Locked On Giants – Daily Podcast On The San Francisco Giants

There's something extra special about San Francisco Giants wins when young players play key roles. The SF Giants had a nice team win in Denver on Tuesday, with David Villar, Sean Hjelle, Thairo Estrada, and Joey Bart playing key roles. Giants rookie Hjelle tossed four very strong innings in relief, which is not easy to do at Coors Field. Thairo Estrada collected two more big hits for the Giants. David Villar hit a rocket home run to left field. Joey Bart had a triple (that was later ruled an error), a single, and a really nice tag play at home plate (which was not called an out even though the runner did, in fact, appear to be out).

Buster Posey has joined the San Francisco Giants' ownership group, in a bit of shocking news. Posey will also serve on the Giants' board of directors. Posey obviously brings a fresh perspective to an ownership group that hasn't ever consisted of any former Giants players. Posey's share in the team is undoubtedly small (the franchise is valued at over $3 billion), but he's a legend within the organization and he will yield considerable influence. Posey's addition to the Giants' ownership group is nothing but a stone cold win for the franchise.

Giants Director of Pitching Brian Bannister hasn't been with the team all season, reports Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. Bannister is reportedly unvaccinated, and MLB rules dictate that he isn't allowed at any team facilities. Bannister means so much to what the organization does from a pitching standpoint that Farhan Zaidi has allowed him to continue working in his role remotely. Bannister yields considerable influence over pitching acquisitions and helps pitchers reach peak performance. He lives in the Bay Area so he has been able to work with players off site, apparently. Vaccine mandates will likely be lifted at some point in the not-too-distant future, so Bannister should hopefully be able to return to business as usual not long from now, perhaps as soon as 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

Nugenix

Now get a complimentary bottle of Nugenix Total T when you text MLB to 231-231. Text now and get a bottle of Nugenix Thermo, their most powerful fat incinerator ever, with key ingredients to help you get back into shape fast.

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

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San Francisco Giants utilityman Thairo Estrada is having a breakout season. Not a lot has gone right for the SF Giants in 2022, but Thairo Estrada's season should definitely be counted among the positives. Estrada delivered yet another late, clutch home run in Monday night's Giants win over the Rockies. Estrada is on pace for about 3.0 FanGraphs WAR, qualifying him as a solidly above-average everyday player. The Giants don't have a lot of everyday players to begin with.

Looking at the San Francisco Giants' position player mix, there isn't a lot to be excited about. They've been one of the worst units in MLB since the All-Star break. Wilmer Flores is solid and just signed a two-year extension. Joc Pederson is good in his role (defensively-challenged righty masher), but it's unclear whether he'll be back in 2023. LaMonte Wade Jr. and Luis González haven't had great seasons and are non-tender candidates. Mike Yastrzemski has had his second straight disappointing campaign. Evan Longoria and Brandon Belt might not be back next year. Brandon Crawford has had a highly disappointing season following a fourth-place MVP campaign in 2021.

David Villar is among the players who could be a big part of the mix in 2023, and watching him the rest of the way is a big deal for the Giants. He had a rough defensive night on Monday, but redeemed himself in a big way with a two-out double in the ninth inning that tied the game. Villar has been about 20% above average by wRC+ this season, hitting for above-average power and walking at a very strong clip. Defense has been an issue at times, and he makes a well-below-average amount of contact, but overall it's not hard to see the ingredients of a quality player. How he plays over the season's final two weeks is very significant to his and the Giants' future.

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

Nugenix

Now get a complimentary bottle of Nugenix Total T when you text MLB to 231-231. Text now and get a bottle of Nugenix Thermo, their most powerful fat incinerator ever, with key ingredients to help you get back into shape fast.

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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

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The San Francsico Giants have lost a lot of games this season, and they just lost their General Manager. Scott Harris, the Giants' GM since November 2019, is leaving to become the Detroit Tigers' President of Baseball Operations. It's a major promotion for Harris, who will now assume Farhan Zaidi's role with his new organization. The Giants and Zaidi will be tasked with hiring a replacement GM, something they'll want to get done as quickly as possible given that the offseason is fast approaching and the SF Giants have tons of work to do.

The Giants are still a very desirable organization to work for and there should be no shortage of interest for this role. Despite the rough 2022 campaign for the San Francisco Giants, they're still a big-market team with a beautiful ballpark, and are primed to be big spenders this offseason (at least that's what we hope).

The Giants finally wrapped up their miserable season series with the Dodgers. The SF Giants ended up going 4-15 against their rivals, the worst winning percentage they've ever had against LA since moving to San Francisco. It was a miserable season vs. LA, and the talent disparity was monumental. The Giants can and must add to this roster in a meaningful way this offseason. Expectations shouldn't necessarily be to match the talent of the Dodgers in one offseason, but they should at least make themselves a somewhat obvious playoff team. If they don't, pressure will start to mount in a serious way on this front office, which will be entering year five of the Farhan Zaidi Era. A new GM could bring some welcomed new perspectives.

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

Nugenix

Now get a complimentary bottle of Nugenix Total T when you text MLB to 231-231. Text now and get a bottle of Nugenix Thermo, their most powerful fat incinerator ever, with key ingredients to help you get back into shape fast.

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!

LinkedIn

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The San Francisco Giants will enter the offseason motivated to fix what went wrong in 2022. They'll have money to spend and talent on which to spend it. Which of the free-agent shortstops will the SF Giants prioritize? Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa, and Dansby Swanson all figure to hit the open market (Bogaerts and Correa have opt-outs that will need to be exercised first). The Giants really can't go wrong with this group of players, but the priorities should be one of Turner, Bogaerts, and Correa. Not only are these three able to impact the game defensively, but they're also middle-of-the-order bats.

Was 2021 the aberration or was 2022 the aberration? The boring answer is that neither was an aberration. The Giants got what they deserved in 2021 and they've deserved their record in 2022 as well. The issue appears to be that the 2021 performance was not sustainable; so in a way, last year was more of an aberration than this year. But they got legitimately great performances out of many players last year, and a lot of those players have regressed and gotten older in 2022. The Giants will need to upgrade their team in the offseason if they hope to contend in 2023.

Why aren't the SF Giants linked to Justin Verlander more often? He would make a lot of sense on a short-term deal but smart money would have him returning to Houston. Will the San Francisco Giants do what it takes to bring back Carlos Rodón? After what happened with Kevin Gausman last offseason (the Giants didn't make him an offer, per Gausman), it's not a safe assumption that they will pony up for Rodón. Short-term deals for pitchers may continue to be the Giants' preference, and there are options (Jacob deGrom, Verlander).

Also discussed: do Giants chairman Greg Johnson's comments suggest the team is more interested in being a middling playoff team than a World Series contender? Who are four position players who won't be back on the Giants next 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 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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

BlueChew

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The San Francisco Giants have a lot of work to do this offseason. They must spend money to get back to being a highly competitive team. Giants chairman Greg Johnson spoke with The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly recently, and Johnson said that the SF Giants will do what it takes to put a "highly competitive" team on the field.

Johnson said the Giants would spend what it took. He used the numbers $175 million and $180 million, and said "or higher than that." While on the one hand it's not great to hear him point to exact numbers that aren't particularly high, it is nice to hear Johnson say the Giants will do whatever it takes. Now they must go into the offseason and prove it.

Locked On Giants estimates that the Giants will spend about $103 million on about 22 players when all the dust settles in terms of team and player options and arbitration raises. This means the SF Giants could re-sign Carlos Rodón for $22.5 million per year and still only have about a $125 million payroll. This leaves plenty of room for a marquee addition like Aaron Judge (likely to command about $35 million per year) or Trea Turner ($30+ million per year) and still come in below the numbers Johnson referenced. Another significant addition, perhaps Brandon Nimmo at $20 million per year, would push them up against those $175-180 million numbers.

Johnson also gave a vote of confidence to Giants' president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi. While this season hasn't gone as hoped, Johnson still believes in Zaidi and the direction of the team. Ultimately, the first two seasons were destined to be losing ones regardless. In 2020 the Giants actually showed signs of real promise. They carried that into 2021 and won a franchise record 107 games. So in reality, there's only been one truly disappointing season under Zaidi, and it's this one. He more than deserves at least one more year, but there is now a lot of pressure on the team to have a big 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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

BlueChew

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It's going to be a big offseason for the San Francisco Giants. Don't just take our word for it, however. Take it from the team's president of baseball operations. Farhan Zaidi recently told reporters that it's going to be a "big offseason" for the SF Giants, and that the team "has payroll room because [they're] a big market and ... have contracts that are ending this offseason."

How much money the Giants will spend remains an open question. Currently, they have about $70 million committed to next year's team, not accounting for Carlos Rodón, who can opt out of the $22.5 million he's owed next season, or arbitration raises. With arbitration raises, the San Francisco Giants will have roughly $98 million committed to 15 players. Factor in several pre-arbitraiton players (like Joey Bart, Thairo Estrada, and Camilo Doval) and the number gets to roughly $103 million going to about 22 players.

That means, even if the Giants stayed around $162 million, as they have each of the last few years, they'd still have about $60 million to spend on four players. They could sign Aaron Judge for $35 million per season. They could sign literally anyone and stay below that mark. But in order to truly have a great offseason, the Giants will need to exceed the $162 million they've hovered around for a few years.

Bringing back Carlos Rodón, or someone like him (Jacob deGrom?) seems important. Then Judge, Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Brandon Nimmo, Carlos Correa, Dansby Swanson seem like the best possible fits on the position player side, assuming the SF Giants are looking for impact talent.

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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

BlueChew

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San Francisco Giants reliever Zack Littell was out of line. Littell allowed four of the five hitters he faced to reach base, yet somehow he had the nerve to give Giants manager Gabe Kapler a hard time about taking him out of an existing inning. It was absolutely the right decision for Kapler and the Giants to remove Littell in favor of Scott Alexander, a lefty who’s been good against Matt Olson, one of the game’s best left-handed hitters, with the tying run on third in the eighth.

Littell said after the game that he was wrong and that he apologized to the SF Giants’ skipper. He was, indeed, out of line, and it was nice to see how the Giants manager handled the situation. He took Littell into the tunnel immediately after returning to the dugout and gave him a good old fashioned talking to. The Giants went on to win the game against the defending champion Atlanta Braves.

More details on Wilmer Flores’ contract extension with the Giants are discussed. It’s actually three years, $16.5 million guaranteed, although the third year is a $3.5 million player option. If Flores declines his option, the Giants hold an $8.5 million club option, which could bring the value of the deal up to 3/$21.5 million. It’s a solid deal for both sides.

Right-handed flamethrower Cole Waites was added to the roster and could be a big part of the Giants’ bullpen moving forward. He didn’t make his debut last night, but expect it sometime in this series. Willie Calhoun, acquired earlier in the season for Steven Duggar, was also activated and had an impressive first plate appearance with his childhood team, as he drove in the Giants’ first run with a single off the right-field wall.

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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

BlueChew

Try BlueChew FREE when you use our promo code LOCKEDON at BlueChew.com,-just pay $5 shipping.

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The San Francisco Giants need to get younger and more athletic. Wilmer Flores isn't exactly young and isn't exactly the most athletic. Nevertheless, in his three seasons with the SF Giants, Flores has established himself as one of the Giants' most important players—both on the field and off of it. The Giants and Flores agreed to a two-year, $13M extension on Monday with a mutual option for 2025. It's a great day for the San Francisco Giants.

Flores is Mr. Consistent. He's been an above-average bat in every season with the Giants. He has been durable. He can play multiple positions. He's not the greatest defender, but Flores provides value to the Giants in so many ways. He has been above-average against lefties and righties. The Giants can still get younger and more athletic around Flores; this doesn't prevent them from trending in that direction overall.

The SF Giants also have quite a few mid-20s players who have had solid-to-strong performances in 2022. Logan Webb, Joey Bart, David Villar, and Camilo Doval had big weekends in Chicago, as the Giants took two out of three from the Cubs. All four are 25 years old, and making an impact to some degree with the Giants this season. Webb looks like very good major league starter. Doval is looking like a possible elite closer. Bart and Villar have had some growing pains along the way, but clearly there is potential in each of them. Another mid-20s player having a strong season is Thairo Estrada, who is young (26) and athletic.

In other news, Dominic Leone was released. Leone was set to reach free agency at the end of the season, and he was injured and performing poorly. The Giants are going to give auditions to several new bullpen arms for the rest of the season who might be a part of the future, and clearly Leone was no longer in the SF Giants' future pans.

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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

BlueChew

Try BlueChew FREE when you use our promo code LOCKEDON at BlueChew.com,-just pay $5 shipping.

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

Now there is a clock in baseball. The pitch clock is coming to MLB in 2023, and a shift ban is coming with it. MLB has been experimenting with these rules in the minors, and they were officially voted in on Friday. The pitch clock will eliminate tons of dead time between pitches where nothing happens and is likely to be a smashing success when all is said and done, despite not necessarily pleasing everyone initially.

The ban on shifts will also have big consequences. There must be at least two fielders on either side of second base, and all must have both feet on the dirt. This will be a huge boon to left-handed hitters in particular, who have been victims of aggressive shifts that have taken away hits in shallow right field for many years now.

The San Francisco Giants got swept in their doubleheader yesterday, but the big takeaway from the game was Sean Hjelle's strong five innings of work. The Giants right-handed pitcher was pumping mid-90s sinkers in the zone, racking up strikeouts and ground balls. The rest of the season should be about watching guys like Hjelle, and seeing whether they can be key pieces on next year's team.

Outfielder Austin Dean was added to the 40-man and MLB rosters prior to Friday's game, and reliever Cole Waites is on the taxi squad. Dom Leone was placed on the IL with an elbow impingement. Yermín Mercedes was DFA'd and outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento.

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!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Did you know every week, nearly 40 million job seekers visit LinkedIn? Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONMLB.

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

David Villar was the best hitter in his league in 2021 and 2022. He mashed 27 home runs in just 84 games for the Sacramento River Cats this season. Villar's first cameo with the San Francisco Giants, in July, didn't go particularly well. But Villar burst out in a big way during the weekend against the Dodgers.

Villar hit three home runs in the series, including two in the finale and one against Clayton Kershaw. He's an important player to watch for the SF Giants over the last month of the season, as he could be a part of their future. With the Giants all but out of playoff contention, the rest of this season should be about auditioning future pieces, and Villar is first on that list. Lewis Brinson is another guy to watch, and he too had a huge series in Los Angeles.

Several bullpen arms for the Giants are also new and worth watching over the final four weeks. Luis Ortiz was added to the Giants' roster on Wednesday. Shelby Miller is in Milwaukee and may be added. Alex Young and Scott Alexander have been in the 'pen for a while now and could be future pieces. The Giants' season is now about watching how all of these new players perform, as they are auditioning for roles on next year's SF Giants team.

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

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BetOnline

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