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ORLANDO, Fla. – Duane Kuiper got bamboozled.
In other winter meetings news, the Giants added a Rule 5 backup catcher and struck it big in the draft lottery by gaining the No. 4 overall pick.
The four-day meetings concluded Wednesday, and all kinds of drama surrounded the Giants throughout the week. Their former second baseman Jeff Kent was elected to the Hall of Fame, and their former left fielder Barry Bonds was not. Their new manager, Tony Vitello, was introduced to the pro baseball world, and their president of baseball operations, Buster Posey, dipped into the free-agent and trade markets without making a move.
League-wide awards went to their PR man, Matt Chisholm, and clubhouse managers, Brad Grems and Gavin Cuddle, and longtime executive Karen Sweeney received the Katy Feeney Leadership Award, which recognizes exceptional women in baseball.
But the mood with Giants officials was bittersweet because of the latest Hall of Fame denial. The bad news came crashing down hard Wednesday when the Hall announced its winner of the prestigious Ford C. Frick Award, presented annually for broadcast excellence.
It wasn’t Duane Kuiper, the Giants’ lovable broadcaster who has been on the ballot several times without getting enough love. It was Joe Buck, who’s nearly 20 years younger than the 75-year-old Kuiper and is more known as a national guy who’s currently calling football games.
In the Giants’ suite at the winter meetings hotel, Posey alerted team executives that Kuiper didn’t win. GM Zack Minasian said, “My first thought was, ‘Kuip’s going to get in eventually.’”
“He’s synonymous with Giants baseball,” said Posey, who goes back a long way with the Kuiper-Mike Krukow partnership. “Of course, I’m biased, but both of those guys are slam-dunk Hall of Famers, in my opinion.”
Despite the Kuiper news, which came three days after the Hall’s Contemporary Baseball Era Committee elected Kent to the Cooperstown shrine but not Bonds, the Giants had reasons to be upbeat as the meetings closed. That’s because of the stunning lottery result and the fact that a new backup catcher is aboard.
Daniel Susac, Roseville native and kid brother of former Giants catcher Andrew Susac, who used to back up Posey, was obtained in a roundabout way, prearranged by the Giants and Twins, who selected him with the fourth pick in Wednesday’s Rule 5 draft from the A’s. In turn, the Giants acquired him in a deal for a rookie-league catcher, Miguel Caraballo.
Susac, 24, was Oakland’s first-round draft pick in 2022 and hit .275 with 18 homers, a .349 on-base percentage, and .483 slugging percentage last season in Triple-A. He wasn’t a major-league fit with the A’s with Shea Langeliers and Austin Wynns on the 40-man roster.
“Still young, still upside, so a lot of positives, a lot of boxes checked. Excited to give him the opportunity,” Minasian said. “Obviously, he’s going to have to come in and earn [the backup job behind Patrick Bailey], but for us to take him shows what we think of him.”
Per Rule 5 guidelines, Susac must remain in the big leagues all next season; if not, he must be offered back to the A’s. The Giants lost two pitchers in the major-league portion of the Rule 5 draft — Ryan Watson to the A’s (later traded to Boston) and Spencer Miles to the Blue Jays — and five others in the minor-league phase.
Meantime, everyone in the Giants’ contingent took turns praising Randy Winn, the VP of player development who represented the club in Tuesday’s draft lottery. In line to pick in the middle of the pack because of their 81-81 record, the Giants got lucky and ended up with the fourth overall pick.
“Everybody in the organization has been very nice to me today, borderline uncomfortable,” Winn said Wednesday, “and for somebody who basically did nothing but sit on a stool and not fall off, I don’t know if I deserve it. But I’m going to take it.”
The Giants had just one other fourth overall pick, Jason Grilli in 1997, and four other top five picks: Will Clark (second, 1985), Matt Williams (third, 1986), Posey (fifth, 2008), and Joey Bart (second, 2018).
“It means a lot, especially when we’re trying to build a farm system,” said scouting director Michael Holmes, thrilled that another $3.5 million to $4 million could be added to the Giants’ draft pool. “To get something like that is big for us. There were some hugs and high fives in the suite. It’s a really deep draft and really strong in the middle of the diamond with shortstops and center fielders and obviously arms.”
Vitello, who had many fellow MLB managers approach him this week and introduce themselves, will be leaned on to assist in the draft preparation because of his knowledge of college baseball as the former Tennessee coach. Vitello already has shared information on some of the top college players with Holmes.
“A lot of these guys, he either coached them or recruited them along the way, so there’s a little intimate relationship he has with some of them,” Holmes said. “Part of my job is to acquire as much information as I can on these players, and having a resource like that really helps.”
Whether the Giants will bid on a top-end free-agent starter isn’t known. Zac Gallen got a qualifying offer from the Diamondbacks, meaning the team that signs him would forfeit draft pick compensation. The Giants’ top No. 4 pick is protected in any event; in recent years, the Giants lost draft picks after signing free agents Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, and Willy Adames.
Either way, Minasian said the Giants have dived into both the trade and free-agent markets and are eager to make deals. Other teams cashed in with big signings, including the Dodgers (three years, $69 million for closer Edwin Diaz), Phillies (five years, $150 million for Kyle Scharber), and Orioles (five years, $155 million for Pete Alonso).
The Braves rounded out the day by signing former Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year, $23 million deal. Yastrzemski spent six-plus seasons in San Francisco before he was traded to the Royals in a deadline deal for 22-year-old pitching prospect Yunior Marte.
“It always takes the other side, whether it’s a team or agent, but we’re certainly motivated to move,” Minasian said. “We’re not necessarily the type to wait if we feel like there’s something that makes sense for the organization.”
The meetings ended with the entire coaching staff (minus bullpen coach Jesse Chavez, who had a prior engagement) gathering in a conference room to strategize, bond, and then enjoy a final dinner together as they look ahead to the rest of the offseason and spring training.