3 pending free agents the SF Giants need to let walk, 1 they need to keep

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It is safe to say that San Francisco Giants fans have not had a great time following this Giants team since the beginning of August. Thanks to an offense that has been essentially unwatchable, the Giants have gone from contending at the top of the division earlier this season to having slim odds of making it into the playoffs at all as a wild card team.

Most of this is on the players as they have just not done their jobs lately especially at the plate. Some blame could be assigned to the coaching staff and the front office sure didn't help matters by doing basically nothing at the trade deadline except trade for the shadow of AJ Pollock who has made a total of six plate appearances as a Giant. Injuries to key players off and on haven't helped matters whatsoever.

Whatever the cause may be, this is a Giants' roster that needs some real help this offseason and step one to getting it to where it needs to be is a roster culling. Fortunately, the Giants have several pending free agents that the team should just let move on.

Here are 3 pending free agents the SF Giants need to let walk and 1 they need to keep around

The realities of the game of baseball is that teams have to be a bit ruthless when it comes to moving on from guys even when they have been good for the team in the past. Some of the players on this list have been productive players previously and loyal soldiers for the Giants, but who are currently occupying important roster spots with subpar production. Putting them on the list is not an indictment of them as human beings or ignoring how good they were, but just an acknowledgement that the time has come for them to move on elsewhere.

Let's take a look at some pending free agents that the Giants need to let walk after the 2023 season and 1 that they need to try to keep around.

The SF Giants need to move on from Joc Pederson

It certainly raised a few eyebrows when the Giants gave Joc Pederson the qualifying offer last offseason, but it is also hard to blame them. While Joc has been maddeningly inconsistent in his career, he was coming off a season in 2022 where he posted an .874 OPS with 23 homers and made the All-Star team with the Giants. Almost $20 million for one season of work is not a small amount of money, but Pederson has the upside to make that move a worthy gamble.

Unfortunately, Joc hasn't quite lived up to that billing this season. A .243/.353/.422 slash line with 12 homers in 357 plate appearances isn't terrible, but also not worth paying a premium for. There is a danger with letting Joc go, though, as he is a tremendous clubhouse presence and is also the type of guy that could just go off next year. If he wants to return to the Giants on a cheaper deal as a platoon bat, that would probably be fine. However, if he wants a longer term deal for real money, the Giants need to pass.

Farewell, Brandon Crawford

These decisions always hurt because Brandon Crawford was so good for so long for the Giants. From 2011-2021, Crawford won four Gold Gloves, made three All-Star teams, and put up an average stat line of .255/.322/.405 while being one of the best defensive shortstops in the league. Unfortunately, the combination of injuries and Father Time has not been kind the last couple of seasons.

After putting up the worst OPS of his career since his rookie season in 2022, Crawford has been an offensive liability in 2023 with a .200/.274/.320 line in 282 plate appearances. Fortunately, it does seem like there is a way for Crawford to exit the organization with some dignity as it is seeming more and more likely that Crawford could just end up retiring after this season. It would be a fitting end to a great career that he retires a Giant, but it does seem clear regardless that he should not be on the roster in 2024 regardless of his decision.

Alex Wood's time with the Giants needs to end

When the Giants signed Alex Wood to a two year, $25 million deal before the 2022 season, the hope was that he could remain healthy enough to come close to the production he put up in 2021. When he is right, Wood is a very productive lefty starter who will miss bats and put up around a mid-3 ERA. Unfortunately, Wood hasn't been right since that first season with the Giants.

After posting a 5.10 ERA in 26 starts last season, Wood has been equally rough this season and has transitioned more to a long relief/spot starter role in 2023. The stuff has declined, his walks have jumped up, and he just hasn't been able to pitch enough to be relied upon by a contender. When his contract runs out at the end of the season, the Giants just need to move on.

The SF Giants need to try to keep John Brebbia

On a lighter note, reliever John Brebbia has been a breath of fresh air in 2023. While a recent stint on the injured list with a lat injury put a damper on his season, Brebbia has still posted a 3.23 ERA in 31 appearances this season. Brebbia misses bats and generally limits free passes which, when you are looking at any reliever, is pretty much all you can ask for.

The nice thing about Brebbia is that he hasn't been SO good that he is likely to be expensive to bring back. He isn't going to be the guy that a team brings in in the highest leverage situations and he has been more very solid than dominant. These are the types of bullpen arms to you want to keep around to fill in the bullpen with quality depth without devoting too many resources to. Assuming he is willing to stick around for a reasonable price, the Giants should absolutely jump at the chance.

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