San Francisco Giants: 2017 Season Review and Offseason Preview

The Giants had their worst season in more than 30 years, but have so many big contracts that they’ll be reloading rather than rebuilding.

The Giants continued their trend of playoff seasons in even numbered years and non-playoff seasons in odd numbered years, but took it to the extreme in 2017. After winning the World Series in 2010, 2012, and 2014, the Giants made the playoffs but lost in the NLDS in 2016. This year they were expected to win 86 or 87 games and be one of the two wild card teams in the National League by Sports Illustrated, Fangraphs, and Baseball Prospectus.

The team got off to a bad start, winning just six of their first 16 games. Then things got worse when stud starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner injured his shoulder in a dirt bike accident in Chicago. He would miss nearly three months. Meanwhile, the Giants went 9-17 in April, 13-16 in May, and 9-18 in June. By the time Bumgarner came back just after the All-Star break, the Giants were 34-56 and 27 games out of first place in the NL West.

They were slightly better in the second half than the first, but still not great. By the end of the year, the Giants were tied with the Detroit Tigers for the worst record in baseball. It was the first time they finished last in the NL West since 2007 and their lowest winning percentage in a season since 1985, when they were 62-100.

It was a very disappointing season for the Giants and their fans, but the team was considered a contender just six months ago and still have talent on the roster. Also, next year is an even-numbered year, so there’s that.

Let’s look at what went right, what went wrong, and the top offseason needs for the San Francisco Giants.

What Went Right 

As bad as the Giants’ season was, they still had Buster Posey. He did what he always does. He hit well (.320/.400/.462), played good defense behind the dish, and played 140 games. Posey had his lowest home run total in any full season, but he countered it with the second-highest on-base percentage of his career. Is it too soon to talk about Buster Posey and the Hall of Fame?

Beyond Buster, there were only three Giants hitters who were league average, based on Fangraphs WAR: Brandon Belt, Joe Panik, and Brandon Crawford. Belt and Panik were above average hitters, while Crawford’s value came primarily on defense. He had a 21-HR, 84-RBI season two years ago, but struggled at the plate this year. These guys may not be worthy of the “What Went Right” category for a different team, but there just wasn’t much else on offense worth mentioning. The Giants scored the second-fewest runs in baseball.

On the pitching side, it depends on your point of view whether Jeff Samardzija should be in the “What Went Right” category. He was 9-15, with a 4.42 ERA, which is not good. On the other hand, he had his highest strikeout rate since 2012 and the lowest walk rate of his career. Those are the two things a pitcher has the most control over.

He had some trouble with home runs, but his FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) and xFIP were both right around 3.60. In that sense, he “should” have had an ERA in that range. The results weren’t there this year, but a higher strikeout rate and lower walk rate are good signs for the future.

In the bullpen, Cory Gearrin had a 1.99 ERA in 68 innings and Hunter Strickland had a 2.64 ERA in 61.3 innings. They both walked a few too many batters and didn’t have the big strikeout totals that many relievers are putting up these days, but they were effective in the later innings.

What Went Wrong

The Giants’ offense was terrible. They were second-to-last in MLB in runs scored and on-base percentage and last in home runs and slugging percentage. Hunter Pence is a fun guy to watch, but he had a bad year. His .260/.315/.385 batting line was the worst of his career and made him a below-average hitter for the first time.

Catcher Nick Hundley struggled to get on base (.272 OBP) and outfielder Gorkys Hernandez had no power (.326 SLG). Rookies Ryder Jones (.173/.244/.273 in 164 plate appearances) and Christian Arroyo (.192/.244/.304 in 135 plate appearances) did not have a successful introduction to major league pitching.

Also, for some reason the team brought back Pablo Sandoval after he was released by the Boston Red Sox. Sandoval showed he still can’t hit by posting a .225/.263/.375 line with the Giants. He also dealt the team a tough blow by hitting a walk-off home run to win their final game of the year. That win by the Giants allowed the Detroit Tigers to have the number one pick in next year’s June Amateur draft.

Heading into the season, the Giants were hoping Johnny Cueto, Jeff Samardzija, and Matt Moore would fall in behind ace Madison Bumgarner to give the team a strong rotation. Instead, Bumgarner missed half the season, Cueto had a 4.52 ERA, Samardzija’s results didn’t match his peripherals, and Moore was the worst of the bunch, with a 5.52 ERA and 4.75 FIP. Ty Blach had 24 starts but his 4.78 ERA was not impressive.

Then there was Matt Cain, the one-time mainstay of the staff. From 2006 to 2013, Cain averaged 209 innings per year with a 3.38 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. He was reliable too, never starting fewer than 30 games during this eight-year stretch. In 51.3 postseason innings in 2010 and 2012, Cain was 4-2 with a 2.10 ERA.

Then injuries hit and Cain struggled. Over the last four years, he averaged 91 innings per year, with a 5.23 ERA. In late September, he announced he would retire after the season, then pitched five scoreless innings in his final start. Unfortunately, the Giants couldn’t score and lost the game, 3-2. Cain was a good guy who had a tough ending to a fine career.

Last December, the Giants signed free agent reliever Mark Melancon to a 4-year, $62 million contract to be their shutdown closer. Over the previous four years, Melancon averaged 37 saves, a 1.80 ERA, and 72 innings per year. This season went poorly right from the start when Melancon blew his first save opportunity of the year on Opening Day.

After that inauspicious debut, Melancon notched eight scoreless outings, then recorded his second blown save on the last day of April. On May 9, Melancon was placed on the DL for the first time. He came back on May 19 and was healthy enough to pitch for another five weeks, but struggled in June and was placed on the DL again on June 28.

He tried again in August and lasted into the first week of September, but the Giants finally ended his season after a bad outing in Colorado on September 5. He finished with a 4.50 ERA in 30 innings. He had surgery to repair the pronator muscle in his right forearm (compartment syndrome), but is expected to make a full recovery and start next year back in the closer’s role.

Finally, the Giants had two left-handed relievers who were just awful. Josh Osich (6.23 ERA in 43.3 innings) and Steven Okert (5.67 ERA in 27 innings) were knocked around the yard on a regular basis.