San Francisco Giants: Four reasons they’ll make the playoffs in 2018

The 2017 season was one to forget for the San Francisco Giants. Even though last season didn’t turn out too well for them, things are looking up for the 2018 season.

Since 2010, the San Francisco Giants have been one of the most successful franchises in professional sports. However, 2017 didn’t turn out how the Giants planned and they finished with the worst record in the NL.

San Francisco’s 64-98 record was their worst finish since the 1983 season where the team finished 62-100. Last season was very uncharacteristic for a team that has found much success over the past decade.

The Giants took MLB by surprise in 2010 when they combined a group of young players and misfits and won the World Series. That championship sparked two more by the club in 2012 and 2014.

In that span of time, the San Francisco Giants have made the playoffs four times (also 2016). In 2016, the club faced off against the eventual World Series-winning Chicago Cubs in the NLDS and lost in devasting fashion. The Giants blew a three-run ninth inning Game 4 lead and since then, not much has gone their way.

A combination of injuries, poor play and bad luck factored in the Giants’ losing ways. And with the way the season went, it left a lot of people questioning if this was the end of the Giants’ dynasty, and if so, was it time for a rebuild.

But even though 2017 was not an ideal season for the Giants, this coming season could end up a lot better.

Let’s take a look at four reasons why the Giants will make the playoffs in 2018.

The Acquisitions of Longoria and McCutchen

In December, the San Francisco Giants made their first big splash of the offseason. They solidified their weakness at third base by acquiring a veteran.

The Tampa Bay Rays traded Evan Longoria to the Giants for Christian Arroyo, Denard Span, and two pitching prospects Matt Krook and Stephen Woods. Not only did the Giants gain a Gold Glove award winner, but they also added a middle of the order bat that they’ve needed over the past few seasons.

Longoria, 32, entered the league in 2008 and made a name for himself right away. Longoria won AL Rookie of the Year with the Rays. In his 10 seasons with the Rays, Longoria became the face of the franchise.

In Tampa, Longoria hit .270/.341/.483 with 261 home runs, 892 RBI and 790 runs. Along with winning RotY, he also took home a Silver Slugger, three Gold Glove awards and made three All-Star teams.

He definitely left his mark in Tampa. Longoria leaves as the franchise leader in games played, hits, doubles, home runs, RBI and walks.

Now in San Francisco, Longoria has the potential to leave his mark there as well. In the midst of a 15-year deal, the third baseman still has five years remaining on his deal.

The San Francisco Giants also made another big move recently. They acquired outfielder Andrew McCutchen from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for pitcher Kyle Crick and minor leaguer Bryan Reynolds. The Pirates also received $500,000 in international slot pool money.

Like the Longoria move shored up the third base spot for the Giants, the McCutchen move gives the Giants an answer in center field. And McCutchen’s another veteran presence added to their lineup.

McCutchen, 31, spent his first nine seasons in Pittsburgh. He played a big part in the Pirates’ recent success and provided a pivotal role in the Pirates’ breaking their 21-year playoff drought in 2013. But the Pirates quickly saw their ship sink and decided selling was the best move, thus making McCutchen available for the Giants.

In his career, McCutchen owns a slash line of .291/.379/.487 with 203 home runs, 725 RBI and 814 runs scored. McCutchen’s made five All-Star teams, won four Silver Sluggers, a Gold Glove and took home NL MVP honors back in 2013.

The outfielder took to Twitter to show his excitement about heading to the city by the bay.

With the two acquisitions, the Giants showed that they are in “win now” mode. The two acquisitions improve the team immensely and will help the Giants aim for October again.

A Healthy MadBum

A lot went wrong injury-wise for the San Francisco Giants in 2017. But nothing hurt them more than seeing their ace Madison Bumgarner suffer an injury that caused him to miss over two months. What was even worse was how the injury happened. Bumgarner crashed on his dirt bike in Colorado causing a sprained shoulder.

Not only did the Giants lose a durable arm on the mound but they lost a bit of leadership. Losing one of your leaders to a careless injury like that causes a loss of team morale. Bumgarner also possesses the best bat out of any pitchers in today’s game, so the Giants also lost a good bat every fifth day too.

The 28-year-old garnered a lot of recognition for his success in the 2014 postseason. Where he pitched a whopping 52.2 innings and posted a 1.03 ERA, en route to winning the 2014 World Series MVP. The lefty’s dominated the postseason throughout his career. In 102.1 innings, Bumgarner owns a 2.11 ERA and 87 strikeouts.

As for the regular season, he sports a 104-76 record, a 3.01 ERA, 1.097 WHIP and 1,482 strikeouts. In his nine seasons, Bumgarner’s made four All-Star games, won two Silver Sluggers and has helped the Giants win three World Series.

Losing a workhorse and one of the best pitchers in the game played a big factor in the Giants’ poor 2017. A full year of a healthy Bumgarner could easily shoot the Giants right back into the playoff picture.

Bruce Bochy’s Winning Ways

Despite the poor play of the San Francisco Giants in 2017, there’s no questioning that the club has one of the best managers in the game in Bruce Bochy. The 62-year-old manager deserves a lot of credit for the Giants winning three World Series since 2010.

Bochy himself played in the MLB for nine seasons. The former catcher retired after the 1987 season and by 1995 he became the manager of the San Diego Padres. Bochy took over as the Giants’ manager in 2007.

In his 11 seasons as Giants’ manager, the team has finished over .500 seven times, made the playoffs four times and three of those four resulted in winning the World Series. But even more impressive, Bochy’s yet to see his team suffer back-to-back losing seasons since his first two seasons as manager.

Bochy ranks in the top-20 all-time in managerial wins. With 1,853 wins, Bochy ranks 15th all-time. Among all active managers, Bochy ranks first in managerial wins. And with his contract not expiring until 2019, expect the Giants’ manager to sneak into the top-10 before then.

Many speculate that Bochy might retire after the 2019 season. Having some health issues over the past couple seasons, including a few heart procedures, Bochy might call it quits after the next two seasons. If that’s the case, expect the manager to go out with a bang before he retires.

Bochy’s club may not always make the playoffs but history shows us that his team most likely won’t finish below .500 twice in a row. So with the Giants finishing below .500 in 2017, that means 2018 will result in an above .500 season, giving them a good shot at the playoffs.