In early October, Buster Posey was back to the San Francisco Giants. However, this time, he’s not back on the field. Nonetheless, he is going to be a leader again. Posey will lead the Giants as the president of baseball operations.
It’s very interesting to see the future Hall of Famer become the head of the baseball operations of a team that he had contributed so much to. He won the NL Rookie of the Year award in 2010 and in 2012, he won the NL MVP award. Additionally, no one will ignore that Posey and the Giants won the World Series 3 times.
On the field, Posey was certainly a great catcher and a great hitter. Nonetheless, leading the Giants baseball operations won’t be an easy job.
So, what are the challenges?
Firstly, the Giants finished the 2024 season with 80 wins and 82 losses. They were 4th in the NL West and the Giants haven’t clinched a postseason berth since 2021. Looking back at the 2024 season, the Giants finished the season with an OPS of .701, ranking 19th among 30 MLB teams. What’s more interesting, an OPS of .701 ranked 5th in the NL West. Hence, it’s extremely important for Posey to improve the Giants offense. In particular, no hitters in the Giants lineup blasted at least 30 home runs in 2024 and among players who played 100+ games for the Giants, no one finished the season with an OPS of .800 or higher.
In addition, let’s look at the pitching staff. In 2024, the Giants pitching staff owned a 4.10 ERA, which were 19th among 30 MLB teams. In the NL West, the Diamondbacks owned an ERA of 4.62 and the Rockies finished the season with an ERA over 5. Moreover, the Giants had a 1.30 WHIP, which ranked 22nd among 30 MLB teams. In the same division, the D-backs and the Rockies each had a WHIP over 1.30. Meanwhile, opponents’ batting average against the Giants was .246, which ranked 20th among 30 MLB teams. So, the Giants pitchers didn’t do a great job this season. Therefore, Posey will have to figure out how to build up a team that their pitching performance would be as good as the Dodgers or the Padres.
Thirdly, let’s look at the starting pitchers. The Giants starters finished the season with a 4.22 ERA, which ranked 18th among 30 MLB teams. Nevertheless, a 4.22 ERA was actually the 2nd among 5 teams in the NL West. However, their WHIP of 1.30 was 22nd in the majors and ranked 3rd in the NL West. In the Giants rotation, Logan Webb has been consistent. He made 33 starts, posting a 3.47 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP over 204.2 innings. Nonetheless, only 2 other players threw 100+ innings for the Giants as a starter. Kyle Harrison posted a 4.56 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP over 124.1 innings. Blake Snell owned a 3.12 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP in 104 innings. Jordan Hicks threw 109.2 innings for the Giants in 2024. But as a starter, he made 20 starts and tossed 98.2 innings with an ERA over 4. Thus, it’s important to enhance the rotation during the offseason.
Finally, we have to look at the bullpen. The Giants relievers had a 3.96 ERA, ranking 15th among 30 MLB teams. But their WHIP of 1.30 ranked 21st in the majors. Tyler Rogers and Ryan Walker each made more than 70 relief appearances and tossed 70+ innings for the Giants in 2024. Rogers posted a 2.82 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. Walker collected 10 saves and earned 10 wins with a 1.94 ERA and a 0.85 WHIP. Nevertheless, Camilo Doval, who used to be the closer for the Giants, struggled in 2024 with a 4.88 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP over 59 innings.
So, looking back at the 2024 season, there are several things to do for Posey and the front office staff during the offseason. They might need to sign a free agent that could blast 30+ home runs in a single season. At the same time, they will have to pay attention to Jung-hoo Lee to see if he could contribute to the Giants in 2025. Moreover, it’s still unknown if Blake Snell will opt out. But it’s certain that the Giants will need starting pitchers and relievers. And, let’s see which player will be the first one that Posey chooses to sign.
No comments:
Post a Comment