Former GM Bobby Evans had three goals for 2018: 1) reset the Giants’ competitive balance tax penalty by staying under the $197 million threshold, 2) make a 98-loss team look better than a 98-loss team without getting rid of most of the players who helped create a 98-loss team, and 3) keep his job. Two out of three ain’t bad in this case.
This means that the Giants will be able to spend up to $206 million in 2019 before having to pay only 20% of the total over that amount. For the past two seasons, they’d been paying a 50% tax on dollars over the threshold.