SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants showcased their big offseason acquisition on Friday afternoon, when new closer Mark Melancon had his introductory press conference at AT&T Park. Based on comments from general manager Bobby Evans and manager Bruce Bochy, he may also be their last.
Acquiring a top-tier closer was always the Giants’ biggest need, and signing Melancon, who notched 47 saves last season, accomplished just that. The question is, will he be enough to fix a bullpen that blew a league-leading 30 saves in 2016?
With Evans already publicly downplaying the club’s potential to add a big name bat, many assumed that if San Francisco was going to hit the free agent market again this Winter, it would be to add a set-up man to pair with Melancon, especially with three veterans likely leaving.
On Friday, however, both Evans and Bochy expressed confidence in the group they have moving forward, saying that any other acquisitions to the ‘pen will likely be non-roster invitees.
“We’re gonna stay open minded in terms of other options to strengthen our pen,” Evans said. “We’ve got a number of non-roster guys coming in that will compete. We’ll continue to build the competition. Very open minded, yet our focus on what we have is encouraging, with (Derek) Law, (Hunter) Strickland, (Josh) Osich, (Steven) Okert, Will Smith, Cory Gearrin, and George Kontos. It’s a good core and we’ve got a lot to work with…At the same time it’s going to be a competition. Clearly roles will have to get defined. There’s certainly frontrunners within this group and that’s good for us.”
Bochy reiterated the fact that the Giants like what they have in the bullpen, citing that having a defined and reliable closer will make everyone better.
“That closer makes the rest of the bullpen so much better,” Bochy said. “Because you’re able to put them in their defined roles and I think with the weapons we have – three good left-handers – and on the right side I think we saw Law and his improvement and Hunter Strickland. So I’m very confident we’re going to have a good bridge to Mark there. He’s gonna stabilize our ‘pen to have somebody at the back end like Mark.”
A lack of defined roles was a killer for the Giants bullpen last year, causing Bochy to mix and match on a nightly basis with minimal success. Knowing which buttons to press at which time has been a strength of Bochy throughout his managerial career, but 2016 was different. The veteran manager even admitted to not knowing exactly what he was doing late in the season, and saying that his decision to go with a closer by committee was ill-advised.
While the Giants may be confident in the arms they have, the biggest reason they are likely to stand pat has to do with money. The signing of Melancon put San Francisco’s payroll up to around $200 million, five million over the luxury tax of $195. This is the third year the Giants are over the tax limit, meaning they would have to pay a 50 percent penalty on every dollar spent over.
There is also the added wrinkle of Sergio Romo and Javier Lopez both likely leaving, meaning the Giants will need to find a new left-hander and right-hander that can take over eighth-inning duties. The aforementioned Law is probably the safest bet to fill Romo’s role amongst right-handers, posting a 2.13 ERA as a rookie before a late season elbow injury threw a wrench in his production. From the left side of the slab, Will Smith, 27, is probably the best bet, posting a 2.95 ERA after joining the Giants in a mid-season trade.
There will likely be a number of small name players invited to camp, such as former Marlin Bryan Morris, who will have an outside shot to make the team. For the most part, however, it will be up to Melancon and a number of young arms to turn around a bullpen that made a habit of being unreliable last season.
Will it be enough? We’ll have to wait and see.
