Robbie Ray’s future is uncertain, and so is the back end of the SF Giants’ bullpen

With the All-Star Game taking place next week in Philadelphia and the Aug. 3 trade deadline less than a month away, Robbie Ray may have made his last start in a Giants uniform. Nothing is guaranteed, but if the team is already in contact with other clubs, a deal could be finalized soon. Or Ray could make another two or three starts before eventually leaving the Bay—if he leaves at all.

For the first time in almost two months, his team didn't come away with the win with him on the mound to start the game, as the SF Giants fell 4-3 to the Colorado Rockies after another ninth-inning meltdown. The Giants had won each of his last eight starts, with Ray going 5-0 while pitching to a 2.42 ERA in 53 total innings during that span.

On Friday night, his most recurrent issue popped up again, as the soon-to-be three-time All-Star issued six walks to go along with his sole earned run. On the season, Ray has now allowed 52 free passes, which is tied for the most in the majors. But again, the problems came with the game on the line.

Something needs to change in the closer role, again

For the 12th time this season, this group of relievers blew a save. For the sixth time, they let a game slip away when holding a lead after eight innings, which is tied for the second-most in MLB. As a group, the Giants' relief corps has posted a 5.96 ERA in the ninth inning this season, the fourth-highest mark in the majors.

This time, and for the third time this season, the culprit's name was Caleb Kilian, whom Tony Vitello named as the closer on June 12. Over his three blown saves, Kilian has allowed 12 runs. On Friday night at Oracle Park, during an hour-long ninth inning, he gave up four without retiring a single batter.

A great story since spring training, the 29-year-old, who has pitched by far the most innings in the ninth this season, has been given 11 save opportunities this season, and his ERA in those situations is now up to 13.97. Something needs to change, and Tony Vitello knows it.

"Yes, I think," he said when asked if a shakeup at the closer position after the All-Star break is possible. "Kind of an easy out answer to everything is day-to-day we got to look at everything to do whatever we go to do to win games".

Vitello could go back to the by-committee approach he used to start the season. Or, he could give the job to Keaton Winn, who was reinstated from the injured list before the game and whose numbers seem most appropriate to the role description.

Winn was placed on the IL with an elbow strain after he took the mound in three consecutive games back in June. In his 30 appearances prior to the injury, he posted a 3.16 ERA and a team-low 0.98 WHIP in 31 1/3 innings, the third-most by any reliever this season.

Like I mentioned, his stuff matches the requirements a closer needs to have in his repertoire. First of all, he's very hard to hit. Opponents have batted just .198 against him this season, the lowest mark by any pitcher on the roster. Second of all, his command has been solid. His 7.4% walk rate trails only Logan Webb's 6.3% mark. And third of all, he doesn't surrender power, as he's allowed just two home runs over his 31 1/3 innings, and his 27.7% hard-hit rate ranks in MLB's second percentile.

In his first appearance in almost a month, Winn got two outs on 10 pitches and allowed a hit. Vitello might give him some leeway before using him with the game on the line and go with players like Erik Miller, Sam Hentges, or Dylan Smith in the meantime. But Winn isn't the only candidate for the job.

One name to keep an eye on is Jason Foley, who's creeping closer to a return after missing all of 2025 due to Tommy John surgery. The 30-year-old is expected to make his comeback soon after the All-Star break, barring any setbacks, and could immediately become a candidate for the closer role.

In his last full season in the big leagues with the Detroit Tigers in 2024, Foley recorded 28 saves and posted a 3.82 ERA in 46 ninth-inning appearances. In two months in Triple-A, he hasn't yet looked like himself, posting a 7.41 ERA in 17 innings with the River Cats.

But no matter his numbers up there, Foley is expected to contribute at some point this season; that's why they brought him here. The front office will also use the second half of the season as an audition. Foley is under team control through 2028 but becomes arbitration-eligible after this season.

No matter how the rest of this series unfolds, the Giants will walk into the break with a ton of questions regarding their short- and long-term future. Whether Ray will be part of it is one of them.

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