Locked On Giants – Daily Podcast On The San Francisco Giants

Talk about a bombshell. The San Francisco Giants fired manager Gabe Kapler on Friday afternoon after four seasons in San Francisco. Kapler was an unpopular choice for Giants manager from the start, and he never won over a large segment of the fanbase. These weren't his failed rosters, but nonetheless Kapler always seemed to lack the communication skills necessary to face the media twice daily and seemed to be somewhat of an absent presence in a reeling SF Giants clubhouse.

Why does Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi get to keep his job? He's the one responsible for these rosters that have massively disappointed in two straight seasons, in years four and five of his tenure here. It's a very fair question. The answer would seem to be that Zaidi has made numerous savvy moves and is seemingly one or two major moves away from having far more success. Thairo Estrada, Mike Yastrzemski, LaMonte Wade Jr., and J.D. Davis are all good to above-average major leaguers, and all were acquired in trades for next to nothing. The Kevin Gausman, Carlos Rodón, and Wilmer Flores stand out as great acquisitions. The Logan Webb extension was a success. Zaidi simply must be more bold moving forward (for example, he should've signed Gausman to a long-term deal when he had the chance).

So ... who are the candidates to replace the fired Kapler? Everyone has an opinion, from old-school "baseball men" like Ron Wotus, Ron Washington, and Dusty Baker to newer school managers like Craig Counsell, who's contract is up after the season. Donnie Ecker is a very intriguing possibility but would the SF Giants be willing to take a chance on a first-time manager? One other name to keep an eye on: Buster Posey. Sure, he'd also be a first-time manager, but there couldn't possibly be a more popular choice among Giants fans, and that's kind of what this team needs right now is some good morale.

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

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In the immediate aftermath of what can only be described as an extremely disappointing 2023 season for the San Francisco Giants, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi made some very interesting comments in an interview with KNBR. Zaidi admitted that the Giants' roster was not athletic enough, and emphasized that the SF Giants' platoon-heavy approach may only work with a couple of studs anchoring the lineup.

Zaidi also seemed to dodge a question about Gabe Kapler's future as Giants manager. He did say that he appreciated ownership's support in bringing both back next year, but also didn't unequivocally commit to Kapler returning in 2024. While Kapler has many good qualities, there are questions as to whether he's the best person to lead the San Francisco Giants moving forward, and a change wouldn't be too shocking. At the very least, SF Giants fans should expect some coaching shakeups.

Switching gears, trade possibilities are discussed. It's legitimately possible if one or more of Juan Soto, Pete Alonso, and Mike Trout are dealt this offseason. Since the free agent market is thin on position players, a trade for one (or more) of these three could make sense for the Giants, who should be desperate to make a big splash to improve their team in 2024. Zaidi won't be around much longer if the Giants don't get dramatically better in a hurry.

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No fan of the San Francisco Giants wants to be in offseason mode on September 28. But that is, sadly, the state of the Giants right now as they were eliminated from playoff contention two days ago. And so look forward we must, and it begins by taking inventory of which SF Giants players are reaching free agency. Among the headliners: Joc Pederson, Brandon Crawford, and Alex Wood.

Next are the guaranteed commitments for the Giants. Michael Conforto ($18M) and Sean Manaea ($12.5M) are possible opt outs, whereas Ross Stripling has already stated he will opt in. Mitch Haniger and Anthony DeSclafani are a couple of other SF Giants who will be back on guaranteed deals. Some good guaranteed deals include those to Wilmer Flores and Logan Webb.

Finally, the Giants' arbitration-eligible players. This list includes J.D. Davis, Austin Slater, Mike Yastrzemski, LaMonte Wade Jr., Tyler Rogers, and Thairo Estrada. All six seem like pretty easy tender decisions, because the contracts will be cheap relative to free agent prices for similar production. Estrada stands out as a possible extension candidate for the Giants.

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

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Five years into the Farhan Zaidi era, San Francisco Giants fans want, expect, and deserve more. The Giants were officially eliminated from playoff contention with last night's loss to the Padres, something that's happened far too often since 2017 and under Zaidi. The SF Giants are a proud, storied franchise with a reputation for winning. However, they've done anything but outside of an anomaly 2021 season in which they won a miraculous 107 games.

Giants players appear to have their minds elsewhere. There was reporting yesterday by The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly that the team has been nonchalant about losing. SF Giants ace and leader essentially said as much. Baggarly's reporting detailed that several players appear more interested in playing cards before games rather than preparing to face their opponent. And now for the fourth time this month, a player seemed to forget how many outs there were during a game. Unacceptable, all of it.

Where does the blame land? Who, if anyone, takes the fall? It really is a top to bottom situation. Giants ownership needs to be more driven to win. Zaidi and his front office need to take bolder action instead of just constantly working at the margins. Gabe Kapler needs to take control of the clubhouse. The hitting coaches may be under the most fire of anyone. And the San Francisco Giants players themselves need to hold themselves to a higher standard. When the fans seem to care more than the players themselves, that represents a major organizational problem that must be fixed or nothing will change.

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

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Even though the San Francisco Giants are all but eliminated from playoff contention, last night's win over the Padres felt like it meant something. For one thing, the SF Giants and Padres entered the game tied in the standings. For another, it took a two-out, two-run hit from Michael Conforto to finally get the Giants on the board and overcome a 1-0 deficit. Finally, it meant something that SF Giants ace Logan Webb was absolutely dominant en route to his second complete game of the season.

Even though the game meant something, Webb wasn't satisfied afterwards. He had some harsh words about the team's clubhouse culture, stating to The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly and others: "I’m tired of losing. It’s not fun. We’ve got to make some big changes in here to create that winning culture." Apparently, the Giants don't seem too upset after losses. And several players seem more interested in a card game than studying the opposing pitcher who's likely to dominate them that night. One player even spoke anonymously and said that the team's decision to play music after losses was unprecedented around the league. This all falls on the players, but also on manager Gabe Kapler and his staff.

Webb's Cy Young candidacy is discussed. It was a great matchup last night with Webb vs. Blake Snell. Both were excellent, and Snell is likely to win the award thanks to a low-2.00s ERA. But Webb should probably be in the top three thanks to the fact that he leads MLB in innings, he's prevented runs at a terrific rate, and his walk rate and ground ball rate are both the bets in the NL (and his ground ball rate is best in all of MLB by a huge margin).

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

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The San Francisco Giants' season is all but over. Losing three of four in LA sealed the Giants' fate, even if they're not technically eliminated just yet. The 2023 Giants season certainly had its positives, but the negatives will stand out more. According to a report in The Athletic, the SF Giants may have damaged their reputation this year by quickly moving pitchers Sean Manaea, Ross Stripling, and Alex Wood to the bullpen after early struggles, and benching or platooning high-paid players like Mitch Haniger.

While there is probably some truth to the Giants' damaged reputation, it shouldn't stem from those examples. All of those players played their way into their roles, with the one exception being Manaea, who probably deserved to go back into the rotation much earlier than the last couple of weeks. Manaea has quietly been very effective for four months, mostly in a "bulk innings" role out of the 'pen. Losing director of pitching Brian Bannister could harm the Giants as well, and could be part of a much larger shakeup with the coaching staff after this failed season.

But things weren't all bad this year for the San Francisco Giants. Rookies Patrick Bailey, Luis Matos, Marco Luciano, Kyle Harrison, Tristan Beck, Keaton Winn, Ryan Walker, Blake Sabol, and others were all imperfect in their own ways, but all provided promise for the future. Among them, several look like long-term major leaguers, and there may even be a star or two among their ranks.

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At least we have Kyle Harrison. The San Francisco Giants' road incompetence reached historic proportions after dropping Thursday night's game in LA, but a trio of young Giants did provide a spark. Harrison was really good over 5.1 innings, allowing just two runs against an extremely potent Dodgers lineup. The quality of Harrison's stuff was good, and he was pitching through an illness.

On the offensive side, Marco Luciano and Tyler Fitzgerald each drew a walk and had a hit. For Fitzgerald, it was his first hit in MLB. Luciano had some hits in his first stint with the SF Giants, and sending him down was an unpopular move. It's a shame Giants fans didn't get a longer look at Luciano, particularly given how this season seems certain to end up—with no playoffs. Again.

Alas, the SF Giants' road woes have reached historic levels. Their 5-26 record in their last 31 road games is the worst 31-game road stretch for the Giants franchise since 1902. If the Giants had merely been as bad as the next worst teams, they'd be tied for a playoff spot. If they'd been 10-21, they'd be in the second wild card spot. If they'd been 15-16, they'd be the No. 1 wild card team by two games. But instead, they were historically awful, and someone should have to take the fall for this Giants team's collapse (both on the road and at the plate in the second half).

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

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🎧 Overcast https://bit.ly/3wqZsbg

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The best daily San Francisco Giants podcast. Whether the Giants are winning championships or retooling for another title run, Locked On Giants host Ben Kaspick—a lifelong Giants fan and former contributor for RotoGraphs and Beyond the Box Score—breaks down every game, rumor, and transaction in a way that's data-driven and rational but also simple, passionate, and accessible to all.

On X: https://x.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

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The San Francisco Giants' playoff hopes are almost certainly over. So it's not at all surprising that today, the SF Giants announced a flurry of future-oriented moves. The Giants recalled Marco Luciano and Tristan Beck from Triple-A. They selected the contract of Tyler Fitzgerald and added him to the MLB roster. Sean Hjelle was optioned. Brandon Crawford was placed on the IL with a right hamstring strain, and Paul DeJong was placed on unconditional release waivers.

Hopefully the Giants give long looks to Luciano in particular, but also Fitzgerald. And give Tristan Beck, along with Kyle Harrison, chances to start games. SF Giants fans are sick and tired of the timid approach the Giants have taken with some of their young players. Watching them get jerked around back and forth between Triple-A and the Majors. Watching them get 12 plate appearances and then get sent down. Seeing them get pinch-hit for in the MLB debut when everyone in the ballpark wanted to see that player hit. It's time for all of that to stop.

Brandon Crawford may have played his last game as a Giant. He's eligible to come off the IL on the last day of the season, however, so even if he's injured he should be activated and get to walk off the field for perhaps the final time. The SF Giants failed miserably by not giving a proper sendoff to Brandon Belt in what clearly could've been (and ended up being) his last game as a Giant. Lastly, Tom Verducci's article in which he calls the SF Giants baseball's "most boring contender" is discussed.

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

🎧 Apple Podcasts http://apple.co/3ycRK3U

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🎧 Google Play https://bit.ly/3D356mr

🎧 Overcast https://bit.ly/3wqZsbg

🎧 Megaphone https://bit.ly/3wGGcXD

The best daily San Francisco Giants podcast. Whether the Giants are winning championships or retooling for another title run, Locked On Giants host Ben Kaspick—a lifelong Giants fan and former contributor for RotoGraphs and Beyond the Box Score—breaks down every game, rumor, and transaction in a way that's data-driven and rational but also simple, passionate, and accessible to all.

On X: https://x.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

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When all was said and done, the San Francisco Giants simply withered away amidst the Arizona heat. The D-backs plunged venom into the now nearly hopeless SF Giants, who could be as many as four games back with 10 games remaining after these two losses.

Who's to blame for what went wrong for the Giants this year? It really starts all the way at the top and comes all the way down to the bottom. Ownership deserves blame. Farhan Zaidi and his staff deserve blame. The coaching staff. Gabe Kapler. The players. They all deserve blame for this unacceptable season. An offensive collapse around the halfway point of the season and a 5-25 road record in their last 30 road games seem to have done the Giants in.

So ... what's to come for this proud franchise? Change is likely. At the very least, a shakeup among the coaching staff seems like an inevitability. Kapler could be on the hot seat. Zaidi as well. Even if both remain next year, they'll enter the year under serious fire. Mostly none of the SF Giants' main offseason targets ended up panning out. Mitch Haniger was a total no-show, and Michael Conforto did very little. Ross Stripling was very bad from the very beginning. It's time for soul searching and a correction of course from the San Francisco Giants and it must start now.

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

🎧 Apple Podcasts http://apple.co/3ycRK3U

🎧 Spotify http://spoti.fi/3Bak0pN

🎧 Google Play https://bit.ly/3D356mr

🎧 Overcast https://bit.ly/3wqZsbg

🎧 Megaphone https://bit.ly/3wGGcXD

The best daily San Francisco Giants podcast. Whether the Giants are winning championships or retooling for another title run, Locked On Giants host Ben Kaspick—a lifelong Giants fan and former contributor for RotoGraphs and Beyond the Box Score—breaks down every game, rumor, and transaction in a way that's data-driven and rational but also simple, passionate, and accessible to all.

Follow Ben Kaspick on X, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On X: https://x.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

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The San Francisco Giants' season is one the line tonight in Arizona. But before tonight's game gets underway, the Giants have a lot of scoreboard watching to do. Last night, the Reds and Phillies won and the Marlins lost, leaving the SF Giants with essentially no shot of catching Philadelphia, but still just two games out of a playoff spot.

The remaining schedules for the Cubs, Reds, Marlins, and D-backs are discussed. Since the SF Giants find themselves two games back with three teams they must pass, these other teams' games are equally important as their own. There is a small opening that the Giants hope they can push through, but they'll need some help, and they'll need to take care of business in the desert.

The Giants and D-backs begin a critical two-game series tonight, with marquee pitching matchups in both games. Tonight it'll be ace Zac Gallen against the ailing Alex Cobb (left hip impingement). Tomorrow, the Giants will feature their ace Logan Webb against SF Giants nemesis Merrill Kelly. If the SF Giants can somehow manage to win both games, it could propel them back into the wild card race. If they split, they'll still have a faint pulse and will hold the tiebreaker over AZ. Two losses would probably effective end the Giants' season.

Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

🎧 Apple Podcasts http://apple.co/3ycRK3U

🎧 Spotify http://spoti.fi/3Bak0pN

🎧 Google Play https://bit.ly/3D356mr

🎧 Overcast https://bit.ly/3wqZsbg

🎧 Megaphone https://bit.ly/3wGGcXD

The best daily San Francisco Giants podcast. Whether the Giants are winning championships or retooling for another title run, Locked On Giants host Ben Kaspick—a lifelong Giants fan and former contributor for RotoGraphs and Beyond the Box Score—breaks down every game, rumor, and transaction in a way that's data-driven and rational but also simple, passionate, and accessible to all.

Follow Ben Kaspick on X, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On X: https://x.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

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