San Francisco Giants need Chris Shaw to shape up or ship out

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DENVER, CO – SEPTEMBER 4: Left fielder Chris Shaw #26 of the San Francisco Giants catches a fly ball on the warning track for the first out of the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on September 4, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /

Could you forgive a guy who bats below .250 but hits 20 homeruns a season? Maybe, if he was an elite outfielder. The problem with Chris Shaw is that his defense is pretty much…average. This Spring he made a couple bone-headed plays that cost the Giants, including hanging onto a ball far too long after a routine catch, allowing runners to advance.

Last year in 86 games with the River Cats, Shaw committed six errors. In 15 games with the Giants, he committed no errors. Although this might seem like a good thing, diving deeper into the numbers tells a completely different story. Everything about him is average. His range? Average. His ability to keep runners from advancing? Average.

Outfielder Chris Shaw, who was optioned by the Giants today, could begin getting some reps at first base. He hasn't played first since 2017 in Double-A Richmond, 18 games. He played first throughout 2015 and 2016.
— John Shea (@JohnSheaHey) March 12, 2019

Because guys like Steven Duggar and Gerardo Parra are good at fielding their positions, it’s going to be extremely difficult for someone like Shaw to make his case to be on the roster, let alone start. So it’s likely that a move to first base would be beneficial.

Although Brandon Belt holds down that position, the Giants have plenty of other guys who are more than capable of starting at first. So Shaw will have to “duke it out” with guys like Buster Posey, Aramis Garcia and Pablo Sandoval; not to mention the other utility infielders Farhan Zaidi picked up this off-season.

This is where the offensive numbers come into play. If Shaw can figure out a way to turn his offense around, start taking more pitches and raising that OBP, he makes a case for promotion as a platooning 1B/LF.