Important dates Giants fans should know during big MLB offseason

SAN FRANCISCO -- The first notable move of the offseason came just a few hours after the final pitch of the World Series, and it included a familiar face for Giants fans. 

On Thursday morning, Jorge Soler was traded from the Atlanta Braves to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for pitcher Griffin Canning. The Angels are the third team in 2024 for Soler, who signed a three-year deal with the Giants in February. 

With that, the offseason was off and running. While the main action won't start for a few weeks, this is still a busy month for executives and will be particularly important for the Giants, who have a first-time president of baseball operations in Buster Posey and a first-time general manager in Zack Minasian. As they get going, here are some important offseason dates to know: 

Nov. 5-7: GM Meetings

MLB has two annual offseason events, the GM Meetings and Winter Meetings. While the latter is far more famous and draws a much bigger crowd, the GM Meetings allow teams to have some early conversations about trades and free agency. This obviously will be Posey's first time attending, and he said last month that he's excited to see what it's all about. 

Either Posey or Minasian will represent the team at a media availability, and if it's a former MVP catcher, you can expect a big crowd. Scott Boras generally holds court, too, and he should have some Giants-related quips. Blake Snell is a Boras client and so is Juan Soto, the best player on the market this winter. 

Nov. 8: Platinum Glove announcement

The award is given annually to the top fielder in each league and the Giants have a pair of candidates in Matt Chapman and Patrick Bailey. Chapman has won two Platinum Gloves and Bailey should probably win this one. 

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Nov. 18: BBWAA Awards week

There won't be much drama with the big awards and the Giants won't really have a reason to pay much attention as they're announced. Chapman should end up on a lot of 10-spot MVP ballots and Logan Webb should be listed on a few Cy Young ballots, which go five deep. Tyler Fitzgerald's hopes of finishing top three in Rookie of the Year voting were likely dashed by a slow September. 

Nov. 19: Rule 5 deadline

This is the last day to add players to the 40-man roster and protect them from the Rule 5 Draft in December. Eligible Giants include right-hander Carson Seymour, right-hander Carson Ragsdale, shortstop Aeverson Arteaga, right-hander Will Bednar and outfielder Hunter Bishop. The Carsons are both starting pitchers who reached Triple-A last year, so they're candidates to be protected.

This is an important day for young players. Erik Miller, Trevor McDonald and Kai-Wei Teng were all protected last year and all pitched at the big league level in 2024. 

Nov. 22: Non-tender deadline

The Giants have four arbitration-eligible players and this is the deadline to offer them contracts for 2025. It'll be a first look at how Posey and Minasian view some of their holdovers, although these decisions shouldn't be too controversial. 

Mike Yastrzemski, LaMonte Wade Jr., Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval are arb-eligible. The latter two are locks to be back, and Yastrzemski and Wade should be back, too, with Yastrzemski expected to make about $10 million in his final year or arbitration and Wade projected at just under $5 million. 

Dec. 8-11: MLB Winter Meetings

The sport's biggest offseason event will be held in Dallas this year. While the top players don't always sign this week -- last year many didn't even sign in December -- it still is the centerpiece of the winter. Two years ago, Aaron Judge returned to the Yankees during the Winter Meetings, a few hours after the "Arson Judge" rumor set the sports world on fire for seven minutes. 

Dec. 10: MLB Draft Lottery

The Giants slightly hurt their chances by winning eight of their final 12 games, but just by a couple of percentage points. They'll have a 1.9 percent chance of getting the top pick, with the Colorado Rockies (22.45) and Miami Marlins (22.45) going in as the favorites. 

Giants execs can at least dream of jumping up, though. Last year, the Cleveland Guardians entered the lottery with a 2.0 percent chance of winning and ended up with the top pick. 

Dec. 11: Rule 5 Draft

This was generally a busy day under Farhan Zaidi, and the Giants still might be active even with Zaidi gone. Minasian headed the pro scouting department before his promotion and assistant GM Jeremy Shelley always has been vital in helping the Giants find undervalued assets. 

Jan 9: Arbitration deadline

This is the last day for teams and arbitration-eligible players to submit figures for 2025 salaries. The front office now is led by a former player, although Posey never went through the arbitration process. 

Jan. 15: International signing period opens 

The top player in this year's class is Josuar De Jesus Gonzalez, a shortstop who has drawn Francisco Lindor comps -- and he's expected to sign with the Giants. 

Feb. 22: Giants at Rangers

The first game of the Buster Posey Era will, appropriately, be against Bruce Bochy's Texas Rangers. The Giants kick off their spring training schedule in Surprise and there will be a few familiar faces on the other side other than Bochy. Posey's last hitting coaches in the big leagues were Donnie Ecker and Justin Viele, who now are teaming up in Texas. 

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