Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy gives ringing endorsement for new SF Giants signing

You can count Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy as among the many people who will be sad that Willy Adames will no longer be in a Brewers uniform. Murphy recently gave a ringing endorsement of the latest SF Giants signing.

Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy gives ringing endorsement for new SF Giants signing

Following the Giants reported sign of Adames, Murphy gave his thoughts on what Adames brings to the table:

Murphy has been unusually open that he did not expect the veteran shortstop to return to the Brewers next season. Milwaukee typically trades players before they reach free agency so as to recoup some value before then.

Adames had some trade interest last offseason despite a down year at the plate. The Brewers decided to keep him despite knowing that he would leave via free agency following the 2024 season. In the past, Milwaukee tried to work out a long-term extension with him but could not get a deal done.

In fairness, the Brewers will receive a compensatory pick given that Adames rejected a qualifying offer earlier in the offseason. This all assumes that the 29-year-old infielder does pass his physical. I think Giants fans will hold their breath until then.

Murphy's comments do highlight the type of player that the Giants could be getting. The Brewers reached the playoffs in three of the four seasons Adames was in Milwaukee. This includes Murphy's first season as the Brewers manager in 2024 when the team won 93 games while losing to the New York Mets in the Wild Card series.

Adames has had some good stretches in the biggest moments. Much of his playoff experience was when he was with the Tampa Bay Rays earlier in his career, so there were some struggles. He did tally four hits in seven at-bats in the Wild Card round against the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023.

As Murphy notes, he is a leader as well. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle added some more context to the type of player Adames is both on and off the field:

It feels like Adames will quickly become popular among Giants fans in much the same way that Logan Webb and Matt Chapman already are. The Giants still have a lot of work to do this offseason but it sounds like they are getting a well-respected, good player.