This story was excerpted from Maria Guardado¡¯s Giants Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

President of baseball operations Buster Posey moved quickly to address the Giants¡¯ most pressing need last month, signing shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million contract that now stands as the biggest deal in franchise history.

But with six weeks to go until Spring Training, there are still plenty of questions surrounding a roster that will be tasked with competing with the Dodgers, Padres and D-backs in the loaded National League West this year. Closing the talent gap will require more bold moves from Posey, who might have to get creative to figure out a way to boost the Giants¡¯ rotation and lineup this winter.

Here¡¯s a look at what could be ahead for San Francisco in 2025:

One (realistic) free-agent target who would still be a perfect fit: RHP Max Scherzer
With Corbin Burnes off the board, the Giants could pivot to another veteran starter such as Scherzer, who would give the club another established arm to pair with Logan Webb and Robbie Ray in the rotation. Scherzer, 40, missed most of the 2024 campaign due to injury, but he was still effective when healthy, recording a 3.95 ERA over nine starts for the Rangers.

One player poised to have a breakout season: CF Jung Hoo Lee
Lee was the Giants¡¯ biggest free-agent addition last offseason, but he appeared in only 37 games before suffering a season-ending left shoulder injury in May. Lee is expected to be a full go for Spring Training, and he should slot back into center field and possibly the leadoff spot, where San Francisco still believes he can be a dynamic offensive force due to his elite contact skills. Lee is forecasted to hit .294 with 14 home runs over 143 games, according to FanGraphs¡¯ Steamer projections, yielding the second-highest WAR (4.1) on the club behind Patrick Bailey (4.4).

One prospect to watch in 2025: 1B Bryce Eldridge
No Giants prospect enjoyed a bigger rise this year than Eldridge, who zoomed from Single-A San Jose to Triple-A Sacramento in his first full season in pro ball. Eldridge batted .291 with an .890 OPS and 23 home runs over 116 games during the Minor League season, then he continued to get more seasoning by playing in the Arizona Fall League. The 16th overall pick of the 2023 Draft, Eldridge generates huge raw power from his 6-foot-7 frame, but the Giants believe he¡¯ll need to improve his defense at first base before he¡¯s ready to break into the Majors.

Eldridge, 20, appears on track to debut in San Francisco at some point in 2025, but Posey said the Giants will be careful not to rush their No. 1 prospect.

¡°I think it is fair to somewhat temper expectations from my end, just because I'm looking at it like he should be entering his sophomore year of college,¡± Posey said in December. ¡°That doesn't mean that [we haven't] seen players before that could get to the big leagues at that age. But we see the upside for this guy being tremendous and [want] to make sure that he gets the experience that he needs before he's thrown into the fire so that when he is called upon, he's in the best place he possibly can be to just take off when the time is right.¡±

One prediction for the new year: RHP Camilo Doval regains his All-Star form
The 2024 campaign was one to forget for Doval, who lost his closing role after recording a career-high 4.88 ERA over 62 relief appearances. Still, the Giants are confident Doval will be able to bounce back from the down year and return to the dominance he showed in 2023, when he earned his first career All-Star nod after tying for the National League lead with 39 saves. Doval struggled to overcome command issues this past year, but he still possesses one of the most electric arms in baseball and has more than enough talent to reestablish himself as a force at the back end of San Francisco¡¯s bullpen in 2025.