One down, one to go

And then there was one.

As expected, the Giants avoided arbitration with right-handed reliever George Kontos, agreeing on a one-year deal for $1.15 million. That leaves only first-sacker Brandon Belt among the arbitration-eligible Giants still playing the proverbial game of chicken with the front office.

The new deal can be declared something of a victory for the 30-year-old Kontos, who is coming off his best season in the bigs; a 2.33 ERA over 73 appearances ( 73 1/3 innings), and he responded with some clutch work in high-leverage situations.  Only the Yankees’ Dellin Betances and the Cubs’ Hector Rondon were better at shutting down rallies. Opposing batters hit a paltry .159 with runners in scoring position and he got tougher with two outs, allowing just three of 41 foes to hit safely (an .073 average).

So it’s no surprise the Giants wanted him back; he seems the default replacement for Yusmiero Petit. The price tag was just on the high side of the midway point between his $1.35 million ask and the team’s offer of $850K. Given how he performed, it’s a good deal for San Francisco even if it did give him a 260-percent raise.

Kontos is yet another guy the Giants pulled off the scrap pile. The Yankees gave up on him after a cup of coffee, allowing him just six innings in 2011 before showing him the door. But the Giants saw something, and going to an organization that has the best pitching coach this side of Leo Mazzone and a skipper whose specialty seems to be managing pitchers turned him into a valuable asset.  Over four seasons at AT&T he’s combined for a 2.99 ERA and a 1.11 WH/IP.

This organizational stuff matters. Expect big things from Jeff Simardzija.

You can’t argue with the deal unless you want to ask why the Giants keep going year-to-year on this guy. He’s their right-handed Jeremy Affeldt. It’s amazing how the Giants keep finding fine jewelry while shopping at WalMart. He's not something from Tiffany's, but hardly cubic zirconia either.

The deal gives the Giants 15 players under contract making a total of $173 million, basically what they paid for 25 last year.  Others destined to make the 25-man roster (Matt Duffy, Joe Panik, Kelby Tomlinson, et al) are under team control and will come at a reasonable cost, but the Giants are quickly going to push up against the $189 million luxury tax threshold.

And then there’s Belt.

When he’s going good, he’s awesome. When he’s struggling, he’s unwatchable. The wildcard is his slick glove, which never takes a vacation. Put the ball in Belt’s zip code and you’re headed back to the dugout.

But he’s also the team’s streakiest hitter. He struck 18 homers last year but the first didn’t leave the yard until the 15^th of May. He would go yard in three straight games and hit seven for the month, but added just three in June and July combined – not exactly what you want from a power position. He hit seven again in August, including a two-homer game August 1 at Texas, but September was a wasteland as he failed to suit up after September 18. For that he earned $3.6 million.

He wants to more than double his salary to $7.5 million. The Giants offered $5.3 million, a raise of nearly 70 percent. If a deal isn’t reached by February 21, an arbiter chooses between the two figures.

Although a pre-hearing deal is likely given the Giants’ past, we’re with management on this one. Belt has an argument when you look at what the market pays for first basemen, but megadeals like those of Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder inflate the average. Then again, if Nick Swisher and Mike Napoli can make double Belt’s asking price …..

The Giants have to answer two questions: is Belt expected to be a long-term fixture, and how important is salary control?

Belt can become a free agent in 2018 when he’s 30 years old. At that point it’s logical to assume the team may be looking to move a 31-year-old Buster Posey to that spot. Many catchers have stayed behind the dish to a more-advanced age, but arguably none is as vital to his team’s success as Posey. This “Golden Age” of Giants baseball began with his arrival, and his protection is paramount.

Belt has spent five seasons in San Francisco and helped them to two titles. His 18^th-inning long ball in the 2014 postseason at Washington is one of those moments that will live forever. Is that enough? Travis Ishikawa and Brian Johnson had big moments, too, but time came to move on.

The time to make a call isn’t in 2018, it’s now.

If he’s part of the future, make a deal that buys out some of his free-agent years. If not, the prudent thing is a two-year deal that avoids this exercise in 2017. Belt can prove worthy of a long-term payday, and if he doesn’t the Giants have a window to move him.