SF Giants Player Review 2026: JT Brubaker was as bland as it gets

The breakdown of all 71 players who appeared for the SF Giants in 2026 continues and we are still in the B’s so I am not regretting my decision to do this. Ask me again one were in the R’s and I may think a little bit differently.

Today, we take a look at JT Brubaker. For as bad as the bullpen was in 2026, Brubaker was decidedly “meh.” He had a 3.58 ERA on the season in 41 appearances and 60 and 1/3 innings pitched. He struck out 39 batters and walked 26 which is why his 4.28 FIP suggests he got a little bit lucky.

The Giants somewhat surprisingly decided to tender a contract to Brubaker even though he only pitched in five games for the Giants last season. They gave him a $1.8 million deal and non-tendered Joey Lucchesi which was a minor shock at the time, but looking back at the numbers one can kind of see what San Francisco was thinking.

Brubaker pitched just 12 and 2/3 innings for the Giants in 2025 with a 4.26 ERA, but he struck out 12 batters and walked only three. His FIP was 1.95 so if seems like the Giants thought they may have found a diamond in the rough.

Instead, they didn’t find a diamond. They found an extra button from a wrinkled dress shirt that rolled under a dresser and was kind of forgotten about. Maybe that’s harsh, but Brubaker was really just a bulk-innings guy this season. He mostly came in during low-leverage situations to eat up innings. That was his primary job which is basically what the Giants asked Spencer Bivens to do in 2024 and 2025.

Giants will almost certainly not have Brubaker back next season

Brubaker was fine at that job and he did have a two saves in four chances so the Giants did give him a shot in some high leverage spots basically out of desperation and because so many guys got hurt. But Brubaker is the only unrestricted free agent the Giants have going into the offseason and it feels fairly obvious that they will let him sign with another team.

Brubaker will be remembered for two things in a Giants uniform: his decision to write a Bible verse on his hat in protest of Pride Night, a decision that upset a lot of fans, and him getting into a spat with both an umpire and Spencer Steer of the Cincinnati Reds which was the inciting event which led to Erik Miller’s hilarious outburst towards the Reds’ dugout the next day when he struck out Sal Stewart to end the game and the benches cleared. What a legacy. He's like the Archduke Franz Ferdinand if that game between the Giants and Reds was World War One. I always knew I was going to compare Brubaker to Franz Ferdinand.

Still, Brubaker just really didn’t leave much of a mark in 2026. He’s a fine pitcher and he will land a contract with some team but bulk relievers like him are really a dime a dozen. 

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow