With the hot-stove season rapidly approaching, Marty Lurie joined Larry Kruger on The Krug Show podcast to discuss which players the Giants should be targeting this offseason.
As he’s said previously, Lurie believes the Giants’ priority number one should be securing a big name closer – Aroldis Chapman specifically – who he believes would be well worth the $100 million-plus price tag. Should San Francisco sign the likes of Chapman, Lurie thinks they should add another arm to their bullpen to fill the setup role with Sergio Romo likely gone, and dropped the name of a former A’s reliever as his favorite target.
“I still like Brad Ziegler, because Romo was so good here,” Lurie said. “He was so good coming in and getting the righties with that slider. Of course as the year’s went on it just wasn’t there for him on a 100 percent basis. Ziegler’s a submariner and he’s got a great track record. He’s young enough, he’s got a pitch that is not going to go away.”
The right-handed Ziegler, 37, posted a 2.25 ERA between stints in Arizona and Boston last season, slightly better than his career ERA of 2.44. Ziegler started his career with the A’s, pitching in Oakland from 2008-10.
Lurie also mentioned Phillies relievers Hector Nerez and Jeanmar Gomez as two other targets he wouldn’t mind the Giants looking at to fill the setup role.
