Locked On Giants – Daily Podcast On The San Francisco Giants

The San Francisco Giants have a lot of work to do this winter. While much of the offseason conversation figures to center around Aaron Judge, there's a strong chance he re-signs with the Yankees. If the SF Giants miss out on Judge, or even if they don't, they should also be involved in pursuing the four star free-agent shortstops on the market: Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, and Dansby Swanson.

Correa has emerged as perhaps the best fit with the Giants. He's the youngest of the four, and will be 28 years old in all of year one of a deal. He's also been a very good bat, with a 130 wRC+ since 2020. He's been excellent overall, producing close to five fWAR per 600 plate appearances since the 2020 season. Correa's sprint speed and defense in 2022 left something to be desire, but a quick look at his past defensive work reveals that 2022 was an outlier, and given his age here's no reason to expect any sort of decline to have set in. New San Francisco Giants General Manager Pete Putila knows Correa from their time in the Houston Astros organization.

Trea Turner is no slouch. Turner has been the best of the free-agent shortstops over the last few years, but the difference is that he is going to be entering his age-30 season, and so much of his value comes from his elite speed. Speed is something that usually declines rather steeply at this stage of his career. While Turner is an excellent player who would make the SF Giants much better, he comes in behind Correa for these reasons.

Next is Xander Bogaerts, who is just a pure hitter. Bogaerts was also really good defensively in 2022, but a deeper dive into the numbers reveals that 2022 was an outlier in the positive direction. He has not graded out as a very good defensive player in other recent seasons. Bogaerts could slot into the middle of the Giants' order, and perhaps a move to second base would help the defense, but there are some reasons to be a bit cautious here.

Last is Dansby Swanson, despite the fact that he is the best defender and runner of the bunch. The issue with Swanson is that he's been by far the worst offensive player of this group, and wouldn't necessarily be the impact bat the others could be for the Giants.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

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Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

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SimpliSafe

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The Carlos Rodón signing was a huge win for the San Francisco Giants. They got ace-caliber production all season from Rodón, who will now opt out, re-enter the market, and net a $100+ million deal. Indeed, the Giants had a lot of work to do last offseason coming off a 107-win campaign, as the only starter who was under contract for 2022 was Logan Webb. That was a good place to start, and the SF Giants surrounded him with newcomers Rodón and Alex Cobb, in addition to bringing back Alex Wood and Anthony DeSclafani, both of whom were quite good for the Giants in 2021.

Rodón and Cobb lived up to expectations, but Wood and DeSclafani had issues. DeSclafani only made a handful of starts and then was shut down with season-ending ankle surgery. Wood was generally ineffective and ended up with an ERA over 5. The Giants' defense certainly didn't help their pitchers at all this season, but overall the Giants did pretty well when it came to building out their rotation, particularly due to the ace-level season from Rodón.

But their position player additions were lacking. Brandon Belt was brought back on the $18.4 million qualifying offer, and he had a major dud of a season. He was either hurt or generally not very good. He enters this offseason a true free agent, and he may have played his last game in a San Francisco Giants uniform. The only free-agent hitter the Giants signed last offseason was Joc Pederson for one year and $6 million. Pederson was as good as hoped, but he is ultimately a limited profile. He doesn't play against lefties and was a big part of the Giants' defensive problems. The SF Giants will need to do much more on the position player this offseason.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

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San Francisco Giants teammates Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt showed dramatic improvement in 2020 and 2021, only to fall flat and perhaps cost the team a shot at the playoffs in 2022. After the SF Giants hired Gabe Kapler, and he brought in an entirely new coaching staff, many Giants hitters showed huge improvement in 2020. But it was a short season, and people wondered whether the SF Giants would be able to carry it into 2021. They did so and then some, with several Giants hitters having career years and the Giants winning a franchise record 107 games.

It was reasonable to expect some of that success—which had spanned many players across two seasons—to continue for the San Francisco Giants in 2022. But almost everyone, including Crawford and Belt, failed to live up to even pessimistic expectations. Crawford went from a 6+ fWAR season and finishing fourth in MVP voting in 2021 to posting just 2.0 fWAR with a below-average wRC+. He was, at best, an average player for the SF Giants. The Giants extended Crawford midway through the 2021 season, so he is under contract for $16 million in 2023. Will the Giants pursue one of the top free agent shortstops despite Crawford's presence on the roster?

As for Belt, he went from being legitimately one of the bets offensive players in baseball in 2020-21 to being below-average offensively in 2022. Belt went from posting about 3.5 fWAR in less than 100 games in 2021 to posting 0.0 in about 80 games in 2022. Injuries ravaged Belt's season, and he ended up undergoing season-ending surgery on his knee. The Giants had brought Belt back on an $18.4 million qualifying offer, but this offseason he is a true free agent. Will the San Francisco Giants bring Belt back for another year? Or are his days of being the Giants' first baseman officially over?

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

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The San Francisco Giants' Joc Pederson and Thairo Estrada are Silver Slugger finalists. Pederson had a monster year in a somewhat limited role, given that nearly 90% of his plate appearances came against right-handed pitching. Estrada is a finalist at the utility position, which is a new one for the Silver Slugger Award. Which of these SF Giants players might win, and why?

Offensively, Pederson did exactly what the Giants wanted him to do this season. He crushed right-handed pitching. He actually held his own against left-handed pitching as well, but he faced them so little that it doesn't necessarily indicate real improvement. Pederson struggled defensively, and whether he returns to the San Francisco Giants seems to have a lot to do with what his market is. Will he seek a Kyle Schwarber-type deal (4/$79M)? He has a right to want that kind of deal, as Schwarber is a similar player, but whether it's out there remains to be seen. The SF Giants almost certainly give that kind of money to him, since he is a defensively challenged platoon player.

Estrada is not a free agent—far from it. The SF Giants still have four years of team control over Estrada, but happily, Estrada is a Super Two this offseason, meaning he will reach arbitration a year early. This means that he will earn far more than the league minimum salary in 2023. MLB Trade Rumors estimates a $2.4 million salary for Thairo Estrada next year. The Giants should be happy to pay it, as Estrada had a breakout campaign and was overall the Giants' best position player. While not a star in any category, Estrada was simply above-average across the board, leading to an above-average 2.7 FanGraphs WAR in 2022. The Giants were right to let Donovan Solano walk in free agency, opening up second base for Estrada.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bruce Bochy will probably get a statue outside of Oracle Park some day. He means that much to the San Francisco Giants, so the news of him accepting the role of manager with the Texas Rangers last week was shocking, even if it could be seen coming. Bochy read the room and seemingly agreed mutually with the organization that it was time to move on as the club prepared to bring in a new president of baseball operations, a role that ultimately went to Farhan Zaidi. Bochy managed the Giants for one more season, then he "retired."

But it was apparent almost right away that Bochy still wanted to manage again someday. Which was a little bit awkward from the SF Giants' perspective. The optics made it appear that Bochy was nudged out the door, which may in fact have some truth to it (but it was seemingly decided before Zaidi was hired, so it was more of an organizational decision than a front office one). Anyhow, what will Bochy bring to Texas? What made him so beloved in San Francisco, aside from simply winning three titles? What enables the San Francisco Giants to win those three championships under Boch?

There are a lot of connections between the SF Giants and Texas Rangers these days. Bochy is the new Rangers manager, and Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reported recently that the Rangers plan to make a big push for 2022 SF Giants ace Carlos Rodón. Rodón had a monster season in San Francsico in 2022, and he is certain to opt out of the $22.5M player option for 2023. The Giants have been hesitant to hand out long-term deals to starting pitchers, so it wouldn't be a shock if Rodón doesn't return to the Giants. The same kind of thing happened last year with Kevin Gausman.

Former Giants hitting coach Donnie Ecker, who accepted a role as Rangers bench coach and offensive coordinator following the 2021 campaign, is also discussed. Bochy's coaching staff, and whether he'll go with more "old school" vs. "new school" coaches, will be fascinating to watch. Ecker fall firmly in the latter category.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It happens every year. Free agents are hyped in the offseason, only to fail to live up to their new deals. Last year, several players didn't live up to expectations. Kris Bryant was hurt all season in Colorado. Nick Castellanos produced like Tommy La Stella after getting $100 million from the Phillies. Which San Francsico Giants targets are likely to underperform? And which SF Giants targets are likely to overperform?

Among the top free agents available, there are certainly cases to make that each one could underperform. Aaron Judge will likely never have a better season than he just had. Xander Bogaerts has somewhat concerning expected numbers (based on quality of contact). Dansby Swanson may get a huge deal, but has never been that great of a hitter. Brandon Nimmo hasn't been able to stay on the field enough and may end up underperforming based on health alone. In terms of who may overperform, Willson Contreras is a solid bet as he seems to be lining up as a solid bargain. But will the Giants be interested in signing a catcher?

Do the San Francisco Giants have the ability to sign a big-time bat (like Aaron Judge) in addition to a top-of-the-rotation arm (like Carlos Rodón or Jacob deGrom)? Their payroll, including arbitration estimates, will be around $100 million after Rodón opts out and if they take the buyout on Evan Longoria. That would allow them to add Judge at $35 million a year and Rodón at $25 million a year and still come in around $160 million, where they've been the last few seasons. Indeed, the Giants are in a great position to make impact additions if they so desire. And hopefully the San Francisco Giants are willing and able to push well beyond that modest $160 million figure in 2023 and beyond.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Aaron Judge to the San Francisco Giants? According to our friends at BetOnline, the Giants are the favorites to land Judge—if he leaves New York. The Yankees are undoubtedly the overall favorites, but if Judge leaves, it's hard to envision a better fit than San Francisco. The SF Giants are in need of star talent, and Judge is from the Fresno area and grew up a huge San Francisco Giants fan.

What, exactly, would the SF Giants be getting if they signed Judge? The one knock against Judge is the fact that he will be 31 in year one of a new deal. So if he signs a seven- or eight-year contract, he will be 37 or 38 in the final year. If Judge were five years younger, ZiPS projection system creator Dan Szymborski says Judge's projections would put him in line for a $500 million contract. Given that he's 31 and not 26, however, Judge's projection is worth more like 8/$290 million. Does that make sense for the Giants? Would they really give out a contract that large?

It's not so much about the total value. It's more about the average annual value. In Judge's case, his age is working against him and some caution should be advised when thinking about the realistic odds of the Giants ending up with him. There's definitely a fit there, but other free agents might represent a better value to the San Francisco Giants. Brandon Nimmo and Willson Contreras are a couple of quality players who might end up signing for less than $100 million, but both would plug holes and should be strong values and good everyday players. And there are other top options who are younger than Judge and figure to command less on the open market, even though the production may end up being similar. Those players include Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, and Xander Bogaerts.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Aaron Judge. Trea Turner. Carlos Correa. We all know about the top-tier free agents the San Francisco Giants could target this offseason. But what if they stay true to form and don't come away with any of the top talent? Where will the SF Giants turn in that scenario?

Willson Contreras would be a major upgrade at the catcher position, but the presence of Joey Bart obviously complicates matters for the SF Giants. At first base, Jose Abreu, John Bell, or Anthony Rizzo would all be interesting pickups. The versatile Brandon Drury would be another solid addition for the San Francisco Giants. Justin Turner may be available. Joc Pederson and Mitch Haniger are local kids and would seem to fit on the Giants. What about Cody Bellinger, if the Dodgers non-tender him? He would also make some sense for the San Francisco Giants.

Aaron Judge would be the splashiest possible acquisition for San Francisco, but is he the best option? He's relatively old for a free agent in line for a huge deal, and age is certainly a concern. He's likely to land a seven or eight year deal for something like $35 million per season. Other free agents might make more sense, particularly those who are a few years younger, like Carlos Correa, or those whose markets figure to be less robust for whatever reason, even though there isn't necessarily a huge drop off in talent. Examples include Correa, Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Dansby Swanson, and Brandon Nimmo.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

The Commuter Shirt can get you through any work day and straight into whatever comes next. Head to rhone.com/LOCKEDON and use promo code LOCKEDON to save 20% off your entire order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bruce Bochy is coming back to manage ... the Texas Rangers?! Former legendary San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy will be the Rangers' next skipper after agreeing to a three-year contract. Bochy, 67, retired from managing after the 2019 season, his last with the SF Giants.

Was Bochy pushed out by Farhan Zaidi and the San Francisco Giants front office? Those rumors have swirled ever since Bochy announced his impending retirement, but they're also factually incorrect. Reputable sources have reported repeatedly that the Giants told prospective presidents of baseball operations during the interview process that they would have a chance to pick a new manager after the 2019 season, which would be Bochy's last with the San Francisco Giants.

There's an interesting dynamic permeating major league baseball when it comes to modern vs. traditional managers. Many teams—the Rangers included—have hired modern managers without experience in recent years, only to fire those managers and opt to hire more traditional managers instead. Even Gabe Kapler, who's now managed the Giants for three seasons, was one of these inexperienced types when he took over the Phillies job in 2018.

The Giants seem to be the type of team that doesn't want to cycle through managers so frequently, as many teams seem to do. Kapler was recently given an extension. There's also the increasingly important of the major league coaching staff. Tradtitional managers have traditionally hired coaches that don't necessarily provide the type of cutting-edge technology that will soon be imperative in order to succeed in today's game. Bochy's staffs with the SF Giants certainly weren't of that ilk. It will be fascinating to see how Bochy makes his staff. Donnie Ecker, the Giants' esteemed and modern hitting coach in 2020 and 2021, was hired as the Rangers' bench coach and offensive coordinator in 2022, and it will be fascinating to see whether he remains in that role in 2023.

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 Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

#SFGiants #FirstListen

Built Bar

Built Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.

BetOnline

BetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!

SimpliSafe

With Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnMLB to learn more.

Rhone

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

New San Francisco Giants General Manager Pete Putila keeps giving the same answer when asked what he likes most about the SF Giants' roster. In a word: depth. While it might not be exciting to fans, we should listen to the Giants' new GM. He continues to talk about how depth is crucial for building a winning team. He's mentioned that teams can be top heavy, even with a few of the best players in the game, but without depth winning is far from a guarantee. In the San Francisco Giants' case, they have the depth mostly figured out; now they just need to bring in a couple of impact talents and they could get back to the winning ways they showed in such dramatic fashion in 2021.

Indeed, comparing the San Francisco Giants' 2022 numbers to the 2022 Angels, the Angels had three hitters who posted better fWAR totals than any member of the Giants. But when all was said and done, the Giants' hitters provided more overall value. That's because of the Giants' depth, and the Angels' lack of depth. Both rosters are explored in some detail to illustrate how the SF Giants' strength was having a lot of players chip in a little, and limiting the exposure of players who were proving negative value.

Once a team has established the kind of depth that the SF Giants possess, all they need, in theory, are a couple of impact talents to push them over the top. Putila has said this multiple times in interviews, noting that in 2021 they had a few players producing at impact levels, and a cascade of wins followed. Looking to this year's free agent class, there are numerous players who could provide the type of impact that could push the Giants over the top. It seems at least somewhat likely that the SF Giants end up with at least one of these players: Aaron Judge, Trea Turner, Dansby Swanson, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa, and Brandon Nimmo. There's also, of course, the potential to trade for impact talent. It doesn't have to be through free agency.

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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.

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