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3 SF Giants offseason additions we should already be concerned about

By Eric Treuden |
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The 81-81 SF Giants had a lot to improve on as they entered the 2022-2023 offseason. One of the oldest teams in the National League, the club had their eyes on some of the best available talent in the free agent pool, even landing Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa for what was undoubtedly the best times of Giants fans lives.

3 SF Giants offseason additions we should already be concerned about

Seriously, at one point this team was tied to nearly every big free agent including Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Dansby Swanson, Brandon Nimmo and Kodai Senga, amongst others.

Instead the Giants were left picking up scraps. After aiming at the very top of the free agent market, the club instead left with Roberto Pérez, Ross Stripling, Taylor Rogers, Luke Jackson, Mitch Haniger and Sean Manaea. This list is massively different compared to the one of FA targets.

So now the Giants remain one of the older clubs in the league. The position players on the Roster Resource depth chart have an average age of just under 31. The starting rotation: 32. The bullpen: 30.5. You get the gist.

To start the 2023 regular season, San Francisco is 2-2, right at .500, where they left off last year. This is a club that is always hit with some sky-high expectations, so the team will need to be better. Monday's huge win against the White Sox (in which the Giants hit seven home runs) is an excellent step in the right direction.

With the amount of new players coming in via free agency, there are sure to be some good and some not-so-good performances amongst the group.

Let's check out 3 offseason additions we are already concerned about.

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San Francisco Giants v Cleveland Guardians / Chris Coduto/GettyImages

1. OF Mitch Haniger

It's easy to pick on Haniger since he's alread on the injured list, but he's fair game for a list like this. The 32-year-old was signed to a surprising two-year, $28M contract (with a player option for a third season) by the Giants, which may be an overpay for someone who is so often hurt.

Haniger will be suiting up for his third big league team when he returns to the Giants lineup. He has appeared in just over 50 percent of games since he debuted, missing significant time with injuries in 2017, 2019 and 2022, not to mention missing the entirety of the COVID-shortened 2020 season while he recovered from numerous surgeries from the offseason prior.

This contract was a head-scratcher for the Giants from the start. Any club that was willing to give Haniger a multi-year pact in free agency had to know there would be huge risks. The fact that he is already missing time to start the year says a lot.

Haniger made it into four Spring Training games this year and did perform well in that time. In 10 at-bats, he had three hits, including two doubles and a run scored. Again, he's a solid player when he's healthy. He's just never healthy.

This contract just feels like dead weight on the Giants' payroll. In Haniger's absence, Blake Sabol, Michael Conforto and Mike Yastrzemski are going to adequately fill in, with Bryce Johnson, Joc Pederson, LaMonte Wade Jr. and Matt Beaty also on hand to spend some time in the grass as well.

United States v San Francisco Giants
United States v San Francisco Giants / Norm Hall/GettyImages

3 SF Giants offseason additions we should already be concerned about

LHP Sean Manaea

Manaea, 31, is another free agent the Giants brought aboard on a multi-year pact; signing with the club on a two-year, $25M contract.

The longtime member of the Oakland A's has never quite done enough at the big league level to warrant any sort of hype, and his signing felt like a move of desperation by a Giants front office that had missed out on so many names before him.

Last year, the southpaw made 30 appearances (28 starts) for the division rival San Diego Padres and had what was his worst statistical season yet. In 158 innings, he had an 8-9 record with a 4.96 ERA, 4.53 FIP and a ghastly 75 ERA+ (100 is league-average, so he was 25 percent below league-average).

As a matter of fact, all numbers point to Manaea being an average pitcher, period. His career ERA+ across eight seasons is right at 100.

In five spring games (four starts), Manaea had a 4.08 ERA in 17.2 innings, striking out 14 and walking just three. He's historically had troubles limiting baserunners, and that has continued in spring and the regular season.

It's tough to judge this contract as "one to be worried about" immediately, since Manaea has only made one regular season appearance with the club (13.50 ERA in two innings of work), but this was a straight up overpay and he was coming off of an awful season on the Padres. Not entirely sure how the Giants expected this one to work out, but he may become an eyesore quickly for the team.

San Francisco Giants v New York Yankees
San Francisco Giants v New York Yankees / Sarah Stier/GettyImages

3 SF Giants offseason additions we should already be concerned about

RHP Ross Stripling

The signing of Stripling was the very first reactionary move made by the Giants front office after many free agent targets began to sign elsewhere. The 33-year-old secured the same deal Manaea took, two-years and $25M.

It's harder to fault the Giants for trying on this one, because Stripling turned himself into a respectable name over the course of his three-year tenure with the Toronto Blue Jays. Last year, he hit a whole new level, one he hadn't seen since all the way back in 2018, his lone All-Star-worthy season.

In 32 appearances (24 starts) last year for the Blue Jays, "Strip" went 10-4 with a 3.01 ERA, 3.11 FIP and 129 ERA+. He became a local hero for the team and was arguably the team's third best starter behind Alek Manoah and former Giant Kevin Gausman.

Based off of last year's performance alone, Stripling seemed guaranteed to land a multi-year contract in free agency. There was certainly interest around the league, but the Giants ultimately out-bid the Blue Jays by adding an opt-out clase in the deal, something Toronto was not willing to do.

If there's a concern to be had, it's the fact that last year was the first solid year for Stripling in around four years. Could that have been a one-off? Certainly, he's not getting any younger. In six spring appearances, the righty had a 7.43 ERA in 23 innings of work thanks to 19 earned runs on 40 hits. He showed off exceptional command, though, striking out 18 against just one walk.

The eight-year veteran has made just one start for the Giants to kickoff the regular season, and it was not a good one. He made it through five innings, walked two, struck out three, and allowed four earned runs on six hits, earning the loss along the way. He will need to turn it up a notch if he is aiming to stay in good spirits amongst Giants fans.

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