Another potential SF Giants bullpen target off the board after signing with Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are doubling down on their strategy of signing high-priced closers as they have reportedly signed closer Edwin Díaz to a three-year, $69 million deal. That means one less reliever option for the SF Giants.

The Giants never seemed like real players for Díaz since president of baseball operations Buster Posey has suggested the team is leaning more towards a closer competition rather than going out and signing one of the premier closers on the market.

SF Giants running out of high-end options to improve bullpen

Still, after a season in which the Giants went from having arguably the best bullpen in baseball to struggling to figure out how to get outs in the late innings due to injuries and trades, the thought of having a set closer entering the season does not sound like the worst idea.

If the Giants want that though, they may be running out of options. Relief arms like Devin Williams and Ryan Helsley are already off the table. Robert Suarez is still available but he will probably cost more than the Giants are willing to pay. Veteran Kenley Jansen could be a more affordable option.

However, the Giants know that signing a closer to a big contract can backfire. The Mark Melancon contract still haunts the Giants and just last year the Giants saw the Dodgers sign Tanner Scott to a four-year, $72 million deal and he was a disaster for LA.

Relievers are very volatile and can go from being elite to average or not very good in the blink of an eye. Just look at Ryan Walker or Camilo Doval for evidence of that.

It seems the Giants are probably going to bring in a number of reasonably priced arms on affordable one-year deals or minor league contracts and will use spring training and the early part of the season to try and sort out who is a good fit in the bullpen.

This approach is risky and it definitely could open up new manager Tony Vitello to criticism if the bullpen blows some games early in the season as he and his coaching staff try to figure out what combination of arms makes the most sense late in games.

Maybe that is a risk the Giants are willing to take rather than the risk of signing an expensive closer who does not pan out as planned.

The Dodgers can afford to try out a new expensive closer every year to see if this one works out, but the Giants are not going to take that same approach to bullpen construction.