MLB insider gives SF Giants passing grade following lackluster offseason

The offseason is not officially over yet, but Bob Nightengale of USA Today handed out his offseason grades for each team. He gave the SF Giants a C- for an offseason that was headlined by Harrison Bader, Adrian Houser, and Tyler Mahle.

MLB insider gives SF Giants passing grade following lackluster offseason

That sounds like a harsh grade, but they were tied with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the second-best mark in the NL West. The Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres each received an F. On the other hand, the Los Angeles Dodgers received an A.

The Padres and Diamondbacks’ grades highlight a point that the NL West might soon be opening up for another team to  surpass them in the standings. The Padres have aimed to shed payroll in recent seasons. Aside from retaining Michael King, they have leaned more on shrewd, cost-effective moves.

San Diego has lost a lot of pitching in recent offseasons. This includes Dylan Cease, Blake Snell, Nick Martinez, Michael Wacha, and Seth Lugo. To their credit, they have found ways to plug those holes. That said, the rotation led by King and Nick Pivetta no longer looks as strong as it has been in recent seasons.

Arizona has been one of the more aggressive teams in free agency over the past couple of years, but they aim to shed payroll this year. This has led to signings such as Corbin Burnes and Eduardo Rodríguez. These moves have not paid dividends and the Diamondbacks have had a quieter offseason. Reuniting with Merrill Kelly on a two-year deal has been their one notable move.

The Diamondbacks still have a talented group of position players, led by Corbin Carroll, Ketel Marte, and Geraldo Perdomo. However, the starting rotation leaves something to be desired.

This is why it would have behooved the Giants to be more aggressive this offseason. Instead, they have went with moves that maintain the floor of a team that won 81 games last year, rather than raise the ceiling. 

Bob Nightengale admits that the Giants’ offseason was not bad, as they checked off a couple of boxes. They upgraded the outfielder defense with the reported addition of Harrison Bader. The Giants filled out the rotation with a couple of veteran arms in Adrian Houser and Tyler Mahle. 

Nightengale makes the mistake of comparing the Giants with how they have done against the Dodgers. Los Angeles is the top of the baseball world right now, so it makes sense to do that comparison. However, the Giants’ real competition are the Padres and Diamondbacks. Did they do enough to position themselves against those teams? Time will tell, but the moves they have made do not feel like enough to break through in a tough NL West that might be starting to show signs of vulnerability.