It’s hump day, and we stay in the NL West as we dive into the San Francisco Giants who come into the 2024 season looking to return to relevance in a crowded division and league. It’s a frustrating stretch for the bay area squad as they have reached the playoffs just once in the last five years, a miraculous 107-win season that is truly the outlier back in 2021. There are plenty of new faces joining the mix after last year’s team finished under .500 at 79-83. That starts in the dugout with new skipper Bob Melvin coming up the coast from San Diego to helm the Giants. With Melvin comes a host of new position players from all corners of the game. Japanese outfielder Jung Hoo Lee joins, Jorge Soler, Matt Chapman, reliever Jordan Hicks and late addition Blake Snell who all arrive via free agency. These aren’t quite the star players the Giants have been looking for the last few offseasons, but they’re still solid big leaguers. The question remains, are they good enough to drive this team toward the playoffs? Let’s dive into the answer!

Keys to Success

1. Melvin Makes the Difference: A change in manager can make a difference in the product on the field, just look at our preview of the Guardians, who I feel will struggle without Terry Francona. Bob Melvin’s arrival has the potential to do the opposite, as he comes looking to give this team a shot in the arm. If he can push the right buttons its possible this team is in the race.

2. New Bats Step Up: If this team is going to make any noise this year in the NL, they will need much more in the way of offensive contributions. Lee, Soler and Chapman will have to make their presence felt as the rest of the Giants lineup isn’t exactly murderer’s row. Chapman and Soler in particular can be a bit spotty, so the Giants will be looking for them to break tendency and put together big years from start to finish.

3. Snell and Hicks Fortify the Staff: While the Giants have a clear ace in righty Logan Webb, they have lacked quality pitching depth behind him. They are attempting to rectify that with the addition of reliever/starter, Jordan Hicks and reigning NL CY Young winner Blake Snell. While these two additions have plenty of upside, Snell is far from consistent over his career and Hicks doesn’t have the track record as a starter.

The Lineup

1. Jung Ho Lee CF

2. Thairo Estrada 2B

3. Lamonte Wade Jr. 1B

4. Jorge Soler DH

5. Michael Conforto RF

6. Matt Chapman 3B

7. Mike Yastrzemski LF

8. Patrick Bailey C

9. Marco Luciano SS

The Staff

1. Logan Webb

2. Blake Snell

3. Kyle Harrison

4. Jordan Hicks

5. Keaton Winn

Closer: Camillo Doval

The Prediction

78 Wins

While I think the Giants have made some good additions to their lineup and rotation, I just don’t like the makeup of this group. With all due respect to them, they don’t look equipped to properly contend over the 162-game schedule in a stacked division. Snell and Webb will have to be at their best and the new bats will have to click to bring this team to the postseason.

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