Giants offseason preview: Obvious hole emerging in infield

Giants offseason preview: Obvious hole emerging in infield originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — When Buster Posey talks of the Giants leaning on homegrown position players and having a strong defense, he is doing so from experience.

Posey played nearly his entire career with Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt, and at one point those three teamed up with Joe Panik and Matt Duffy to form a very popular and productive infield made up entirely of players drafted and developed by the Giants.

Posey is used to consistency on the dirt, and as he takes over, the Giants might actually be pretty close to once again knowing exactly what they’re going to get from their infield. In Matt Chapman and Patrick Bailey, they have a pair of Gold Glove Award winners who are locked up for years to come. The organization’s top prospect is a first baseman and one of last season’s breakout stars will either be playing shortstop or second base next Opening Day.

Posey never really had to think about who would be playing shortstop during his playing days, and if he can add to that position this winter, the Giants might soon have stability all over their infield. As we continue our offseason breakdown of position groups, here’s a look at what the Giants have and who might be on the way …

On the 40-man

The Giants head into the offseason with Bailey, Chapman, Tyler Fitzgerald, Wilmer Flores, Marco Luciano, Tom Murphy, Blake Sabol, Casey Schmitt, David Villar, LaMonte Wade Jr., and Brett Wisely, although this list will look different in the spring, and not just because they plan to add a shortstop.

Luciano’s season ended early when he was sent to Arizona to begin working on his outfield skills and it’s likely he’s not standing on the dirt at all next spring. He could be replaced by Wade Meckler, who still is listed with outfielders on the organization’s depth chart.

Meckler started taking grounders late in Triple-A Sacramento’s season and coaches — along with instructor Ron Wotus — were pleasantly surprised with how smooth he looked. He played some second base in college and a utility role is the best path back to the big leagues for the 24-year-old, who had a .866 OPS in Triple-A after returning from an injury.

What went right

Chapman’s first season in San Francisco really couldn’t have gone much better. He had his best offensive season in five years, won his fifth Gold Glove Award, took over as leader of the clubhouse and pulled a Hunter Pence by signing a long-term extension before getting to free agency. Heading into the offseason, this team is run by Chapman and Logan Webb.

It took a while, but Fitzgerald eventually settled in as the man alongside Chapman at short and he had one of the most incredible runs in franchise history after becoming the starter. He homered in five straight starts at one point, becoming the first Giant to do that since Barry Bonds, and he went deep 11 times over a 17-game stretch in the middle of the year. Fitzgerald led qualified rookies in wRC+ and put up a three-WAR season despite playing just 96 games.

What went wrong

A year ago at this time, Flores was the team’s most dangerous hitter and Thairo Estrada looked like the long-term second baseman. There’s a decent chance neither is on the team in 2025.

Estrada already is gone, having finished his season in Triple-A and off the 40-man roster after injuries and struggles at the plate made him an easy non-tender candidate. Flores just picked up his player option for next season, but he’s coming off a .595 OPS in 71 games and had season-ending knee surgery.

The 2024 Giants paid for a couple of decisions about their initial roster. They signed Murphy to a two-year deal last offseason, which forced them to trade Joey Bart, who went on to post a 121 wRC+ and hit 13 home runs in Pittsburgh. It was an odd use of resources.

After committing to Luciano at shortstop last offseason, they opened the year with veteran Nick Ahmed at the position. Predictably, he didn’t hit at all — at least until he faced the Giants while playing for the Dodgers. It turns out the real answer was sitting there all along in Fitzgerald, who had plenty of backers in the organization last offseason but entered the year as a utility man. It’s easy to wonder how many more wins the Giants would have had if they had just committed to Bart and Fitzgerald from the start.

Prospect to watch

This is easy. Bryce Eldridge, the 2023 first-round pick, is the most highly-anticipated position player prospect for the Giants since their new president of baseball operations was crushing minor-league pitching. Luciano was a very, very good prospect as he came through the minors, but Eldridge is pairing results with the hype.

The first baseman played at all four levels and then finished his year in the Arizona Fall League. Overall, he had a .292/.374/.516 slash line with 23 homers in 116 games. There is work to be done defensively, but the Giants believe Eldridge is just about ready to compete against big-league pitching.

“I think what’s most impressive about him and what I’ve heard on the other reports and what my eyes have seen is just his presence in the box,” Posey said last month. “There are certain guys that just look like hitters and he’s one of those guys that looks like a hitter.”

Farhan Zaidi liked to push prospects and it’s unclear if Posey will take a more patient approach. Regardless, Eldridge is expected to debut at some point in 2025, and if he does, he’ll do so as a 20-year-old.

Potential free agent targets

Pete Alonso is the big prize at first base and Christian Walker isn’t far behind, but assuming the Giants want to leave first base open for Eldridge — a safe assumption — they’ll be looking at veterans who more closely resemble rentals. This is a great offseason for that kind of search.

Posey played against Paul Goldschmidt for years, and while the seven-time All-Star is now 36 and coming off a down year, he still would provide 20-homer power — and he has never had trouble hitting at Oracle Park. Carlos Santana is 38 but still is an above-average hitter and just won his first Gold Glove. Josh Bell, Anthony Rizzo, Justin Turner and other familiar names will be looking for one- or two-year deals.

Flores is owed $3.5 million and Wade will earn just under $5 million in arbitration, but there are key figures within the organization who want to see more production at first base as they wait for Eldridge. There are a lot of interesting ways to mix it up.

The big offseason question

The next two names are obvious free-agent targets too, but they’re more than that. They make up the most important roster question for Posey and GM Zack Minasian as they enter their first winter in charge.

The Giants need a shortstop, and there are two really good ones on the market. The biggest offseason question is simply whether they can actually land one of them.

Willy Adames hit 33 homers, drove in 112 runs last season and would immediately become the lineup’s most dangerous hitter. His defensive metrics took a dip last season but he was well above-average the previous two years, so that shouldn’t be too big a concern.

Ha-Seong Kim was worth more than 10 Wins Above Replacement in 2022-23 and won a Gold Glove before a shoulder injury hampered him in 2024. He had labrum surgery and is expected to miss some time at the start of next season, but he would be a great fit for the Giants on and off the field. He’s close with center fielder Jung Hoo Lee and is a favorite of manager Bob Melvin.

Pairing Adames with Chapman would give the Giants 50-plus homers from the left side of their infield. Putting Kim and Chapman together would give them one of the best defensive infields in baseball. Either would allow Fitzgerald to move to second, where he is a better defensive fit, with Casey Schmitt also providing depth.

Adames is expected to get a long-term deal in excess of $150 million and the Giants would have to outbid the Dodgers and other big-market teams, some of whom might want to move him to a new position. It’s really difficult to figure out where Kim’s market will end up given the injury, but it’s possible he’s available on a one- or two-year deal, similar to another Scott Boras client (Michael Conforto) who was also coming off a shoulder injury.

Do the Giants want to go big and get Adames, or do they prefer Kim, who will be much easier to sign but will come with some initial risk? Regardless of which one they prefer, it really feels like they need to come away from this offseason with one of the top shortstops.

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