SF Giants made the right call on at least one potential pitching addition from the offseason

The SF Giants were connected to starting pitching Tatsuya Imai a lot in the offseason. They passed on the asking price, and that is one move where they made the right call.

The Houston Astros eventually won the bidding war for Imai. They signed him to a three-year, $54 million pact. This includes an opt-out after each season. For Imai, the contract structure was developed to allow him to re-enter free agency if he had a good year.

It is unlikely that Imai will trigger that opt-out this year, as the 2026 campaign has been a rough one. The 28-year-old pitcher has posted a 5.83 ERA in 15 outings for the Astros. This has led to a move to the bullpen, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic.

The Giants were one of many teams to express interest in the right-handed pitcher in the winter. However, they, along with many other teams, balked at the initial asking price put forth by his agent, Scott Boras. That asking price was believed to be over $100 million.

SF Giants never re-entered Imai's market after seeing high asking price

Boras is one of the best agents in baseball for a reason, but the high asking price likely hurt Imai's market. The Giants never strongly revisited the idea after that.

While the decision to bow out of Imai's market was due to their own internal evaluation not matching his asking price, it also turned out to be the right call. There were mixed opinions about the type of upside that the rookie pitcher offered, with some teams believing he was better suited for the bullpen.

The Giants did not have a great offseason on several fronts. They allowed the Toronto Blue Jays to draft Spencer Miles in the Rule 5 draft. Miles is in the midst of a strong rookie season, and will likely be stretched out as a starter in the future.

Plus, many of the additions they made did not pan out. In the rotation, they added Tyler Mahle and Adrian Houser. Houser has since been moved to the bullpen, and the Giants hope to trade Mahle before the trade deadline.

In the field, they brought in Harrison Bader and Luis Arráez. Bader's tenure with San Francisco is likely over after new details emerged regarding a scooter incident that further injured his left foot. Arráez has been a solid addition, and the lone exception from this offseason's work. However, it is a near certainty that the Giants will trade the veteran infielder before the trade deadline.

At the very least, the Giants, along with several other teams, have seemingly made the right call on Imai.

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