San Francisco Giants: Remembering the 2009-10 MLB offseason

With the 2019-20 MLB offseason right around the corner, let’s take a look back at how the San Francisco Giants fared in recent offseasons. First up, the 2009-10 offseason.

It’s going to be a busy offseason for the San Francisco Giants as they look to bolster the roster without impacting the team’s ability to spend going forward.

They might stick to complementary moves this winter, similar to their approach last offseason, but everything they do now will be with an eye on future contention.

Before we turn our attention to what the Giants are going to do this winter, let’s take a look back at how they approached past offseasons.

The offseason leading up to the 2010 season was an important one, as the team ended up winning a World Series title that year.

So without further ado, let’s dive into all the moves the team made that winter.

Notable Free Agency Departures

• 1B Rich Aurilia
• 1B Ryan Garko
• OF Randy Winn
• SP Randy Johnson
• SP Brad Penny
• RP Justin Miller
• RP Bob Howry

The San Francisco Giants brought back two of their biggest free agents when they re-signed veterans Bengie Molina and Juan Uribe to one-year deals.

However, they still said goodbye to several notable contributors from the 2009 season.

Outfielder Randy Winn wrapped up a 4.5-year stint with the team that saw him post 12.3 WAR, including a 4.0 WAR season in 2008.

On the pitching side of things, Bob Howry (63 G, 10 HLD, 3.39 ERA) and Justin Miller (44 G, 3.18 ERA) were both key arms out of the bullpen, while Randy Johnson (17 GS, 4.88 ERA) and Brad Penny (6 GS, 2.59 ERA) saw action in the starting rotation.

Winn ($9.6 million) and Johnson ($8 million) were the third- and fourth-highest paid players on the team, according to Baseball Cube, so their exodus freed up some payroll space.

Notable Free Agency Additions

• IF Mark DeRosa (2 years, $12 million)
• C Bengie Molina (1 year, $4.5 million)—re-signed
• IF Juan Uribe (1 year, $3.25 million)—re-signed
• 1B Aubrey Huff (1 year, $3 million)
• SP Todd Wellemeyer (MiLB deal)
• RP Santiago Casilla (MiLB deal)
• RP Guillermo Mota (MiLB deal)
• RP Denny Bautista (MiLB deal)

The big move of the offseason for the Giants, at least at the time it was made, was signing Mark DeRosa to a two-year, $12 million deal. The 35-year-old was coming off back-to-back 20-homer seasons, and his ability to play all over the infield and both corner outfield spots added to his value.

Unfortunately, injuries limited him to just 73 games total over the life of that contract, as he hit .235 with a .593 OPS and contributed -0.6 WAR.

Catcher Bengie Molina wound up traded to the Texas Rangers at midseason to clear a path for a standout rookie by the name of Buster Posey behind the plate.

It’s Aubrey Huff (142 OPS+, 26 HR, 86 RBI) and Juan Uribe (102 OPS+, 24 HR, 85 RBI) who made this free-agent class a winner. They ranked first and second on the team in home runs and RBI, and Huff was also the team leader with 5.7 WAR.

They also hit on a few MiLB free-agent gems.

Todd Wellemeyer (11 GS, 5.68 ERA) saw some time at the back of the rotation, while Guillermo Mota (56 G, 4.33 ERA) and Denny Bautista (31 G, 3.74 ERA) saw regular work out of the bullpen.

The real diamond in the rough was Santiago Casilla (52 G, 1.95 ERA) who would go on to be an integral part of the team’s relief corps throughout their run to three titles in five years.

Notable Trades

• None

While the Giants made some notable trades during the regular season to acquire reliever Javier Lopez and outfielder Jose Guillen, along with the waiver claim of Cody Ross, there were no notable trades completed during the offseason.

On the heels of this offseason, the San Francisco Giants improved from 88-74 to 92-70, winning the NL West title and completing an unexpected run to a World Series title.