SAN FRANCISCO -- The first official moves of the Giants' offseason were obvious ones. The club exercised 2019 options on Madison Bumgarner and Pablo Sandoval on Monday, locking both players in for what will be the final year of their contracts.
Bumgarner is due $12 million in the final year of an extension he signed in 2012. It has proven to be a very under-market deal, and Bumgarner figures to be at the heart of many of the offseason plans. It's possible the two sides discuss another extension that will make him a Giant for life, although there was nothing on the table when the season ended a month ago. It's also possible that Bumgarner becomes the biggest trade chip on the market this winter.
Sandoval signed a five-year $95 million deal with the Red Sox after the 2014 postseason and the Giants are on the hook for only the MLB minimum. The new World Series champs will pay all but about $545,000 of Sandoval's $18 million salary in 2019. Sandoval is expected to once again serve as the backup at third and first.
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The Giants also reinstated Buster Posey, Johnny Cueto, Jeff Samardzija, Julian Fernandez and Sandoval to the active roster. All five of them finished the season on the 60-day DL.