One of the top free agents remaining in the game has found a home.
Third baseman Matt Chapman has agreed to a three-year, $54 million contract with the Giants. The Post’s Jon Heyman reports. on Friday night.
The contract includes two opt-outs and will pay him $20 million in the first season, $18 million in the second season and $16 million in the third season.
Chapman was one of agent Scott Boras’ four top clients who had not yet signed, but will now take over the Giants’ hot corner.
In early February, Heyman reported that the Giants and manager Bob Melvin (Chapman’s captain during his time in Oakland) had interest in the corner infielder, but nothing had materialized yet.
Chapman, 30, has won four Gold Glove Awards, including one last season with the Blue Jays, and is one of the best defensive infielders in the game.
He had five above-average outs last year, which was in the 87th percentile. According to Baseball Savant.
Through the first 27 games of last season, Chapman was an elite hitter, hitting .384 with a 1.152 OPS.
However, his offensive ability declined rapidly the rest of the time, and after the All-Star break, he posted an OPS of only .663.
Heyman’s report said the offensive slug negatively affected the free agent market and that his struggles gave the team “pause.”
Nevertheless, his offensive peripherals are among the best in the game, ranking in the top 1 percent in baseball in hard hit percentage and within the top 2 percent in average exit velocity, according to Baseball Savant. It was ranked.
San Francisco ranked 19th in home runs (174) and 27th in slugging percentage (.383) last season, so the Giants can only hope he can translate those advanced metrics into game power. .
Before last year, Chapman had hit at least 24 home runs in each of four seasons in which he appeared in at least 140 games.
The remaining three members of the Boras Four, Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery, and JD Martinez, are all still waiting to find new homes.
