2023-24 MLB Offseason Recap: San Francisco Giants

The Giants walked into the final month of 2023 in a tie for a playoff spot. However, the season ended with a below-.500 finish and some significant changes after the 2023 campaign. Here’s our Giants offseason recap for this past winter.

Notable Additions

Yet again, the Giants missed out on their big fish. A year after missing out on Aaron Judge and the collapse of an agreement with Carlos Correa, San Francisco saw Shohei Ohtani go to Los Angeles after the Giants reportedly made a significant push.

The Giants have reportedly dealt with problems recruiting free agents according to franchise legend Buster Posey but San Francisco did make some interesting waves this winter.

San Francisco beefed up their offense, which ranked 24th in runs scored last season, with sluggers Jorge Soler and Matt Chapman. Additionally, the Giants came away with highly-touted Korean outfielder Jung Hoo Lee, who dominated overseas.

For the rotation, the Giants acquired Robbie Ray and signed ex-Blue Jays reliever Jordan Hicks.

The move for Hicks is a curious one, as his command is better suited for a relief role despite pure stuff. While it’s too early to tell whether it will work, Hicks didn’t have much success in his first two spring starts, as he gave up seven hits and three walks over 4.1 IP.

Now, a look at the subtractions part of our Giants offseason recap.

Notable Subtractions

The Giants will see significant turnover from 2023, particularly among the pitching staff.

Ross Stripling and Alex Wood are both in Oakland, the former of whom was traded there after a tough 2023 campaign. Sean Manaea, who found success in San Francisco after a rough 2022, signed with the Mets.

Additionally, the Giants opted not to return Scott Alexander and John Brebbia, two relievers that San Francisco used often as openers last year.

What to Expect in 2024

As we’ve noted on a number of occasions, the Giants’ offense didn’t produce to the level it needed to push San Francisco into the playoffs. While the Giants didn’t land the big fish, San Francisco did pick up two former 30-home run hitters, plus a former AL Cy Young Award winner and a KBO MVP,

That doesn’t guarantee the Giants anything, though, and San Francisco will still have their hands full with the Dodgers and Diamondbacks. And given that Robbie Ray and Alex Cobb will miss significant time in 2024, the Giants rotation aside from Logan Webb is a question mark.

The Giants also need to work out how the outfield rotation will go. Soler will be the team’s regular DH. Still the Giants need to figure out to work playing time for a group that includes Jung Hoo Lee, Austin Slater, Michael Conforto, Mike Yastrzemski, as well as C/OF Blake Sabol and young outfielders Wade Meckler and Luis Matos.