Who were the SF Giants best and worst free-agent signings last offseason?
The SF Giants may forever regret not being able to convince Aaron Judge sign with them. And they may never live down the tumult of the Carlos Correa saga, which cemented one of the weirdest offseasons in recent memory. But in that chaos, it's easy to forget that the Giants nevertheless had a notably robust free agent class join them this past year.
Mitch Haniger and Michael Conforto joined the Giants on the position side, while Joc Pederson re-signed after an All-Star season. Sean Manaea and Ross Stripling joined the rotation, while Taylor Rogers reunited with his brother Tyler, and Luke Jackson helped round out the bullpen. How did the group fair?
In our previous edition of Best and Worst, we took a look at which Giants rookies stood out and which ones needed more seasoning. But now, let's unveil the Giants' best and worst free agent signings of 2023. We polled the Giants Baseball Insider team to find out who truly shined, and who has already lost their luster. Drum roll, please!
SF Giants 2023 Best Free Agent Signing: Taylor Rogers
Honorable Mention: Sean Manaea
SF Giants reliever Taylor Rogers hits his stride while pitching for San Francisco (2023).
Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Ever since throwing his glove to the trash can early this season, the lefty Rogers looked really good for the Giants. His numbers would look even better if he finished his season strong, but he's going to be a core relief arm for the Giants next season.
-Wrenzie Regodon
Woof. For as big a free agent haul as the Giants pulled in prior to the 2023 season, they sure didn't get much out of it. All things considered, Rogers is probably the biggest win here. Getting the twins together was a tremendous story that I'll continue to root for, and it certainly didn't hurt that Taylor provided an already-good bullpen with a solid season.
-JD Salazar
Manaea was a huge huge huge vibes addition. You'll note I'm less of a numbers gal in these answers - last year the tension around the franchise was devastating. We are seeing in real time what the repercussions of that are. But Manaea was such a solid, fun guy who seemed to lighten or attempt to lighten the mood wherever he could. Guys like that, who cut through tension, are huge assets to the team whether that can be quantified or not.
-Natasha Welingkar
Michael Conforto and Joc Pederson were probably the Giants two most productive free-agent signings, but neither player were huge positives.
-Marc Delucchi
SF Giants 2023 Worst Free Agent Signing: Mitch Haniger
(Dis)honorable Mention: Michael Conforto
SF Giants left fielder Mitch Haniger takes first base in his debut season at Oracle Park (2023).
Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports
Haniger has two years left on his deal, which gives him time to change the narrative, but there's no doubt that he fell well short of expectations in 2023.
-Marc Delucchi
I'm going with Conforto here. While he probably had a better season than either Pederson or Haniger, it wasn't by a lot. But at least the Giants aren't married to Pederson, and Haniger still has the opportunity to change the narrative after having a year to settle in. The way Conforto's contract is structured, he can opt out and hit the market again this offseason. If he does, the Giants will have paid $18 million for a guy they thought would be a roster fixture to instead have a 0.6 WAR season and dip. Not the best bang for their buck.
-JD Salazar
