The SF Giants still remain light on key bullpen roles

If the season started today, Ryan Walker or Joel Peguero would likely be closing out games for the SF Giants. They not only do not have a solution at closer, but they are light in leverage arms as well.

The SF Giants still remain light on key bullpen roles

When it comes to the bullpen, the question that unit needs to answer is how it plans to preserve leads and close out games. They do not have much of a blueprint for that currently.

For the past few years, there may have been question marks in the later innings, but they had a general plan with the bullpen. Tyler Rogers was usually in the middle of that plan. Camilo Doval had the arsenal for high-leverage innings, even if he struggled in the closer role. 

Last year, Randy Rodríguez emerged as an All-Start reliever, and when healthy, Erik Miller was effective against left-handed hitters. The Giants will not be able to roll out that same plan in 2026. Rogers and Doval are gone, and Rodríguez is likely out for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. 

The Giants have not done enough to replace those roles. They have added Sam Hentges and Jason Foley on major league deals. Gregory Santos was signed to a minor league contract, and that move has potential upside. All three finished last season on the injured list, and Foley is expected to miss the first half of next year.

Hentges has strong platoon splits against left-handed hitters, but he is more than a situational lefty reliever. He has the profile to be a leverage reliever. That said, Hentges is returning from shoulder surgery, so it remains to be seen how he will look following the procedure.

Foley had experience closing out games during his four-year run with the Detroit Tigers. He is recovering from shoulder surgery, so the same reservations that apply to Hentges apply to him. Foley has a contact-heavy profile, which can excel in leverage innings but it can also be challenging when getting a strikeout is the better outcome. 

The current iteration of the bullpen likely also includes Ryan Walker, Joel Peguero, JT Brubaker, Matt Gage, Spencer Bivens, and José Butto. Walker is coming off a down year. It would not be surprising to see him have a rebound season. Relievers can have volatile career arcs like that. Peguero has premium velocity, but does not miss many bats. If that does not show improvement, he will likely be limited to a middle reliever role.

Bivens worked as a bulk innings arm and he did fine in that role. He throws strikes and covers innings when the need arises. Bivens is likely best suited for this role.

Brubaker, Gage, and Butto are middle relievers who will likely be stretched into leverage spots at times. That feels like a microcosm of the bullpen. They have a surplus of middle relievers and not enough leverage bullpen arms. 

That is a problem and the front office has to see it, too. A lot can change between now and the start of spring training, but the bullpen still needs a lot of work. That unit was a liability at the end of last season, and it could be next year as well.