SF Giants: 3 best signings of the Farhan Zaidi era

The SF Giants have struggled to a 71-77 overall record in 2022, which is good enough for third place in the NL West. The front office deserves a fair share of the blame and Giants fans have certainly found it culpable for the team's struggles. That said, it has not been all bad as the Giants have made some pretty nice moves since the new front office took over.

SF Giants: 3 best signings of the Farhan Zaidi era

Over the weekend, I chronicled some of the worst signings the Giants' front office have made since Farhan Zaidi was hired as team president of baseball operations in November of 2018. For better or worse, the Giants have been relatively conservative with free-agent spending, so the underperforming contracts should not impact future spending.

I am only going to be looking at guaranteed contracts for now, but minor league deals such as the ones handed out to Donovan Solano and Darin Ruf a couple of seasons ago turned out to be good value additions.

Speaking of value, the contracts handed out to Jake McGee (two years, $5 million) and José Álvarez
(two years, $2.55 million) paid off nicely in the first year of each deal but each pitcher struggled in the second year. Given the contract terms, it is hard to not see these as wins by the front office.

1. Pitcher Kevin Gausman (one year, $18.8 million)

Kevin Gausman had one of the more successful, two-year stints in Giants history. The right-handed hurler posted a 3.62 ERA with 79 strikeouts in 59.2 frames with San Francisco in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

That was an excellent value in and of itself as the Giants originally signed Gausman to a one-year, $9 million deal. After his first season with the orange and black, the 31-year-old pitcher accepted a qualifying offer for $18.9 million.

This proved to be an excellent value for both team and player as Gausman went on to register a 2.81 ERA, 3.00 FIP, 1.04 WHIP, 10.6 K/9, and a 4.54 SO/W ratio in 33 starts. This included an NL All-Star bid as well as a sixth-place finish in the NL Cy Young voting.

For the time being, Gausman's 10.6 K/9 ratio is a franchise record but that will soon be surpassed by Carlos Rodón. The veteran starter proved to be the co-ace of the rotation along with Logan Webb that helped the Giants to win 107 games, which is a franchise record.

The Giants nearly defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2021 NLDS, but regardless of the ending, that season was truly special and Gausman had a lot to do with it. Even though he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays last winter, his time with San Francisco will always be remembered fondly.

SF Giants: 3 best signings of the Farhan Zaidi era

2. Pitcher Carlos Rodón (two years, $44 million)

The Giants' front office has had a knack for finding quality pitching in free agency. The organization has helped many pitchers improve including Kevin Gausman. That said, Carlos Rodón
might be in a different category because he was coming off of a dominant season in which he posted a 2.37 ERA in 24 starts for the Chicago White Sox in 2021.

He earned an AL All-Star selection while finishing in fifth place in the AL Cy Young voting. He was poised to earn a huge payday in free agency, but some teams were hesitant given that his fastball velocity noticeably dipped at the end of the 2021 season and the fact that he carried significant injury risk.

In his first seven seasons, Rodón made over 25 starts just once as he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2019 and battled bouts of shoulder fatigue. This did not scare off the Giants as the front office has proven to accept a high degree of injury risk.

The left-handed hurler's contract includes an opt-out clause, which he will undoubtedly exercise. This effectively makes his original deal a one-year pact.

Regardless of the length, it has paid significant dividends for the Giants. Rodón tallied a 2.84 ERA, 2.27 FIP, 1.03 WHIP, 11.8 K/9, and a 4.49 SO/W ratio in 29 starts for the Giants in 2022. This includes an All-Star bid in his second straight season and he will likely merit serious consideration for the NL Cy Young award.

The southpaw was available at the trade deadline as the Giants faded from playoff contention and a handful of teams will be disappointed that they did not make a better effort to acquire Rodón.

He has been electric in a Giants uniform and is in line to earn a substantial payday this winter. The front office did well to sign him, but they will need to prove to the fanbase that they can spend like the other big-market clubs.