Despite what Joc Pederson said, finishing .500 or better should be an important goal for the San Francisco Giants. Pederson's comments sound like they're coming from someone who's not invested in the future of this team. It's hard to blame Pederson, considering he's about to reach free agency again, but Mike Yastrzemski said on the Giants' postgame show that finishing well as a team was important. The SF Giants only have to go 4-3 to finish at .500 or better thanks to this great stretch in which they've won eight of nine.

The Giants' new-look bullpen continues to impress. Shelby Miller has struck out 12 of the 18 hitters he's faced with the San Francisco Giants, and he hasn't walked a batter or given up any runs. His FIP is under minus-2. Miller, Scott Alexander, and Alex Young have been strong additions to the bullpen in the month of September. John Brebbia had another successful open yesterday, and he is under club control for one more year. Sean Hjelle did a nice job in a bulk role last night, overcoming a shaky beginning to end up with a strong performance for the Giants.

Getting to a mailbag question, how are the Giants going to improve their offense if only a handful of players won't be back next year? It seems that there are more players likely to be replaced than the listener realizes, and also the Giants are starting from a decent place. The SF Giants' offense is not nearly as bad as a lot of people seem to think. They've been average, or even a tick above, by most important measurements, whether it's wRC+ or simply runs scored per game. If the Giants are average now, adding one or two truly impact bats could push them to a point of being a firmly above-average offense in 2023.

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The best daily San Francisco Giants podcast. Whether the Giants are winning championships or retooling for another title run, Locked On Giants host Ben Kaspick—a lifelong Giants fan and former contributor for RotoGraphs and Beyond the Box Score—breaks down every game, rumor, and transaction in a way that's data-driven and rational but also simple, passionate, and accessible to all.

Follow Ben Kaspick on Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the San Francisco Giants and talking with fans.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenKaspick

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