6:52pm: Based on NBC Sports activities Bay Space’s Alex Pavlovic, the Giants made a suggestion to Martinez whereas they had been already in talks with Soler and Martinez’s camp made a counteroffer that San Francisco brass “weren’t snug with.” The specifics of each the membership’s provide to Martinez and Martinez’s counteroffer stay unclear, although Pavlovic’s report appears to point that Martinez’s obvious lack of curiosity in San Francisco could have had extra to do with the deal’s worth than mushy components corresponding to geography or membership competitiveness.
12:04pm: The Giants made J.D. Martinez a contract provide sooner or later this offseason previous to the crew’s take care of Jorge Soler, the New York Publish’s Jon Heyman stories. Martinez rejected the provide as a result of he “didn’t wish to go there,” Heyman writes, which might point out any variety of considerations (roster match, taking part in time, geography, and so forth.) past maybe any misgivings in regards to the worth or nature of the deal the Giants placed on the desk.
It’s protected to imagine that San Francisco didn’t provide Martinez something akin to the three years and $42MM that Soler acquired, provided that Martinez is getting into his age-36 season and is 4 and a half years older than Soler. That mentioned, the 2 gamers have comparable profiles as right-handed hitters with defensive limitations within the subject. Martinez is actually a DH-only participant at this level in his profession, and the majority of Soler’s time within the Marlins’ 2023 lineup was spent as a delegated hitter.
Although Martinez has had extra streakiness and variance in his efficiency as he has aged, he has nonetheless been the extra constant hitter than the notoriously inconsistent Soler. Each gamers had been All-Stars and 33-homer hitters in 2023 and had curiously comparable numbers, as Martinez had a 135 wRC+ whereas hitting .271/.321/.572 in 479 plate appearances for the Dodgers and Soler hit .250/.341/.512 over 580 PA with Miami. Martinez’s taking part in time was restricted by groin and again issues, and Soler had significantly better stroll and strikeout charges than Martinez, even when Soler’s 24.3 Okay% was nonetheless under common.
Soler and Martinez weren’t far aside on MLBTR’s checklist of the offseason’s prime 50 free brokers, as Soler was ranked sixteenth and Martinez twentieth. The age hole was one of many figuring out components within the differing rankings, and we predicted a smaller annual common worth for Soler (with a three-year, $45MM projection) than Martinez (two years, $40MM). After all, it now appears completely attainable that Martinez will find yourself falling behind Soler in AAV provided that we’re within the final week of February and Martinez nonetheless stays unsigned.
The Blue Jays, Mets, Angels, and Diamondbacks have all been linked to Martinez’s market at varied factors this winter, although Toronto and Arizona have since already added different veteran bats (i.e. Justin Turner, Joc Pederson, Randal Grichuk) for the DH position and not appear to be suits. MLBTR’s Anthony Franco not too long ago broke down prospects for Martinez’s subsequent touchdown spot and listed the Mets and Angels as nonetheless probably the most logical locations based mostly on crew want, even when each golf equipment have indicated they would favor to make use of the DH spot to cycle many gamers by way of the lineup. Heyman instructed the Rangers as a attainable candidate for Martinez, although Texas additionally has loads of promising up-and-comers in want of at-bats.
Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has been usually conservative with free agent expenditures throughout his five-plus years accountable for San Francisco’s entrance workplace. Because the Contract Tracker signifies, this winter’s signings of Jung Ho Lee and Jordan Hicks marked the primary time that Zaidi signed a participant to a deal of 4 or extra years. Speculatively talking, it appears believable that Zaidi first checked on the potential of signing Martinez or one other recognized Giants goal in Rhys Hoskins earlier than agreeing to go to a few years to land Soler.
From Martinez’s finish, we don’t know sufficient in regards to the Giants’ provide to gauge whether or not or not he would possibly’ve erred in not accepting the deal, or if accepting it at some unspecified earlier level would’ve taken him off the market a lot earlier. Nevertheless, if Martinez simply wasn’t occupied with taking part in for the Giants particularly, cash may not have been the problem in any way.