. As we have discussed, first base is a hitters' position, so Shaw will need to make a strong showing to increase his trade value in a noticeable fashion.
The Giants themselves have several outfield prospects in the minors, but all except Austin Slater appear to be a year or more away. Slater has never been considered that much of a prospect, but at age 23 he hit .305/.893 between Richmond and Sacramento last season. He homered 18 times in 390 at bats, walking 57 times while striking out 89. He drove in 67 runs in his 390 at bats. Slater might be a dark horse to become the left fielder at some point this season if the power he developed last season continues.
There has been very little talk about him, but the 2014 8th-round pick out of Stanford took an impressive step up last season. Slater has hit no lower than .292 at any of his five minor league stops and has progressed from the Arizona Rookie League at the beginning of his debut in organized ball in 2014 to AAA by the end of last season.
Slater showed a precursor of his new-found power last spring training when he hit a ball to center field off the late Yordano Ventura that the Royals announcers believed was the first ball they had seen hit over the grass backdrop and into the flowers and shrubs. The wind was blowing out, but the blast was prodigious under any circumstances.
Royals color announcer Rex Hudler left the booth between innings to help the youngsters search for the ball. Ironically, a young fan wearing a Cal hat came up with the ball.
You may remember seeing the play. Yordano had hit Slater with a pitch in his previous plate appearance. Keep Austin's name on your upcoming slate.
One of the few free agents who signed for more than expected was the Giants' Mark Melancon. Melancon was projected at 4/$52, but the Giants seemed to have target him as the least expensive of the three top closers on the market and also a signee who didn't require draft pick compensation. The Giants moved quickly to meet their need, and wound up paying $10 million above projection.
The Giants were on the other side of the equation though when they signed backup catcher Nick Hundley for 1/$2, far less than his 2/$10 projection.
Signing free agents is a tricky proposition, since if a team waits too long, it can get shut out as other options evaporate. Overall though, this off-season was a good one for teams with patience, as most contracts came in below projection. That was especially true of one-dimensional power hitters. Hundley didn't exactly fit that mold, but he was in that general category, and the Giants' patience regarding him was rewarded.
The Giants filled their most pressing need for a closer, and they shored up a backup catcher position that had been lacking since the since-traded Andrew Susac became injured in 2015. They decided to wage an internal battle for their second priority of left field, and their outfield depth appears to be lacking. Never a strong suit in recent years because of injuries to Hunter Pence, Angel Pagan and others, the outfield is now easily the Giants' biggest question mark.
The only notable outfield additions included former World Champion Giant Michael Morse, a first baseman/outfielder who has been limited by injury since leaving the Giants for the Marlins, and well-traveled backup outfielder Justin Ruggiano. Morse has a power bat but is very limited in the field. Ruggiano has played mostly center field but at age 35 is slowing down and for some reason hasn't found a regular position very often despite a decent bat, one that excels against southpaws.
As discussed, the Giants may need a platoon partner for Denard Span, whose OPS against southpaws has been in the .500's three of the past four seasons, including the past two. Ruggiano seems to have the bat for the job, but may no longer have the center field range. Gorkys Hernandez has the glove, but his bat has limited him to brief patches of major league work.
Of the returning outfielders, Jarrett Parker is the best-equipped to play center field, but he is mostly suited to be an emergency replacement there.
Former Giant Angel Pagan remains an unsigned free agent. Pagan was the Giants' center fielder through the 2015 season, but injuries and declining defense moved him to left field last season. He was healthy enough to start 125 games and rebounded with a .277/.750 season. With 24 net bases, he was easily the Gaints' best base runner.
One would think the unsigned Pagan would still remain too expensive for the Giants, who have said they are committed to giving relatively young outfielders Mac Williamson and Parker the chance to win the left field job. But if Pagan's contract falls enough, the Giants might still re-sign him to compete for the left field job, or perhaps to back up both left and center fields.
A switch hitter, Pagan has hit a mediocre .267/.709 against southpaws over his career and hit at almost exactly that level last season, finishing at .266/.717 against lefties. Still, that is quite an increase over the paltry figures Span has put up against lefties over the past four seasons. Pagan might not add a lot more in left field than a Williamson/Parker platoon, but he would provide a platoon option for center field and would greatly increase the Giants' outfield depth. Obviously the 11-year vet would add considerable experience, and he is generally considered to be a strong clubhouse presence.
How much would we be willing to pay for Pagan? Or would the Giants simply be better off seeing how Williamson and Parker fare, and save their money to apply at the trade deadline if possible? The Giants were said to be the other finalist on Franklin Gutierrez, who wound up signing with the Dodgers for 1/$2.6, so perhaps they would bite on Pagan if the price comes down enough. Just as the Giants made a bargain signing with Hundley, the Dodgers have come up with bargains in Gutierrez and former Giant Sergio Romo, who signed for 1/$3.
Romo has had difficulties the past two seasons against lefty hitters, but he remains tough against right-handers and if handled properly, could be a valuable weapon given his experience in a variety of roles. Former fellow Giants closer Santiago Casilla also appears to be a reasonable bargain at the 2/$11 price he signed for with the A's.
The Giants desperately needed to sign a closer, but it is intriguing to consider that they spent $62 million to replace two failed closers who went on to sign for a combined $14 million.
Regarding deadline trades, keep an eye on minor league first baseman Chris Shaw this season. Shaw is likely ticketed for a return to AA Richmond after hitting .285/.902 last season at San Jose before being promoted to AA with a .246/.722 result. Shaw is the Giants' most powerful prospect, and as a left-handed hitting first baseman whose power is likely to be blunted by AT&T Park and who appears blocked by Brandon Belt, he might provide some trade value if he performs well in his first full season at Richmond. If he can find his way to Sacramento at some point, he might show off his power in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
If Shaw matures as a prospect, he will likely force the Giants to trade him or possibly even Belt, since the two are essentially duplicative. Shaw might have the power edge, and Belt is by far the better fielder and more well-rounded player. Shaw has 33 homers in 761 minor league at bats. As we have discussed, first base is a hitters' position, so Shaw will need to make a strong showing to increase his trade value in a noticeable fashion.
The Giants themselves have several outfield prospects in the minors, but all except Austin Slater appear to be a year or more away. Slater has never been considered that much of a prospect, but at age 23 he hit .305/.893 between Richmond and Sacramento last season. He homered 18 times in 390 at bats, walking 57 times while striking out 89. He drove in 67 runs in his 390 at bats. Slater might be a dark horse to become the left fielder at some point this season if the power he developed last season continues.
There has been very little talk about him, but the 2014 8th-round pick out of Stanford took an impressive step up last season. Slater has hit no lower than .292 at any of his five minor league stops and has progressed from the Arizona Rookie League at the beginning of his debut in organized ball in 2014 to AAA by the end of last season.
Slater showed a precursor of his new-found power last spring training when he hit a ball to center field off the late Yordano Ventura that the Royals announcers believed was the first ball they had seen hit over the grass backdrop and into the flowers and shrubs. The wind was blowing out, but the blast was prodigious under any circumstances.
Royals color announcer Rex Hudler left the booth between innings to help the youngsters search for the ball. Ironically, a young fan wearing a Cal hat came up with the ball.
You may remember seeing the play. Yordano had hit Slater with a pitch in his previous plate appearance. Keep Austin's name on your upcoming slate.