The Giants’ first order of business this offseason was to find a new manager, and they checked off that box last month with the unprecedented hiring of Tony Vitello. Now, the attention slowly shifts to filling out Vitello’s coaching staff and filling out the roster Vitello manages.

And for another year, the Giants are linked to the prize of a free-agent class.

Kyle Tucker is a jack-of-all-trades outfielder whose résumé will land him a contract upwards of $400 million. While the Giants missed on Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge and Bryce Harper in recent years, they don’t have a pressing need to go star hunting because of who they’ve acquired in the past year.

During his first season as president of baseball operations, Buster Posey added much-needed star power by signing Willy Adames and trading for Rafael Devers. Shortly before Posey replaced Farhan Zaidi, Matt Chapman also signed an extension in September 2024.

In securing those players for the long term, the Giants distanced themselves from other failed pursuits. San Francisco does need an outfielder to play alongside Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee, but the desire for a player like Tucker isn’t as strong because of the talent that’s already in-house. The Devers trade, in particular, was a true statement, one that brought one of baseball’s best left-handed bats to San Francisco.

Another point to consider with Tucker is how he would impact the Giants’ financial outlook. San Francisco is already committing roughly $137 million next season to Adames, Chapman, Devers, Lee, Logan Webb and Robbie Ray. The Giants won’t be handcuffed next season because a good chunk of next year’s roster will be made up of pre-arbitration players, but 2027 is where the books get a little complicated.

Ray is set to become a free agent after next season, but any potential savings if he departs would be offset by Adames’ backloaded contract. Adames, Chapman, Devers, Lee and Webb will make somewhere around $131 million in 2027 while Ramos, Patrick Bailey and Ryan Walker will be hitting arbitration for the first time.

Paying Tucker an annual salary above $35 million would give the Giants less flexibility going forward, and ownership has indicated its preference to avoid having too many players with hefty salaries.

When the Giants do spend money this offseason, the bulk of it will be directed toward acquiring pitchers.

San Francisco’s rotation currently features Webb, Ray and Landen Roupp with two vacancies, their internal options being Carson Whisenhunt, Hayden Birdsong, Blade Tidwell, Trevor McDonald, Kai-Wei Teng and Carson Seymour. Those young pitchers will get opportunities to start — no rotation survives with just five starters — but the Giants need proven arms to fill out the rotation instead of falling back on their youth.

The Giants need relievers as well. The Giants boasted one of baseball’s better bullpens in the first half of last season, but that group took several major hits. Camilo Doval and Tyler Rogers (currently a free agent) were traded, first-time All-Star Randy Rodríguez underwent Tommy John surgery and Erik Miller missed the last three months due to a persistent left elbow sprain.

Walker is a lock to return to next year’s bullpen, and Miller is a strong possibility as well after he had a 1.50 ERA over 30 innings (though his 3.97 FIP is cause for concern). The Giants may look for creative ways to add relievers (waiver claims, minor-league free agents and the Rule 5 Draft) but the team will need to invest some money in proven leverage arms.

This is all to say that the bulk of the money the Giants invest this offseason will be on pitching. If the Giants signed Tucker, that leaves less money for the rest of the pitching staff (unless San Francisco wants to field a top-10 payroll that goes over the luxury tax threshold).

And while Tucker would boost San Francisco’s offense, it’s possible that San Francisco’s offense takes a step forward with the help of another external addition.

Hunter Mense, who played under Vitello at Missouri, will take over as the team’s new hitting coach after serving as the Toronto Blue Jays’ assistant hitting coach. The Blue Jays, led by superstar Vladimir Guerrero Jr., boasted one of baseball’s best offenses last season, which was partially the product of owning the lowest strikeout rate and highest contact rate in the majors. The Giants have different personnel, but perhaps a fresh perspective can help San Francisco maximize its offensive pieces.

Kyle Tucker would make the Giants a better baseball team. But a deal that brings him to San Francisco likely isn’t in the cards.