3 bargain Black Friday free agents for the SF Giants to pursue

Black Friday is upon us which should be music to the ears of the SF Giants. Deals abound which is exactly what the Giants ownership group loves with their reported self-imposed belt-tightening for the franchise.

Not only are there bargains available for everyday consumers, there are deals to be had for franchises that do not want to pony up this offseason.

We could have a long debate about why the Giants are choosing to limit payroll this offseason. Is it wise? Is it unwise? Is it greedy? Does it matter when the Los Angeles Dodgers will agree to put Juan Soto’s great-great-great-great-great grandchild through college in 2143 via deferred money? 

That debate could rage on for days and certainly will on the ever-friendly and useful social media sites out there which are all run by responsible people. But for the sake of this article, we shall take it as a given that the Giants do not want to spend a lot of money this offseason. Ownership feels they gave it a go and went over the luxury tax last offseason while not producing better results on the field, so it’s back to sucking in the gut this offseason. Well, we all know how tough it is to suck in the gut after Thanksgiving dinner, but I digress.

Let’s dig through the bargain bin and see what we can find. You want Corbin Burnes and Willy Adames? Then you will want to slap me in the face when you take a look at what I found digging around in the dusty old corners of free agency.

Connor Joe

It would be objectively hilarious if the Giants decided to bring back Connor Joe. He is the physical embodiment of the things that people hated about ex-president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi since he was picked up via trade by Zaidi before being quickly dumped. Seemingly out of nowhere he was the starting left fielder on Opening Day for the Giants in 2019. After one hit in 16 plate appearances the Giants cut him loose. He seemed destined to be a punch line at Giants trivia night for eternity but actually went on to turn himself into a decent ballplayer. He found some success with the Colorado Rockies in 2021, slashing .285/.379/.469 with 8 homers and 35 RBI in 63 games. He has never quite replicated those numbers but he has been an average big league player the last several years. 

He was recently non-tendered by the Pittsburgh Pirates after a lackluster 2024, but he could actually make some sense on the Giants depending on what they want to do. How badly do they want to tighten the belt? If they are feeling really ruthless they could cut fan-favorite Wilmer Flores who is set to make $3.5 million in 2025 and replace him with Joe for roughly half the price. It would be a greedy move but the individuals comprising the Giants ownership group did not get to where they are by being kind and sentimental. It would also enrage fans who are already suspicious that the Buster Posey regime will be a continuation of the Farhan Zaidi regime just with a little more nostalgia and not as much emphasis on analytics. Bargain Ball at its finest.

Dylan Carlson

We know the Giants have a thing for players with ties to Elk Grove. Just ask J.D. Davis and Derek Hill. They could potentially add outfielder Dylan Carlson to that list. Carlson spent a number of years with the St. Louis Cardinals where, like Joe, his best season came in 2021. That season he slashed .266/.343/.437 with 18 home runs and 65 RBI. He struggled after that year and the Cardinals moved on from him. He spent part of 2024 with Tampa Bay but they decided to non-tender him.

He would not cost much and could be an interesting reclamation project for the Giants. Perhaps returning to northern California is what he needs to get back on track.

Drew Smyly

In the spirit of bringing back guys Zaidi originally signed, why not bring back pitcher Drew Smyly? Alex Pavlovic noted after the Giants lost Blake Snell to the Dodgers that the Giants could still target a veteran pitcher in the mold of a Michael Wacha or Seth Lugo. That will not excite fans, but Smyly is a veteran with experience as a starter who could also be effective in the bullpen. Last season he had a 3.84 ERA in 58 and 2/3 innings pitched.

These are certainly Black Friday bargains, but the Giants may want to return them if they find they are broken after a few months of use. The Giants are deciding to tighten the belt and that means expectations must be lowered. The offseason may not be between Juan Soto and Connor Joe, there is certainly some middle ground there. But we all need to recalibrate what we are expecting this offseason because the Giants simply are not going to spend.