Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi met with reporters this evening. San Francisco pulled back to .500 with a win over the Diamondbacks tonight, but they mi sed the playoffs for the fifth time in Zaidis six-season tenure. That has led to speculation about his job security which only ratcheted up in recent weeks amidst in handling negotiations on $151MM extension. Zaidi declined to speculate about his job status but acknowledged that ownership is considering its options. Anytime you have a disappointing season, its my job to evaluate everything in my purview, and its their job to evaluate everything in my purview, plus me , the baseball ops leader said ( ). And so I think that proce s is happening, and I understand it. The Giants and Zaidi agreed to an extension last winter that coincided with Bob Melvins hiring as manager. Both the manager and baseball operations leader are on guaranteed contracts for next year with options for the 2026 season. That certainly doesnt ensure job security teams regularly dismi s coaches or executives before the end of their deals but it kept Zaidi from operating on a lame duck basis in 2024. Any doubt about his status with the organization cant stop Zaidi from planning the teams approach to the upcoming offseason. That starts with , who has pitched at a Cy Young level for the better part of four months. The star left-hander is set to decline his $30MM player option and take another shot at a long-term contract. Zaidi admitted the Giants expect Snell to opt out. He said the Giants will remain in the market but conceded theyll face stiff competition. I think its going to be a priority for everybody. Hes been the best pitcher in baseball the second half of the season , Zaidi said of Snells market (relayed by ). And I think hes going into free agency the same way he did last offseason. He wants to keep an open mind. Were encouraged about what he said about how much he likes being here, how much he likes San Francisco and playing for Bob. Well be pretty high on his list, but were respecting the fact that hes going to want to play out free agency. Snell turns 32 in December. Hell probably take aim at a six-plus year deal that approaches $200MM. That kind of investment in starting pitching would be out of character for Zaidi. As shown on , the Giants havent gone beyond the $90MM extension for a starting pitcher. The $62MM guarantee they awarded Snell late last winter is their biggest free agent rotation investment. The Giants have been much more comfortable with short-term upside plays for starting pitchers who want to retest the market than they are with lengthy commitments. That operating procedure made them a strong fit when Snells market didnt materialize the way hed envisioned last winter, but itll present a challenge to keeping him around. San Francisco was content to let and walk after striking gold on short-term plays for both pitchers. If Snell were to depart Alexandar Georgiev Jersey , Webb would retake his spot as the unquestioned staff ace. Hell be followed in the rotation by and (who is unlikely to opt out of the $50MM remaining on his contract). The Giants could try to stretch back out as a starter while giving opportunities to younger arms like , and . Theyd surely add to that group in some capacity after dealing with a number of rotation injuries this season. Zaidi also addre sed the position player mix, specifically saying the Giants will definitely be in the middle-infield market (via Rubin). has had a fantastic rookie season since taking over at shortstop. The Louisville product connected on his 15th homer tonight and is up to a .287/.338/.510 batting line through 325 plate appearances. His 31.1% strikeout rate is cause for some concern, but Fitzgeralds power and defensive flexibility have earned him a role somewhere on the diamond. That could come on the other side of the second base bag. The Giants waived last month after he hit .217/.247/.343 in 96 games. Estrada will be a minor league free agent at seasons end. Zaidi lauded Estradas profe sionalism and expre sed some confidence that the infielder could rebound in another setting, but he indicated the Giants will go in a different direction. Moving Fitzgerald to second base while bringing in an established shortstop is an option. and are the potential regulars in the . Zaidi expre sed a desire to add an established, plus defender in the middle infield via free agency or trade. Adames and Kim would each fit the bill (although the former has had an uncharacteristic spike in errors this season). Both players are going to decline qualifying offers from their current teams and would require draft pick forfeiture. Adames might command a guarantee north of $150MM, while Kims deal could land in the $75-100MM range. has been the top speculative shortstop trade target. The Blue Jays didnt seem inclined to move him even before he went on the injured list just before the deadline. Unle s the Toronto front office reverses course, they probably wont sell low during the winter. There arent a ton of obvious middle infield trade candidates. The Reds may listen on , but hes not the caliber of defender to which Zaidi alluded. Thats also the case with Tampa Bay second baseman . The Pirates would probably listen on , whose offensive production has cratered since a deadline trade with Toronto. Theres a chance the Mariners could move on from as they try to reshape their offense. A free agent pursuit of Adames or Kim, though, would be more straightforward. Thatd allow the Giants to use in a utility capacity and potentially free them to play in the outfield. Zaidi said tonight that theyre not closing the door on Luciano winning the second base job, but theyll need to see improvement (especially defensively) next spring for that to happen. One area where the Giants dont seem inclined to make a long-term play: first base. Zaidi indicated the team was reluctant to make an investment that would impede the path for top prospect , their 2023 first-round pick. Eldridge is still a month shy of his 20th birthday, but he mashed at a .335/.442/.619 clip in High-A. He has made cameos at the top two minor league levels, and while hes unlikely to break camp next year, Zaidi suggested theres a path for him to debut at some point in 2025. Once a guy is in Double-A, Triple-A, theyre in the picture , Zaidi said (relayed by Baggarly). I think it behooves us to have a roster thats flexible enough that if hes ready next year, even early in the year, theres a spot for him. So thats going to be really important for us. I dont anticipate us really locking up the first base and DH spot. Theres a solid group of free agent first basemen, headlined by and , but that doesnt appear to be a priority for San Francisco. Of course, these preliminary plans could go in any number of directions if ownership decides to make a front office change. That should be determined within the next few weeks. Giants fans will want to check out both The Athletic and The Chronicle columns in full for more quotes from Zaidi about his vision for the winter. Rene Robert Jersey