For the second straight offseason, the San Francisco Giants have been tremendously active in free agency. Also for the second straight offseason, we’re left wondering if they’ve done enough to meaningfully alter a projection that has them once again slated for mediocrity.

Don’t get me wrong: This year’s crop of additions, most recently bolstered by the signing of third baseman Matt Chapman, is looking far stronger than the mishmash of mid they brought in a year ago. But in the larger context of San Francisco’s grand ambitions of bigger splashes (Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa last year; Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto this time around), it’s hard not to view every subsequent move through the lens of consolation. And with the Giants’ top targets this offseason both landing with their biggest rivals down the California coast, this winter feels like a respectable pivot, rather than a smashing success.

All that said, the Giants front office deserves credit for making far more significant changes than they did a year ago. Last winter, after missing out on Judge (ouch) and nixing Correa’s mega-deal due to concerns about his medical (perhaps a prudent decision), the Giants chose to spread nearly $200 million across eight MLB free agents

While some of these signings proved more effective than others, I don’t think I’m breaking news by saying that the group didn’t exactly fuel World Series aspirations for San Francisco or its fan base. Fast-forward past last season’s 79-83 finish to today, and Rogers and Jackson remain key pieces of the bullpen. The other five are no longer on the roster.

That total pales in comparison to the laughable sums of cash thrown around by the rival Dodgers — deferred or not — but it’s also comfortably more than any other team has spent in free agency this winter, with the Phillies a distant third due almost entirely to the $172 million deal they gave Aaron Nola at outset of the offseason. We know spending big doesn’t always translate to wins, but this kind of outlay from the Giants is something of an indication that the relative half-measures taken in free agency a year ago weren’t going to cut it this time.

This winter, the Giants needed impact and star power, and they did quite well after the disappointment of missing out on Ohtani and Yamamoto. A potential franchise center fielder in Lee whose prime should be ahead of him — rare for a free agent. A legitimate power threat — the kind the organization has lacked for so long — in Soler. An elite third-base defender with a streaky yet potent bat in Chapman.