What would a successful season look like for the SF Giants in 2025?

The projections do not paint a great picture of the SF Giants playoff hopes in 2025. Of course, the goal should be to reach the postseason, but the Giants can still have a successful year if the youth movement takes a step forward on the major league roster.

What would a successful season look like for the SF Giants in 2025?

The Giants got some unexpectedly strong years from Heliot Ramos and Tyler Fitzgerald last season. In particular, Ramos went on a tear in the first half, leading to him being selected to the NL All-Star team.

On the pitching side, Ryan Walker established himself as the team's closer toward the end of last season. It was also a positive year of development for some less experienced relievers like Sean Hjelle, Erik Miller, Spencer Bivens, and Randy Rodríguez .

Kyle Harrison and Hayden Birdsong saw considerable time in the rotation. Landen Roupp had a strong finish to the year in the rotation as well. On the other hand, Harrison will see more time in the minors to start the year after his 2025 Cactus League debut was slowed due to an illness. The key for him will be getting his fastball to sit more consistently in the mid-90's while showing more confidence in his changeup and slurve.

To some degree, last season was a productive year in terms of exposure for the team's younger prospects. This season's success in some part will depend on if those young players can solidfy roles in the majors this year and the foreseeable future.

The Giants' core includes players like Logan Webb, Matt Chapman, and now Willy Adames. The key for any team is being able to complement their core with players from the farm system. That is a quality that has evaded the Giants since their championship run.

Can the 2025 begin to shift that narrative? A lot of that will depend on how the Giants are able to fortify the rotation behind Webb. Birdsong flashed premium stuff with a high -90's four-seam fastball with a good curveball, changeup, and slider. He demonstrated below-average control, but he has not walked a batter in 12 innings this spring.

Stuff is not the question with Birdsong. His ceiling will hinge largely on his control. If he is able to show improvement in that area during the regular season, his upside could be a mid-rotation arm or even better.

On the other hand, Roupp flashed a good 12-to-6 curveball with mid-90's sinker from a three-quarters arm angle. The arm angle is tough on opposing hitters and allows his fastball to get quality sinking, armside movement. Roupp mixed in a changeup more confidently in 2024, especially against left-handed hitters. He has added a cutter to his pitch mix this spring.

The key for Roupp will be getting stretched out as a starter, whether that is in the majors or minors. He has certainly pitched well enough to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster, but if it is not in the rotation, he should throw in the minors instead. Roupp has been limited to just over 100 combined innings over the past couple of years. The Giants will want to get that threshold moving upward.

On a position player side, the Giants hope that Bryce Eldridge can force his way onto the roster this year and never look back. Development is not always linear like that, but the young first baseman flashed impressive power in the minors last year. Can he reach the majors, and at least, show that he can be a key cog going forward? That is asking a lot for a prospect entering his age-20 season, but he has the raw tools to make it happen.

Lastly, can Heliot Ramos and Tyler Fitzgerald replicate their strong seasons in 2024? If so, they will have two solid years under their belt, positioning themselves to be viewed as reliable players for the next several years. Casey Schmitt had a nice finish. Can the Giants find ways to get him into the lineup more?

While having around 85 wins would be a success for the Giants. There are underlying trends that could point to a successful season as well, most notably how well the young players either establish or further establish themselves in 2025. The Giants have been waiting a long time for this to happen and really need it to elevate the core.