It’s been a tough season so far for the San Francisco Giants. At 20-30 and 11.0 games out of first place in the NL West, the Giants are looking for answers as to what went wrong.
One common criticism has been how President of Baseball Operations Buster Posey constructed the Giants bullpen. In particular, the lack of an obvious option at closing pitcher. So, it wasn’t a surprise when Posey was asked about this during a recent interview with Brian Murphy of KNBR.
Posey seemed frustrated by the question, though, while defending his bullpen. He would even invoke Edwin Diaz, a closer who was on the market last offseason, as a lose-lose option for the Giants.
“I guess, Murph, you probably wanted us to sign Edwin Diaz,” Posey said. “Then you’d probably ask me why I signed Edwin Diaz because he’s on the IL. Every decision we made you could play armchair quarterback on it and say it was good or bad. We’ve got some guys in the bullpen doing some really good stuff.”
It has, in no uncertain terms, been a difficult season for Diaz, too. As Posey noted, Diaz is currently on the IL, dealing with loose bodies in his elbow that required surgery. On top of that, he’s being investigated for illegal cockfighting. So, maybe Posey is right and that signing wouldn’t have gone over well, but there were other options to secure a closer.
As it stands now, the Giants have five putchers who have managed to record a save this season. Ryan Walker leads the way with three saves, but he also has a 6.46 ERA in 15.1 innings and three blown saves. As a team, the Giants have five blown saves.
At the same time, Posey is right in general about his bullpen. The Giants have a bullpen ERA of 3.48, which is ninth-best in all of MLB. They just don’t have an obvious closer.
San Francisco Giants Criticized for Handling of Bryce Eldridge
GettySan Francisco Giants first baseman Bryce Eldridge
The San Francisco Giants are looking for help on offense, and there’s been some hope that prospect Bryce Eldridge could be that spark. Except, he’s scuffled out of the gate and had limited playing time, which in turn has led to some criticism of the team.
“You don’t call your prospects up to fill in,” Eric Kratz said on Foul Territory. “You call your prospects up because it’s time to go. In the long run, it’s not as good for the player as teams would think. ‘Oh, it’s okay, it’s totally fine, Bryce Eldridge can come up right now, and he can sit on the bench. Teams are afraid of us pinch-hitting him.’ They’re not [afraid]. It’s not fair, he’s never done it! It’s hard enough. You learn to do that at the end of your career. You don’t pinch-hit as a prospect in the big leagues, that SUCKS. That is really hard to do, and I think they’re putting him in a spot to fail. If you call Bryce Eldridge up, he plays. Bar none. You have to find him at-bats, or you leave him in Triple-A.”
That criticism is local, too. Posey would even be asked about it, explaining that they’re taking each day as it comes with Eldridge.
“You’re trying to get the 21-year-old in the best spot you can… we’ll have to just evaluate as each day goes on,” Posey said, before explaining that day-to-day at-bats in Triple-A is something they’ll evaluate.
Buster Posey Made a Bold Hire in Tony Vitello
GettySan Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello
This offseason, Buster Posey directly tied himself to a new manager in San Francisco, Tony Vitello. It was a bold choice, too. Despite plenty of college success, he had never coached, managed, or played at any level of professional baseball, making him the first MLB manager hired without that experience.
Already, it appears that some fans have been turning against Vitello. Booing has rained down on the Giants during home games in May, and Vitello recently agreed they had every right to be upset.
“What would you do?” Vitello said when asked about the reaction.
Vitello obviously wants to win with the Giants. The fans want the team to win, too. They’re on the same side, but without a turnaround, then those concerns about the direction of the team will only grow louder.
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