Years ago, the plan was to seek payroll flexibility ahead of this offseason and ideally supplement a team on the rise, but a funny thing happened on the way to this point.
Kevin Gausman is one of the best pitchers available and Brandon Belt is near the top of the list of impact hitters, along with Kris Bryant, a midseason acquisition who has displayed an interest in returning.
The only NL players with a higher wRC+ than Belt the last two seasons: Juan Soto and Bryce Harper.
Aside from the numbers, Belt stands for just about everything this organization now preaches from the big leagues to rookie ball.
The Giants put an $18.4 million qualifying offer on Belt and will try to negotiate a multi-year deal as they did with the other Brandon.
Bryant’s free agency has been discussed basically since the moment he was called up to the big leagues — late enough that the Cubs gained an extra year of service time.
Bryant said all the right things after coming over, but his numbers didn’t jump off the page until the NLDS.
The rival Dodgers could be a fit if they lose Corey Seager and Chris Taylor, or perhaps an up-and-coming team views Bryant as the piece that puts them over the top.
Gausman is just 30 years old, has a two-pitch mix that is just about unhittable on good days, is durable, is athletic enough to age well, and is a good clubhouse presence.
The Giants will try to keep him in San Francisco and pair him with close friend Logan Webb long term, but there’s going to be a ton of competition.
The left-hander made just nine starts the previous two seasons, but his prior connection with Zaidi helped land him with the Giants.
The right-hander had a rough 2020 and finished the season in the Reds bullpen, but he bet on himself in free agency and bet on the Giants’ pitching infrastructure.
DeSclafani posted a 3.17 ERA in 26 starts and likely would have been an All-Star if you take his Dodgers games out of the picture.
Cueto had a 4.08 ERA and 4.05 FIP in 22 appearances — 21 of them starts — last season, which is fine for the back end of a rotation.
One of Zaidi’s best success stories, he came over from the Dodgers’ minor league system and became a Silver Slugger Award winner for the Giants at second base.
The Giants already have Tommy La Stella and Wilmer Flores in the mix at second base and they want to — and need to — give Thairo Estrada a real shot.
Watson was acquired on deadline day and immediately went back to getting big outs for Kapler, who used him in the eighth and ninth a season earlier.
Watson turns 37 next season and he didn’t garner big-time interest last offseason, signing a minor league deal with the Phillies and then leaving at the end of camp to join the Angels.
It is here that we should stop and salute Mike Tauchman for his two game-saving catches, including the one at Dodger Stadium that might have been the difference in the NL West race.
Tyler Chatwood technically finished the season in the organization, which means he’ll spend the offseason being listed between Bryant and Cueto on the MLB Network bottom line.
Scott Kazmir and Jose Quintana made five appearances each for the Giants, and either could make some sense as a non-roster invitee in spring training given that the Giants are likely to bring in a ton of pitching options once again.