Zaidi earns prestigious honor
President of baseball operations was named MLB’s executive of the year
Three years after the Giants hired Farhan Zaidi away from the rival Dodgers, their president of baseball operations has reset the balance of power in the National League West and turned San Francisco into a winner again.
Zaidi, who left his post as the Dodgers’ general manager to come north to the Bay Area, was named MLB’s Executive of the Year Monday after assembling a roster that set a franchise-record with 107 wins.
The Giants edged out the Dodgers to win the National League West by one game as they clinched their first division crown since 2012 with a victory over the San Diego Padres on the final day of the regular season. The Dodgers had won eight consecutive division titles before Zaidi and the Giants snapped their streak, which came in a season in which San Francisco won 10 of its 19 head-to-head matchups against a Los Angeles club that tied its franchise record with 106 victories.
During his tenure in San Francisco, Zaidi reshaped the Giants by first improving the margins of the roster before supplementing a core of players that included Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt with a lengthy list of contributors.
Throughout the best regular season in franchise history, the Giants often cited their depth as their biggest strength as 17 players hit at least five home runs while the pitching staff finished the season with a 3.25 ERA that ranked second in the majors.
Many of the Giants’ most important contributors this season were signed by Zaidi including starters Kevin Gausman, Anthony DeSclafani and Alex Wood while a handful of the team’s top home run