SAN FRANCISCO -- Bob Melvin will go into next spring with a closer who was one of the best right-handed relievers in baseball last year. He'll also have a right-handed reliever in his bullpen who will be just a season removed from leading the National League in saves. But the Giants manager doesn't anticipate any controversy.
Melvin said on Tuesday's "Giants Talk" podcast that Ryan Walker will remain in that role heading into the 2025 MLB season, but he's also pretty excited to see what Camilo Doval can give the Giants after a disappointing fourth big league campaign.
"I see it being pretty similar to what it was last year at the end. Certainly Walk hasn't done anything to suggest he can't close, but I think Doval is just going to be a huge piece for us this year, I do," Melvin said. "It's the first time he really struggled at the big league level. There are some things he needed to clean up -- he went down and did it. There are years on the back of your baseball card that aren't going to look as good as others, but everything about what he does and what he has accomplished to this point in his career suggest that he's going to be a big piece for us this year.
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"What inning in particular, I'm not sure, but I'm really looking forward to him having a huge year similar to the couple of years previous to last."
Melvin isn't the only key decision-maker who feels that way. President of baseball operations Buster Posey spoke passionately about Doval at the Winter Meetings last week and did his best to throw cold water on any trade rumors.
The Giants are hopeful Doval can make the back end of their bullpen as good as any in the league, and on paper, that's not asking a lot. Walker has a 2.48 ERA the past two seasons and lowered that number to 0.92 after Melvin made him the closer. Tyler Rogers just led the NL in appearances for a third time with a 2.82 ERA.
Doval is the wild card, but if he can shake off a down year, the Giants would have three different but dominant looks in the late innings. All three are also capable of getting more than three outs on occasion, too.
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Having an edge in the late innings is perhaps the easiest way for the Giants to gain ground on the three teams ahead of them in the NL West. Doval, an MLB All-Star in 2023, is the key, but he's coming off a year that featured such poor command and attention to detail that he was sent to Triple-A at one point. That brief stint might actually have given the staff more faith that better days are truly ahead.
"I was really worried about it when we ended up sending him down. The guy was an All-Star closer the year before and now all of a sudden he's going to find himself in Triple-A, and it's not often that you have a closer that you still have options left with and you can send him down to try and clean some things up," Melvin said. "I was a little bit worried about it, but he couldn't have handled it better. He was there a day earlier than we expected him to be, he pitched whenever we asked him to pitch. We wanted him to be a little bit quicker to the plate, there was strike-throwing and some things we asked him to clean up, and he did all of them and came back with a really refreshing attitude.
"The talent is always going to be there with him. It's just being a little bit more focused on what he needs to be better at, and I think he did a great job doing that."
Don't Forget Flo
Wilmer Flores was the lineup's most consistent hitter in 2023. A year later, he's a bit of a forgotten man.
Flores is coming off a down year that ended with knee surgery, and the Giants are open-minded about adding at first base, but Flores exercised his player option at the start of the offseason, locking in a $3.5 million salary for next year. That could have made for some uncomfortable conversations during a busier winter, but at the moment the Giants have made just one addition to their 40-man roster and Flores looks like he'll be in the mix next spring.
Melvin said he has checked in with the veteran and he's feeling good after undergoing a Tenex procedure on his right knee in early August.
"Look, I'm excited that he's excited right now about where he is physically," Melvin said at the Winter Meetings. "And we saw last year that that was not the same guy ... vintage Wilmer would be almost like adding another [free agent] as well. He was not healthy enough to be himself last year after the year before where he was an absolutely terrific performer offensively."
The Giants have two first basemen with similar outlooks. Both Flores and Wade are productive when healthy, but their numbers nosedive pretty quickly when they feel discomfort in their legs. That was the case for Flores last year, when he posted a .595 OPS in 71 games.
Flores' salary for next year is so low that it makes sense to see how he looks in camp and determine whether he can be a bench option or platoon partner for Wade, but if the Giants do add another bat, it could get crowded in a hurry. The staff likes Jerar Encarnacion's potential and also would need to carry a backup catcher and middle infielder on the bench. For now, Melvin is hopeful that Flores can have a good camp and return to his 2023 form.
"It's exciting to know that he is fully healthy," he said.
On The Rise?
The Giants debuted a lot of young pitching last season, and more than one rival evaluator viewed Landen Roupp as the most exciting of the bunch. The right-hander was a surprise addition to the Opening Day bullpen after having a huge spring, and he impressed when moved to the rotation in September. Roupp allowed two runs over his first three starts before getting roughed up in his final appearance of his rookie year.
"He's the most underrated of their young guys," an NL scout said at the Winter Meetings. "He just needs to stay healthy."
The Giants plan to keep Roupp stretched out next spring, although they haven't yet decided what his role will be. If they sign Corbin Burnes or another veteran this winter, they'll have just one rotation spot for Kyle Harrison, Hayden Birdsong and Roupp.
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