2026 marks the fifth consecutive year that the San Francisco Giants have missed out on the MLB postseason. This one, as you may have heard, wasn’t even close. The prospect of October baseball looked pretty bleak when they were slogging through June, like a rusted-out jalopy in Winnemucca, staring east across the Great Basin, knowing that I-80 is long and rises as it meets Salt Lake and the Wasatch Range, and it will probably not get there. So why even try? By the August 1st trade deadline, the Giants’
used car was picked clean by others better equipped to make the drive. Here we are down the road, and I suppose the small pleasure of being sellers at the deadline, and being on the outside looking in, is seeing all those scattered parts — a cupholder, a tape deck, a spare tire, a serpentine belt — still complete the trip.
There are more than a few ex-Giants, and recent ones too, playing for playoff teams. While not every postseason roster has been made official, every team in the Wild Card round except the Chicago Cubs employs a player that wore the orange–and-black in either the 2025 or 2026 season. The Cubbies do have Michael Conforto and Kevin Gausman on their roster — so not explicitly recent Giants, but good ones (or at least, one of them was). Look ahead to the division series, and there are our ol’ pals, Patrick Bailey and Kyle Harrison.
Familiar faces, ex-Giants v. ex-Giants — let this be our guide in this guide. The postseason is fun! Or it’s not. The last two have kinda sucked, and there’s not much reason to think this one is going to end any differently. You’re probably right. You feel nothing for anyone anymore — that works too. Go on and dissociate, it’s the postseason!
National League Wild Card Series
(6) Philadelphia Phillies @ (3) Atlanta Braves
Luis Arraez (3.8 fWAR as a Giant) @ Mike Yastrzemski (12.5), Tyler Mahle (0.8), and Dom Smith (0.4).
From a Giants perspective, choosing a favorite in this match-up got a whole lot easier once the Phillies announced that Arraez would be left off the WC series because of his ankle injury.
I did not expect to have as much fun watching Luis Arraez play baseball as I did this year. Oh the joys of low expectations and objectively good defense. And oh the joy of joy! Good vibes only with Arraez on the field. The way he took a pitch, or yipped after fending off an inside fastball, or goofed around with Rafael Devers and Willy Adames on the infield spiced up some dull days.
But Arraez is out, leaving the Phillies looking a lot like the disappointing, and somewhat obnoxious, Phillies of the past however many years.
Even with Arraez healthy and on the field, it’s hard to root against Mike Yastrzemski here. I know we throw this term around a lot, and I know we say ‘we throw this term around a lot’ a lot, but Mike Yasztremski is a forever Giant. I don’t need to rehash the why, there’s archives of McCovey Chronicles articles one can peruse if curious (they’re all mostly about his mustache).
If given six and a half years, Dom Smith probably would’ve accrued as much Bay Area goodwill as Yaz did. He’s played for six teams in five years, and he’s beloved in each one of those cities. He was always good for a pesky AB, or a single off the bench as a Giant. Wouldn’t mind seeing him knock a couple for the Braves too.
And Tyler Mahle. He’s the projected Game 2 starter. Though he pieced together some quality starts, especially towards the end of his tenure, it’s hard to see past the 5.13 ERA in 18 games as a Giant. It’s also hard to see past the 1.99 ERA he earned as a Brave (9 GS). What’s funny is his xERA got better in Atlanta — but not that much better (4.12 to 3.59). I guess that’s the difference a winning team makes.
(5) Chicago Cubs @ (4) San Diego Padres
Nobody (0.0 fWAR) @ Robbie Ray (3.3 fWAR)
I guess if we’re sticking to our guns with this made-up root for recent Giants thing, fans should pull for Robbie Ray and the San Diego Padres. As a San Diegan, I do feel somewhat torn about my hometown club, I understand the hesitation of rooting for a division rival. Also Kevin Gausman earned our undying support for what he did in 2021. The man hit a pinch-hit, walk-off sac fly for crying out loud! If he’s healthy enough to pitch
That being said, lingering warm feelings for Ray would be justified considering how much better he pitched in a Giants uniform this year compared to his post-trade stint down south. His 3.08 ERA in SF has swelled nearly two points higher, to 5.02 over 9 starts as a Padres. His already low K/9 rate has dropped below 7. His walk rate has climbed above 5. While it’s too soon to tell considering how the prospect haul fares, it certainly seems like Ray’s performance has helped San Francisco win that trade. We feel for him. We’re kinda smiling — but we feel for him.
The veteran is definitely worn down and doesn’t have the greatest postseason track record. But the Padres also don’t have the deepest rotation, so it’s possible we see Ray start in Game 2 or Game 3 if it comes to that.
American League Wild Card Series
(6) Chicago White Sox @ (3) Houston Astros
Jordan Hicks (1.2 fWAR) @ LaMonte Wade Jr. (4.2 fWAR)
Jordan Hicks the starter was a beautiful dream. April 2024, specifically, when he posted a1.59 ERA (34 IP) over his first handful of games as a member of the Giants rotation, probably feels like some kind of fever dream. But he never quite figured out how to handle his velocity. The work load wore him down. He became a burden: a bundle of raw talent, a live arm too good not to try, but too volatile to rely on. The Giants traded him to Boston in the Devers deal. Boston fans turned on him after rough appearances in relief. He was traded to the White Sox last February and, like that Southside side, has been reborn. His average fastball velocity is way up, clocking in a fraction above 99 MPH. He’s throwing a 4-seamer to accompany his sinker, and it’s working. The right-hander made 53 appearances during the regular season, mostly in relief. His walks are up but so are his strikeouts. His 3.94 ERA was his lowest since 2023. His 2.85 xERA was its lowest since his age 22 season in 2019.
Touched by the divine, perhaps?
And even if the White Sox didn’t have God, or Hicks on their side, why would any one root for the Astros?
My response, two-words: Late Night.
Granted, LaMonte Wade Jr. is not really the face of this Houston Astros club. Pulling for Houston in 2022 meant pulling for Dusty Baker. That made sense as a Giants fan, and as a baseball fan. Wade is only Late Night in the Bay, and those clutch, electric hours have long faded into the night. 2021 was ages ago, for us and for Wade as well. He logged 127 at-bats during the regular season, hitting .205 with a .654 OPS while playing first base and filling-in at the outfield corners.
Fun fact, he was actually signed by the White Sox before the season and logged 152 at-bats for their AAA affiliate in Charlotte before being released in June. Houston picked him up a couple of days later.
While having a much worse year, Wade was a much better Giant than Hicks.
(5) Boston Red Sox @ (4) New York Yankees
Erik Miller (0.8 fWAR) @ Heliot Ramos (3.6 fWAR)
This is a fun one because it’s easy to see these two facing off in some high-leverage situation: Chad Tracy bringing in Miller in the 7th, Aaron Boone countering with Ramos off the bench to gain platoon advantage against the big lefty. While all of the Bronx and Boston blindly explode in ecstatic rivalry ecstasy, Giants fans will know the real score. From the couch, we’ll calmly sip our evening herbal tea and smirk in quiet recognition of the moment: They were on the same team to start the year…so fun.
Looking past their current laundry, Ramos is the easy Giant to root for in this pairing. A homegrown talent, an All-Star, the first right-hander to record a splash hit, the first left fielder to play in consecutive Opening Days since Barry Bonds (I’m actually still sore about that one), and he bat flips walks. He’ll have the chance to show off that particular flair on national television. Considering Erik Miller’s walk rate is nearly 6 BB/9 (and that’s down from his time in San Francisco), that might happen if they face each other. Wouldn’t that really send us Giants fans into a tizzy!
With Aaron Judge’s health in question (isn’t it ironic that Ramos’s playing time became dependent on Judge anyway), Ramos could be a consistent face in this series. But it will be a face on top of a neck and shoulders draped in Yankee pinstripes. As a child living under the oppressive regime that was the Joe Torre dynasty of the 90’s/early aughts, that’s a tough pill to swallow.
Heliot is cool, but he’s not worth compromising my morals.
Miller, however, struck out Shohei Ohtani in his first five confrontations. He’s good for life in my book.
