There’s something off about SF Giants’ pursuit of top free agent

The San Francisco Giants have had a Sisyphean run when pursuing top free agent targets in recent years. They’re seemingly always involved with the big-name players but never actually get the player to pick San Francisco. It’s gotten to the point where the fan base was celebrating the fact that the Giants didn’t really even try to land superstar free agent Juan Soto — Giants fans, it seems, don’t want to get hurt again.

But this week, it became clear that new president of baseball operations Buster Posey is ready to put the fan base through the wringer yet again, this time in pursuit of top free agent pitcher Corbin Burnes. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle added the latest report on the Giants’ interest in Burnes on Friday morning. (The Chronicle and SFGATE are both owned by Hearst but have separate newsrooms.) 

“I’m hearing the Giants have been in contact with Corbin Burnes, who’d certainly be a superb option after losing [Blake] Snell to the Dodgers,” Slusser wrote on social media. “He’s got the kind of personality I think would appeal to Buster Posey, too, bulldog reputation.”

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand said the Giants had “significant interest” last week before several national reporters connected Burnes to the team this week. Feinsand’s MLB.com colleague Jon Morosi did so on Tuesday, and both Robert Murray at Fansided and MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported on the Giants’ Burnes interest Thursday. 

Burnes would fit well in San Francisco. He’s got local ties; while he was born in Bakersfield, he played his college ball at Saint Mary’s College of California in Moraga. He’s been one of the best in the sport since becoming a full-time starter in 2020 with the Brewers, earning an All-Star nod in the past four years, including last year with the Orioles after an offseason trade.

But Burnes is going to be expensive, in more ways than one. Cash-wise, the 30-year-old is widely expected to receive a contract worth more than $200 million this offseason. Burnes also received a qualifying offer (like Snell and Matt Chapman did last season), so if the Giants chose to sign Burnes, it would cost them their second- and fifth-round picks, plus $1 million in their international bonus pool.

Before Slusser’s report, most of the Giants beat reporters were downplaying the possibility of the team pursuing Burnes. The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly reported that the Giants were expected to reduce payroll in 2025, and both Alex Pavlovic at NBC Sports Bay Area and Slusser’s Chronicle teammate John Shea were pessimistic about the Giants’ chances at Burnes last week, after Snell went to the Dodgers.

Around that same time, Posey went on the Athletic’s “Starkville” podcast and was asked about the team’s past failed pursuits of top free agents. Posey’s long answer acknowledged the fan base’s “frustration,” but he seemed ready to try again.

“If you have an opportunity to go after that type of caliber player, what’s the alternative, right? You don’t even go after them? OK, well, you’re definitely not getting them at that point,” Posey said.

Posey’s main point, however, focused on excitement around the Giants’ stable of interesting young pitchers. He specifically mentioned Hayden Birdsong, Kyle Harrison, Landen Roupp, Keaton Winn and Tristan Beck, and said the talent reminded him of some of his best days in a Giants uniform.

“I think for us to make a big leap, we’re going to have to rely on some of these younger arms to carry some of the bulk for us,” Posey said. “I got to see it firsthand. You know, we had some veteran guys — the Barry Zitos and the Ryan Vogelsongs of the world — and coupled out with [Tim] Lincecum and [Matt] Cain and [Madison] Bumgarner. … From what I’ve gathered, talking to coaches and some of the other players, some of these guys, I’m excited to watch them go and compete next year.”

The Giants’ rotation already has two spots locked up for ace Logan Webb and former Cy Young winner Robbie Ray. There’s also converted reliever Jordan Hicks, who was decent as a starter last year. If the Giants signed Burnes, that’d leave just one rotation spot for the litany of young starters Posey was excited about. It’s hard to go compete in the big leagues if you can’t get a roster spot.

So, in many ways, signing Burnes doesn’t really add up for the Giants. It’s why many Giants fans are wary about the team’s reported interest, like they were last year with Shohei Ohtani rumors.

But as the volume of reports increases, Giants fans who had quashed all hope of the team signing a big free agent may be willing to open their hearts once more — and should be ready to get hurt again.