Pitching is going to be the focus of this offseason for the SF Giants and rebuilding the team’s bullpen is going to have to be part of that. It may be tempting to sign a big closer, but the Giants have gone down that road before and have paid the price.

Back in 2016 after the Giants’ bullpen implosion cost them a chance to win their fourth World Series title in seven seasons, they addressed their bullpen needs in the offseason by signing closer Mark Melancon to a four-year $62 million contract.

SF Giants do not need to be reminded about how closer deals can fail

The signing did not work out at all as Melancon either struggled or was injured for much of his Giants tenure. He never turned into the elite closer they were hoping to get and was eventually traded to the Atlanta Braves in a shrewd move by president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi in a deal that sent Tristan Beck to the Giants and got Atlanta to take on most of Melancon’s contract.

However, the fact that the deal did not really pan out is a reminder that high-priced deals for relievers are a risky endeavor. As if his struggles were not enough of a reminder, the Giants still pay Melancon deferred money in the amount of $1 million every year as part of the contract he signed back in 2016.

There are other examples the Giants can point to like Armando Benitez and Taylor Rogers as multi-year reliever deals that did not work out as planned. They can also look at the four-year $72 million contract the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Tanner Scott to as an example of another team that got burned by a big contract to a closer.

The Dodgers can afford to make a mistake that large since they can practically print money and have a stacked roster, but it seems unlikely that the Giants could stomach a big mistake like that.

San Francisco has been seen as a good fit for former All-Star closer Devin Williams, but it is questionable whether getting in a bidding war for a reliever like him would be the best allocation of their resources this offseason.

President of baseball operations Buster Posey has said the Giants may lean more towards a closer competition which seems to suggest they will avoid splurging on one of the premier free agent closers.

Some fans may be upset by that approach, but after getting burned by the Melancon deal it may prove to be a prudent strategy.