At the start of spring training, the realistic expectation for the San Francisco Giants was not just to compete for a playoff spot, but to host playoff games at Oracle Park and ultimately be one of the last teams standing. In a season full of lows and not-so-much highs, the San Francisco Giants finished the 2025 regular season with a record of 81-81.
As the internet memes would say, “pure mid.”
On Monday, the Giants announced the dismissal of manager Bob Melvin, after just two seasons at the helm. In his time as manager, Melvin led the Giants to a record of 161-163.
Ultimately, Melvin’s tenure with the Giants will be looked at as a failure. After firing Gabe Kapler in October 2023, Melvin was hired with the goal of reaching new heights and unlocking the true potential of the team with the players he was inheriting. Melvin’s firing does paint him as a scapegoat, but with all of the shortcomings that this team faced on the field throughout the season, Melvin had his moments, too, where he let winnable games slip away.
But after two seasons of not making the postseason, it’s Melvin who is gone, and the Giants will be searching for a new manager for the second time in three years.
At the beginning of the season, the additions of Willy Adames, Justin Verlander and the return of Jung Hoo Lee into the lineup were primed to make the Giants a potential player in an already loaded National League.
The Giants began the season well, finishing the first month with a record of 19-12, and establishing themselves as a tough team to face each time out.
At the time of the shocking trade for Rafael Devers in mid-June, the Giants had a record of 41-31 and were primed to really step on the gas and compete with the Los Angeles Dodgers for a National League West championship.
Shortly after the Giants added Devers, the energy that was uplifting the team slowly started to fade away. Mental errors on both the base paths and the defensive side began to pile up, as did the losses.
The Giants finished the season 12 games behind the Dodgers in the division and two games behind the Cincinnati Reds for the final National League Wild Card spot. The Giants once again teased the fanbase into thinking they had a chance of playing postseason baseball. After four seasons of that same “knocking on the door” energy, it’s just simply not good enough.
The one consistency about this year’s team was its inconsistencies. When the games grew more important, it felt like nobody on the roster was dependable to really step up and rally the team together. The highs of this season were great, but the lows were much more common and became an abysmal watch at times.
The inability to get offensive production at critical points of the games was another low point for this season. It was specifically brought to light in the middle of the season, when the Giants lost 13 out of 14 home games. In that span, they scored 25 runs and were outscored by 40.
One of the more important stretches of the season came in July, just after the All-Star break. In those 12 games, the team lost 10 and gave the front office no choice but to trade away some of their expendable players like pitchers Camilo Doval, Tyler Rogers and outfielder Mike Yastrzemski. It was the correct move on July 31, and even when San Francisco was on the cusp of being in playoff position in mid-September, I still believe it was the correct move.
The foundation of the team is set around infielders Adames, Devers and Matt Chapman. But what’s needed around these three is what will move the Giants forward. Across 2025, too many guys looked towards the next batter in the lineup to bail them out with the big hit. They need to find guys who are willing to put the ball in play and cause havoc on the basepaths.
Outfielder and Bay Area native Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians would be a perfect fit for this lineup, but he will only be obtainable via trade as he is not a free agent until 2028.
Since 2022, this team has been infatuated with sitting on its hands and refusing to sell, even when the writing is on the wall. But in his first season as the president of baseball operations, it feels like Buster Posey is thinking more rationally. The big picture isn’t just 2025, it’s three-to-four seasons from now. But when it comes to baseball, nothing is guaranteed.
So does it sting that this team underachieved yet again? Of course.
However, the Giants continue to put themselves in position during the offseason to improve their roster and hype up the fanbase into thinking they will contend again. This will now be year five of this ongoing cycle. Adding in a managerial search for an interesting but ready-to-win team will also lead to more playoff expectations, similar to when Melvin was hired prior to the 2024 season.
Mark DeRosa, manager of Team USA at the World Baseball Classic and an MLB Network studio personality, should be among the candidates during the hiring process. DeRosa, a member of the 2010 World Series championship team, has expressed interest in managing a team if an opportunity were to come his way. DeRosa provides the right blend of seriousness and a new philosophy that is currently lacking within the organization.
Another name to keep an eye on is former Giants manager Bruce Bochy. Bochy, who mutually parted ways on Monday with the Texas Rangers, makes the most sense reuniting with the same organization with which he won three championships.
If this organization does anything right, it’s hanging onto nostalgia — especially with anyone associated with the three championship-winning teams. I don’t think it’s the right move, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Posey and the rest of the front office rehire Bochy.
There were some positive takeaways from this 2025 team, most notably Casey Schmitt taking the starting second base role and running with it. Additionally, Logan Webb delivered yet another solid season. He finished first in strikeouts (224) as well as innings pitched (207) across the National League. For the last two weeks of the regular season, the team called up its top prospect, Bryce Eldridge. Eldridge only had three hits across 37 plate appearances, but is expected to play a bigger role come 2026.
With just one playoff appearance since 2017, the Giants continue to be on the outside looking in, and the same obstacles continue to mount. The pieces are there, but putting it all together is what continues to plague this organization. The manager hired will face the same challenge as Melvin. Being in the mix isn’t good enough, and the expectation is to win and go far into October.
