Desperate for power and run production on the eve of this week’s opening of spring training, the San Francisco Giants went the extra mile to land free-agent slugger Jorge Soler.
While most, if not all, other teams pursuing the Cuban-born outfielder-designated hitter were apparently willing to offer only a two-year contract, the Giants agreed to a three-year pact that will reportedly pay Soler $42 million, including a $9 million signing bonus.
The deal, first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, has not been confirmed by the team and is pending a physical exam for Soler. Giants fans, of course, well remember the club backing away from a 13-year, $350 million agreement with shortstop Carlos Correa after his medical exam raised red flags in December 2022.
Soler, who is set to turn 32 on Feb. 25, has had an up-and-down career since making his big-league debut with the Chicago Cubs in 2014. He played in 137 games for the Miami Marlins last season, hitting .250 with a team-leading 36 home runs and 75 runs batted in. An oblique strain landed him on the injured list for a brief time in September, after back and pelvis injuries limited him to 72 games in 2022.
A 6-foot-4, 235-pound right-handed batter, Soler led the American League with a career-high 48 home runs and drove in 117 runs for the Kansas City Royals in 2019, and was the World Series most valuable player after hitting three homers in five games for the Atlanta Braves in 2021. He was also a member of the Cubs’ 2016 World Series champions.
The Giants haven’t had a player hit as many as 30 home runs in a season since left fielder Barry Bonds swatted 45 in 2004, and no San Francisco right-handed hitter has accomplished the feat since second baseman Jeff Kent hit 37 in 2002. Utility man Wilmer Flores led the team with 23 homers last season.
“Jorge Soler is that right-handed power bat the Giants have salivated over for the better part of 20-plus years,” broadcaster Matt Vasgersian said on the Major League Baseball Network.
Soler figures to slot in the middle of a San Francisco lineup that ranked 19th among the 30 major-league teams with 174 home runs last season, when the Giants finished 79–83 and a distant fourth in the National League West.
San Francisco's Barry Bonds tosses his bat after hitting a home run against the Montreal Expos at Candlestick Park on Aug. 18, 1999. The Giants haven’t had a player hit 30 home runs in a season since Bonds swatted 45 in 2004. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Soler made his first career All-Star Game appearance last season, when he helped the Marlins to an 84–78 record, third place in the National League East and a wild-card playoff appearance. He spent two seasons with Miami, becoming a free agent when he declined a $13 million player option for this year.
A below-average defensive outfielder, Soler figures to see most of his duty with San Francisco as a designated hitter. The Giants earlier in the offseason signed South Korean free-agent center fielder Jung Hoo Lee to a six-year, $113 million contract.
Holdover veterans Michael Conforto and Mike Yastrzemski figure to flank Lee in the corner outfield spots, with veteran Austin Slater a likely extra outfielder. Youngsters Luis Matos, Heliot Ramos, and Wade Meckler are in reserve.
In addition to Lee, San Francisco’s offseason acquisitions include veteran catcher Tom Murphy, who signed a two-year, $8.25 million contract to back up last season’s rookie standout, Patrick Bailey. The Giants also added two intriguing pieces to their pitching corps, flame-throwing right-hander Jordan Hicks and veteran lefty Robbie Ray.
Hicks, primarily a reliever throughout his big-league career, will be tried as a starter after signing a four-year, $44 million deal. Ray, a former American League Cy Young Award winner acquired in a trade with the Seattle Mariners, is coming off elbow surgery and is not expected to be available until sometime during the season’s second half.
“I think the Giants, very quietly, are putting together a much better offseason than people have given them credit for,” Mr. Vasgersian said. “The lineup is much more dynamic and it’s a much more interesting roster than what ended the season.”
With pitchers and catchers set to begin spring training workouts Feb. 15 in Scottsdale, Arizona, and position players to follow Feb. 20, San Francisco President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi might still have a move or two in store.
The club has been linked all winter to free-agent third baseman Matt Chapman, and to a lesser extent, two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell. Both formerly played for new Giants Manager Bob Melvin, in Oakland and San Diego, respectively.
“They’re not finished yet,” analyst and former major-league second baseman Harold Reynolds said on Major League Baseball Network. “I still think they have a shot to get Chapman. I’m looking forward to seeing what they do.”
