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ORLANDO, Fla. — Starting pitching is the Giants’ No 1 focus at this week’s winter meetings, and Buster Posey is open to trading for accomplished rotation pieces or signing them through free agency.
And not of the scrap-heap variety.
The popular narrative entering the meetings was that the Giants were out on the big-name free-agent starters in part because of Chairman Greg Johnson’s comment to The Standard that the franchise will be “very cautious” about pitchers commanding $100 million or more.
But on Monday, while sitting in his hotel suite between GM Zack Minasian and new manager Tony Vitello, Posey suggested that he has trust in ownership to be aboard on certain players who will be costly.
“I think as much as anything, Greg has shown that if we come to him and feel strongly about a certain player, he’ll at least listen on it,” Posey said. “Every team has to operate within a certain set of parameters, and that’s part of it. Greg and the ownership group didn’t blink — well, I shouldn’t say they didn’t blink — when we brought the Devers deal to them, but obviously they pushed it through for us.
“So I know [Minasian] and I feel really lucky that we get to work with a group that if we’re passionate about somebody and think that it makes sense and makes the team better, they’ll listen on it.”
In the wake of Dylan Cease’s seven-year, $210 million contract with Toronto, the top remaining starters include Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez, Tatsuya Imai, and Zac Gallen.
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Asked if the Giants could be a landing spot for one of the big arms, Posey said, “We’re keeping our options open. I don’t know how to dance around that better than that.”
At that point, Vitello, the former coach at the University of Tennessee, quipped, “I’m not going to miss recruits telling me they’re keeping their options open.”
One of those recruits was a tall, lanky high school kid out of Virginia who chose the pros over college after the Giants drafted him 16th overall in the 2023 draft. Since then, Bryce Eldridge has soared through the farm system while crushing baseballs at every stop.
Posey noted that the Giants’ analytics department registered Eldridge with the highest hard-hit rate in the minors, and he continued making extremely hard contact after breaking into the majors in September, though without many positive results.
The front office is confident Eldridge will enjoy a successful career, but there’s some redundancy on the roster with both him and Rafael Devers. Both play first base, and both swing left-handed. Posey said the Giants could make it work so that they share the position while alternating as designated hitters.
On the other hand, Eldridge is an attractive trade piece, and teams have been asking about his availability. He could help fetch a top-notch starter to the Giants, though it would be tough letting him go with all his projected upside.
Posey didn’t waver when asked if he’d listen to trade proposals for the team’s top prospect.
“We listen on everybody, but we think the sky is the limit for this guy,” Posey said. “He just turned 21 years old right after the season. I know he didn’t put up great numbers in his limited playing time, but he didn’t look like he was overmatched or scared, and I thought he had some really good at-bats for being not even 21. So I think sometimes you can say, well, the guy’s young, and maybe you’ve got to take that into account. I mean, this guy has flown through the system, playing in a Double-A and Triple-A at 19, 20 years old.
“I think he’s got a chance to be one of the biggest impact bats for the next 10 to 15 years in the big leagues, potentially. So we’ll listen, but we like him a lot.”
Vitello recalled recruiting Eldridge and shared their interactions with his new bosses.
“It was a lot,” Vitello said. “There was obviously heavy interest from everybody in the country. … It’ll be good to catch up with him a little bit more.”
However the rotation is built beyond Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, and Landen Roupp, Posey is encouraged that it’ll be a solid contingent of starters.
“I’m confident we’ll find it,” he said. “I don’t think any of us have a timeline. We feel good about the possibilities out there.”
One possibility is trading Eldridge, but it’s no easy call. The Giants would need to be wowed in any trade offer. Meantime, it remains realistic for fans to dream of Devers and Eldridge highlighting the team’s lineup for many years to come.
“I think just based on the little bit of time that we were around Rafi last year, he’s a team guy and wants to win,” Posey said. “If Bryce is beating down the door, [Devers] is going to want somebody protecting him in the lineup, too.”