San Francisco Giants: A Very Early Opening Day Roster Projection

The San Francisco Giants have been very busy this offseason, and their opening day 25-man roster looks to be set.

After a very busy, and very expensive, offseason, the San Francisco Giants seem to have their roster set, for the most part. They’ve covered the two main holes the team had coming into the winter, the starting pitching and the outfield, and the team looks to be the most complete it has been in a long time, on paper. With pitchers and catchers reporting in less than a month and a half, here’s a very early opening day roster projection.

The Giants starting lineup is in pretty clear focus. Entering his seventh full season, Buster Posey will continue to strap on the catcher’s gear and guide the pitching staff as the team’s almost everyday catcher. The former National league MVP will get his occasional “rest days” at first base, but more often than not, he will be in the squat.

In the infield, the Giants’ young, exciting, homegrown starting four will be manning the dirt at AT&T Park. Coming off his fantastic rookie season, Matt Duffy has made the hot corner his own, and his continued development (or sophomore slump, whichever the case may be) will be fun to watch in 2016. Next to him, Brandon Crawford, plus his fancy Gold Glove, Silver Slugger, and contract, will be the primary shortstop for the fifth straight season. The team will hope to get their second baseman, Joe Panik, back to his stellar form (.309 career average) after a back injury derailed him last season. At first base, Gold Glove finalist Brandon Belt will be taking throws from his infield compatriots.

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Last week, the formerly blurry outfield picture came into a much clearer focus. The Giants signed veteran outfielder Denard Span to a three-season pact, and all signs point to him becoming the everyday center fielder and leadoff hitter. In doing so, he will usurp Angel Pagan, who has spent the last four seasons (minus a lot of time spent on the disabled list) as the man in the middle of the outfield. In Span’s introductory press conference, manager Bruce Bochy heavily hinted towards Pagan shifting into left field. The move to a less physically taxing position could be just what Pagan needs at this point in his career. In right field, Hunter Pence will hope to become the thumper in the middle of the Giants’ lineup again after a disappointingly injury-riddled season in 2015.

The starting rotation was the Giants’ biggest weakness in 2015, but after signing two starting pitchers, things look a lot better for the team’s starting five. Madison Bumgarner will continue to serve as the Giants’ horse, as well as the most feared hitting pitcher the game has to offer. Behind him, newly-acquired pitchers Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija settle in as the number two and number three pitchers, respectively. Jake Peavy, after missing most of the first half of 2015 due to a bad back and hip, pitched extremely well upon his return and will likely be the fourth starter in turn. The team is hoping that a full offseason of work will be good for Matt Cain as he continues to learn to pitch with a new arm slot. If it does work, Cain could become the best fifth starter in baseball.

Now with three 200-plus inning pitchers in the rotation, the Giants should be much more inclined to run with 12 pitchers in 2016, rather than the 13 they carried nearly all of last season. Three of the “Core Four” relievers will be back, with Santiago Casilla, Sergio Romo, and Javier Lopez sticking in the bullpen after Jeremy Affeldt‘s retirement proceeding the 2015 season. George Kontos should join them after further establishing himself with a very solid 2015 season. Youngsters Hunter Strickland and Josh Osich (taking the place of Affeldt as the second left-handed reliever in the bullpen) should crack the opening day roster, as well.

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With Yusmeiro Petit moving to the Nation’s Capital for the 2016 season, the one opening on the Giants pitching staff is the long relief role. The team seems determined to have Chris Heston become the new swingman. After enjoying a very strong first half in 2015, Heston seemed to hit a wall, and limiting his innings by putting him in a lesser role could help him bounce back from that. Aside from pitching out of the bullpen, Heston can also provide insurance for starting pitchers, should Cain continue to struggle with his release point, or Peavy’s back problems flare up again.

The Giants’ bench will be vital this season after being so heavily used last year. Four players in the projected starting lineup (Belt, Panik, Pence, and Span in Washington) ended 2015 on the disabled list, while two more (Crawford and Pagan) missed fairly significant time with their own injuries. Gregor Blanco will again be the team’s fourth outfielder in 2016, although his role almost always expands to more than that. Kelby Tomlinson, after bursting on to the scene last year, should make the opening day roster as the team’s immediate backup infielder.

Andrew Susac has the inside track to be Posey’s backup, but Trevor Brown, another player who emerged out of nearly nowhere last season, will compete in Spring Training for a roster spot. Brown’s versatility (he has played first base and second base in the minor leagues) could entice the team to keep three catchers, but that doesn’t seem likely. Ehire Adrianza, although not the popular choice, could be a beneficiary from the Giants’ longer bench, serving as the second backup infielder behind Tomlinson. He is out of options, and if the team decides to not keep him on the 25-man roster, he will have to pass through waivers to stay in the organization, as he did last season.

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The 25th roster spot will likely be the team’s biggest competition in spring. Young outfielders Jarrett Parker and Mac Williamson should compete for the job, but it’s possible that the team will be keen to have both start in the minor leagues, where the playing time they’d receive would be far more regular and consistent than what they would get in the big leagues. If that becomes the case, veteran Kyle Blanks, whom the team signed to a minor league contract this offseason, could turn into the favorite to sneak on to the roster. In addition to being a corner outfielder, Blanks has also played first base fairly frequently.

Of course, there are a lot of variables that will play a part in deciding the initial 25-man roster. With a lot of time still left in the offseason, the Giants could sign someone else to take up a spot. In Span’s introductory press conference, the team’s general manager, Bobby Evans, said they are still exploring options for bench players (a player like Ryan Raburn pops into mind). Injuries can, and likely will occur leading up to the season, causing a shuffle on the roster.

Next: San Francisco Giants: The Island of Misfit Players

The Giants are pretty much set at this point, and the 25-man roster looks to be fairly well penciled in. Things can, and probably will change, but a fun offseason should have fans everywhere excited for opening day.

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