On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick details a busy weekend that was for the San Francisco Giants. Sunday was a day of forced action, as qualifying offer and option decisions had to be made. The Giants exercised their options for Wilmer Flores ($3.5M) and José Álvarez ($1.5M), and officially declined their $22M option for Johnny Cueto, in favor of a $5M buyout. Flores and Álvarez were strong contributors for the Giants in 2021, and it's good news for the team that they'll be back next year, both in the final year of their deals with San Francisco. Cueto is officially a free agent after six mostly underwhelming years with the Giants. His first season in orange and black was spectacular, but he wasn't able to come anywhere close to it again over the final five.
The Giants extended a one-year, $18.4M qualifying offer to Brandon Belt. There was some possibility that they might extend qualifying offers to Anthony DeSclafani and/or Alex Wood, but both were unlikely and the team ultimately elected to pass. This doesn't mean that they won't be back; just that they didn't extend them qualifying offers. Belt will have 10 days to accept or reject the Giants' offer. If he signs with another team this offseason, the Giants will receive Draft Pick compensation. Belt is a candidate to accept the offer, but he could also work out an extension to stay in San Francisco.
Finally, Ben discusses Brandon Crawford winning his fourth career Gold Glove Award. He was spectacular defensively in 2021, which is a testament to his own hard work and the influence of Kai Correa and Ron Wotus. The Giants' new coaching staff has done a tremendous job getting the most out of players since taking over in 2020, and that includes Correa and his influence over the defense. Crawford, Belt, and Buster Posey were all at or near their best in 2021 despite being in their mid-30s. Ben reminds listeners of how significant of a loss it was when hitting coach Donnie Ecker accepted a position as bench coach and offensive coordinator with the Texas Rangers last week. Mike Yastrzemski was a Gold Glove finalist in right field, but he did not win the award. Still, it's an honor just for Yaz to have been named a finalist.
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