MLB Rumors: Red Sox-Juan Soto buzz, Cardinals trade brewing, Giants’ bad rep
- Could Juan Soto find a home at Fenway Park?
- The Cardinals may shop one or two catchers
- Giants reportedly have a 'damaged' reputation in free agency
By Kristen Wong
MLB Rumors: Giants get 'damaged' rep for their handling of free agent pitchers
The San Francisco Giants are having a mediocre year turned more sour by the latest MLB rumors. According to The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly, some league members believe the Giants have "damaged" their reputation when it comes to plucking players from the free agent pitching market.
Per Baggarly, a few examples of the way the Giants may have mismanaged their free agent pitching acquisitions lie in the season trajectories of Alex Wood, Sean Manaea, and Ross Stripling. Those three noticeably underperformed in the spring, and the Giants responded by demoting them and placing them in bulk relief roles.
Outfielder Mitch Haniger also saw his playing time get cut short and was recently sent to the bench after an injury-related decline in his performance. Haniger received $43.5 million this past offseason.
The Giants' handling of their free agent signings has elicited scorn from the rest of the league. Baggarly writes that some anonymous league higher-ups view "the Giants’ atypical usage patterns with both pitchers and hitters" as something that will make it "difficult to cultivate trust with players they attempt to sign this winter."
San Francisco's tendency to give up on their free agent signings when the going gets tough increases the pressure on those players, effectively making them feel like rookies who need to play to a certain standard to keep their roster spot.
The Giants will continue scouring for free agent gems this winter as they do any winter, but rumblings of their questionable player management may have the marquee pitcher targets (ahem, Ohtani) looking elsewhere.