Brandon Belt's qualifying offer decision due today; Gabe Kapler wins Manager of the Year award in landslide

On today's Locked On Giants podcast, host Ben Kaspick discusses the latest with the San Francisco Giants. Today is the deadline for players tagged with the one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer to accept or reject the offer. Brandon Belt was among 14 players around the league who received the offer. Ben explains everything the QO is (and is not), and makes a prediction about what Belt will ultimately decide.

Ben gives detailed thoughts about why Belt would accept the offer, and why he would reject it. Ben ultimately lands on Belt rejected the qualifying offer, because he thinks Belt could get a two- or three-year deal worth around $15 million per season. When healthy, Belt has been among the very best hitters in baseball since the start of the 2020 season, trialing only Mike Trout and Bryce Harper in wRC+ among players with at least 500 plate appearances since '20.

Ben also discusses the state of the starting pitcher free agent market, with Noah Syndergaard and Eduardo Rodriguez coming off the board in recent days. The trend in the market right now is that players are receiving more than their average predicted contracts by MLB Trade Rumors, ESPN, and FanGraphs. Ben ponders what this means for the Giants, who must enter the starting pitcher market in a big way this offseason. Specifically regarding high-upside pitchers with injury concerns, Syndergaard's hefty one-year deal may mean Justin Verlander and Carlos Rodón will have even more robust markets than imagined, and may cause the Giants to pivot to another segment of the market.

Finally, Ben discusses Gabe Kapler winning NL Manager of the Year in a landslide.

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