After spurning SF Giants contract offer, power-hitting DH settles for less with Mets

The SF Giants landed several big free agents this offseason. One big name they did not land was power-hitting DH J.D. Martinez who ended up signing with the New York Mets on Thursday.

After spurning SF Giants contract offer, power-hitting DH settles for less with Mets

There was reporting earlier in the offseason that suggested that Martinez spurned the Giants earlier in free agency. According to The New York Post's Jon Heyman, Martinez did not want to go to San Francisco despite the Giants offering him a contract. There were no specifics provided, but the general impression is that Martinez just did not want to play for San Francisco for one reason or another.

Then, NBC Sports Bay Area's Alex Pavlovic responded to Heyman by reporting that the Giants were in negotiations with Jorge Soler, who they ended up signing, and Martinez simultaneously. The Martinez camp submitted a counteroffer that the Giants did not like, so they ended up signing Soler to be their DH. Bob Nightengale of USA Today confirmed that the Giants' initial offer was for one year and $14 million.

Ultimately, Martinez reportedly ended up with the Mets on a one-year deal for $12 million. Meanwhile, the Giants gave Soler a three-year deal for $42 million. Of course, Soler is 32 while Martinez is 36 so that likely factored into the contract length.

Martinez wound up signing a short-term deal just like Matt Chapman and Blake Snell, two other Boras clients. And, if Nightengale's report is accurate, the veteran DH left some money on the table by not taking the Giants' offer.

The Giants got a really solid DH in Soler, though. He hit 36 home runs last season with the Marlins. While Martinez is probably the better overall hitter, Soler has more raw power and will be more fun to watch given he can stay healthy and deliver on that promise of power.

The Giants may have not been able to sign Martinez, but they landed a guy who is a really solid player in Soler so they should have no regrets about the way things turned out in their negotiations with Martinez. In the end, it did not work out between the Giants and the six-time All-Star, but that is probably for the best. Meanwhile Giants fans have quickly embraced Soler as one of their own.