San Francisco Giants Middle Infielder Emerged As Stellar Building Block

The 2024 season was another disappointing one for the San Francisco Giants as they failed to make the postseason for the third consecutive year and seventh time out of the last eight campaigns.

A wide gap currently exists between them and their National League West rivals, the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres.

Looking to close that gap, new president of baseball operations Buster Posey was aggressive in free agency, signing shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million deal.

He provides the team with some much-needed offensive production to the middle of their lineup. Among the best offensive players at his position in the league, his addition was a major first transaction for the three-time World Series winner looking to get the franchise back to the level of prominence they experienced when he was the starting catcher.

With Adames now entrenched at shortstop, it means the Giants can slide Tyler Fitzgerald over to second base full-time.

Not someone who was considered to be in the mix for playing time during Spring Training, the versatile infielder earned his way into the lineup with his production and never stopped hitting.

His rookie campaign came out of nowhere and he was excellent, slashing .280/.334/.497 as one of the team’s most consistent hitters. An extra-base machine, he slugged 15 home runs with 19 doubles and two triples in 341 plate appearances to go along with 17 stolen bases.

Second base is where he should spend most of his time in 2025, but he has the capability of filling in other places around the diamond, giving manager Bob Melvin some flexibility when it comes to making lineup decisions.

As a rookie, Fitzgerald logged innings at center field, left field, second base and first base in addition to playing primarily shortstop. He was even on the mound for three innings.

That level of production was good enough for him to be recognized by MLB and MLB Network as one of the best rookies in 2024. He cracked their list of the top newcomers, landing at No. 25.

It was a spot that he earned with his unexpected production, which San Francisco is hoping he will carry over into 2025.

Now a key part of the team’s plans moving forward, Fitzgerald will be counted on as an everyday player. He looked capable of being an above-average performer with the glove at second base, which will make him even more valuable if he can keep up the torrid pace he had at the plate.

With Matt Chapman at third base, Adames at shortstop and Fitzgerald at second, the Giants are set for years to come in the infield. All they are awaiting now is first baseman Bryce Eldridge, who could easily be on the top rookies list in Fitzgerald’s place at this point next year.