The Dodgers’ latest free-agent splurge has handed the Giants something they may not need: cover for standing pat.
San Francisco already kept its spending modest this past offseason, and the results showed it, especially on the pitching side. But the bigger lesson right now might be that paying top dollar does not automatically fix a roster. The Dodgers are living that reality in real time.
Los Angeles went into the offseason with two headline additions: outfielder Kyle Tucker, the top position player on the market, and Edwin Díaz, the best available closer. Instead of lifting the club, both have been major disappointments.
Tucker has been rough from the jump. He is hitting .230/.326/.367 with 11 home runs and 55 runs batted in, and he has also made defensive mistakes in the outfield. For a player on a four-year, $240 million deal, that kind of production is hard to justify.
Díaz’s year has been just as ugly, even with the injury caveat. He missed a good chunk of the season, but since returning he has not looked like a late-inning answer. In 16 appearances, he owns an 11.85 ERA and has converted seven of 11 save chances.
That makes the Giants’ bullpen debate look even messier. Buster Posey took heat when he went on KNBR and cited Díaz after being pressed on why the club did not do more to address relief help, but the larger point still stands: money alone does not guarantee a better bullpen. Mark Melancon already showed that.
And that is where the Dodgers’ failures matter for San Francisco. Los Angeles can absorb bad deals because the roster is loaded and the financial muscle is endless, with deferred money pushed into the next millennium.
The Giants do not have that luxury. Tucker and Díaz flopping gives ownership an easy talking point if it wants one: “See!
Spending money doesn’t always work!”
The Giants, to be fair, are spending. They just have not been spending well.
A huge chunk of the payroll is tied up in Willy Adames, Matt Chapman, and Rafael Devers, and those commitments do not look great now. The outlook suggests they may only age worse from here.
That is why an aggressive offseason in San Francisco does not feel likely. Maybe the Giants chase a starter or two in free agency.
A Kevin Gausman reunion would be especially ironic after they should have kept him following the 2021 season. But a major swing at a big-name closer or outfielder does not sound like the direction this front office is headed, even though the bullpen, rotation, and outfield all loom as the biggest problem areas.
There is also the looming lockout to factor in, and that could make plenty of teams cautious about spending until there is a new collective bargaining agreement. If Giants ownership is already looking for a reason to keep the purse strings tight, the Dodgers are handing them one.
In Other News...
Giants Just Got A Big Reason To Believe In The Future
The post-draft, post-deadline update from MLB Pipeline brought a welcome boost for the Giants, who checked in at No. 5 in the new farm system rankings. For a club that has spent recent years trying to balance big-league competitiveness with a deeper talent pipeline, that kind of climb is a reminder that the front office has added more than just short-term help.
A big part of that momentum came through the deadline move that sent Robbie Ray to the Padres and returned prospects Miguel Mendez and Joniel Hernandez to San Francisco. The Giants also kept adding pitching throughout the draft and deadline window, and Ramon Marquez breaking into MLB Pipelines top-100 list only adds to the sense that the organizations next wave is starting to come into focus, even if the full payoff is still ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Willy Adames Is Becoming A Bigger Giants Problem Than Fans Expected
Willy Adames arrived in San Francisco with the kind of contract that instantly makes every at-bat feel heavier, and his first season offered enough encouraging moments to keep the Giants hopeful. Signed to a seven-year, $182 million deal before the 2025 season, he brought the reputation of a difference-maker, the sort of middle-of-the-order presence a club expects to anchor its lineup for years.
This season has been tougher to square with that investment. Adames has been below league average offensively, batting .224 with a 96 OPS+, and the production simply has not matched the expectations that come with his salary. Bleacher Reports Joel Reuter recently pointed to that gap between cost and impact, and for the Giants the concern is no longer just whether Adames can heat up, but whether this is becoming a more lasting issue than anyone anticipated. [Read more 🡒]