San Francisco Giants: Giving the players their final letter grades
After sustaining freak injuries the previous two seasons, Bumgarner returned to his usual workhorse form in 2019. He recorded a 3.90 ERA across 207.2 innings, which ranked second behind only Stephen Strasburg in the National League. The ERA and peripheral numbers continue to suggest regression for the postseason stalwart, but he was still able to eat up a lot of innings. Bumgarner is set to test free agency for the first time in his career, and plenty of teams will be bidding for his services.
Jeff Samardzija: B+
Samardzija was one of the bigger surprises of the 2019 season. After a shoulder injury knocked him out for much of 2018, the Giants did not know what to expect. However, he gave them another workhouse option behind Bumgarner going 11-12 with a 3.52 ERA and 1.11 WHIP over 181.1 innings. His 4.59 FIP suggests his ERA was better than he actually pitched, but he did well to keep the Giants in the game each time he took the ball.
It was an interesting year of development for Samardzija, who has redefined himself by effectively pitching around the strike zone and not trying to strike everyone out. Rather, he relied on the hitters to make mistakes. As he enters the final year of his five-year contract, he looks like the only sure thing in a rotation full of question marks.
Johnny Cueto: Incomplete
Cueto returned from Tommy John surgery and all was right in the world again. He made four starts in September and he recorded a 5.06 ERA. However, more important than his stats was that he was healthy. The Giants could lose Bumgarner in free agency, so they will be counting on Cueto to assume a bigger workload in 2020.
Logan Webb: B-
The 22-year-old rookie made just eight starts for the Giants in 2019, but he showed plenty of potential along the way. His 5.22 ERA was not great, and he experienced plenty of ups and downs in his audition, but he ended the season on a high note. In his final two starts, Webb faced two stout lineups in the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers, and he held those teams to only three runs across 12 innings of work. Hopefully, Webb carries this momentum into next season as he will likely be slated for a spot in the rotation.
Tyler Beede: B-
Similar to Webb, Beede had plenty of ups and downs in his second season with the San Francisco Giants. However, the Giants were patient, allowing Beede to develop at the major league level, and their patience paid off. The 26-year-old generated a 5.08 ERA in 117 innings, but he showed improved command as the season wore on. Like Webb, he finished on a high note, recording a 3.28 ERA across five September starts. He is slated to begin the 2020 season in the rotation as well.