The Giants reportedly have avoided arbitration with two of their veteran outfielders – Darin Ruf and Mike Yastrzemski.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan Tuesday morning, Ruf has agreed to a two-year extension worth $6.25 million. Less than an hour later, Audacy Sports MLB Insider Jon Heyman reported Yastrzemski and the Giants agreed to a one-year pact worth $3.7 million. On Tuesday, 95.7 The Game's "The Morning Roast" broke down the current state of the Giants 2022 roster:
The Giants confirmed the moves on Tuesday evening, along with a one-year $2.25 million deal with Dominic Leone and $2.6 million contract with Curt Casali to avoid arbirtation with all their players. Ruf and Yastzremski each played significant roles in Gabe Kapler’s rotating, matchup-based outfield last season.
The franchise is particularly excited about Ruf’s potential to build off his 2021 campaign, when he slashed ..271/.385/.529 with 16 homers, 43 RBI, 46 walks and 87 strikeouts in 312 plate appearances. He turns 36 in July, so the Giants are smart to keep it short term with Ruf, who could provide some major bang for the buck. Ruf put together an eye-popping 1.007 OPS against southpaws in 2021 but his .824 mark against righties isn’t too shabby.
Yaz’s production from his 2020 season fell off a bit in 2021, but he still swatted 25 dingers and 28 doubles with 71 RBI. He slashed .224/.311/.457 and virtually all of his production came against right-handed pitching.
Depending on the matchup, Kapler could have two completely different sets of outfielders. Against righties, Yaz figures to get a lot of at-bats alongside newly-acquired Joc Pederson and 2021 breakout player LaMonte Wade Jr. Against southpaws, Kapler could rely on Ruf and Steven Duggar to get better at-bats.
Considering San Francisco could get another 40-plus homers out of Ruf and Yastzremski for about a combined price of $7 million this season, it seems like a low-risk, high-reward situation for the deep-pocketed Giants.
