The San Francisco Giants made plenty of moves to improve the roster as a whole in the offseason by bringing in a Cy Young Award winner, a slugging DH, and All-Star third baseman.
While the Giants signed international phenom Jung Hoo Lee to a long-term deal, they seemed committed to transitioning from their veterans to the youngsters in the minors.
One of those young prospects, Heliot Ramos, has turned into one of their best hitters.
An All-Star in his first full season, the 24-year-old leads with team with a 129 OPS+. Aside from him, none of the San Francisco outfielders have made the leap to grab that third spot. It’s important to find the player who will fill that role for 2025, whether it is from within the organization or not.
Michael Conforto, who has been with the team after signing in free agency before the 2023 season, will be a free agent once again. Mike Yastrzemski will be heading into his last year of arbitration, but is 33 years old and started showing signs of declining this season.
As for the youngsters who were given a shot to grab a role, that is what September has been for.
Luis Matos was up early in the year, and after winning an NL Player of the Week in May, has bounced between Triple-A and the Majors. On the season he is slashing just .211/.235/.340 with five home runs and 25 RBI.
He was called back up in September for an end-of-season showcase, but has only played in three games this month. It would appear the Giants have more or so moved on from Matos being a legitimate option as a starter.
However, another top prospect has made a late surge of his own and put his name in the argument: Grant McCray.
He was called up in the middle of August and has played 21 games in his rookie campaign. He has impressed the team with his power surge, slugging .507 with three doubles, a triple and five home runs.
There are concerns about his strikeout rate, which currently sits at 42.1% in the Majors, along with the fact that he only has three walks.
The 23-year-old plays great center field defense, which could give them options if they want to move Lee out of that position.
McCray has a head start on the third outfield spot within the organization, though other prospects like Wade Meckler and James Tibbs will be able to showcase themselves in Spring Training.
Of course, the elephant in the room is free agency.
Plenty of rumors will swirl about Teoscar Hernandez, Lourides Gurriel Jr. and Cody Bellinger if they opt-out, as well as the gem of the class Juan Soto.
Predicted by many to be one of the biggest spenders this offseason, San Francisco has been on the hunt for star names over the last few years.
Bringing in one of these outfielders will kill two birds with one stone.
After a disappointing season, it will be expected that the Giants make a big splash, and aside from possible upgrades to the middle infield, the outfield is the team’s biggest need.
