San Francisco Giants state of the position: Center field

First and foremost, it has to be mentioned that unless he’s traded or released, Steven Duggar will be back with the San Francisco Giants in 2020.

While he hit just .234/.278/.341 in 281 plate appearances, he was once again a standout defender in the outfield. He’s still just 25 years old, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility to think he could still take a step forward.

However, it’s exciting prospect Heliot Ramos who should have fans excited about the future of the position.

The No. 2 prospect in a farm system on the rise, according to MLB.com, Ramos was the No. 19 pick in the 2017 draft and he reached Double-A in an excellent 2019 campaign.

The 20-year-old batted .290/.369/.481 with 24 doubles and 16 home runs in 102 games between High-A and Double-A, and while his numbers dipped a bit following his midseason promotion to Richmond, his overall stock is clearly trending up.

Despite his age, the front office hopes that Ramos will start next season at Triple-A, which puts him an injury or a hot streak away from getting called up to the big leagues. Team president Farhan Zaidi also said that ideally Ramos would be on the big league roster at some point in 2020.

If he progresses as hoped this offseason, stays healthy, and shows improvement, then that seems like a realistic expectation. First, he’ll need to put together a strong spring training to justify an assignment to Triple-A.

Further down the organizational ranks, 19-year-old Alexander Canario is also worth keeping an eye on.

The 2016 international free-agent signing hit .318/.377/.623 with 20 doubles and 16 home runs in 54 games, earning an early promotion from rookie ball to Low-A . He still has a long way to go in his development, but it’s easy to get excited about the idea of him and Ramos possibly roaming the outfield together in the not-too-distant future.

This year’s top draft pick, Hunter Bishop, is also capable of playing center field and that’s where he lined up during his junior season at Arizona State. He’ll get a chance to stick there as a pro, but might wind up at a corner spot once all is said and done.

The Giants have not had consistent production from a homegrown outfielder in a long time. It’s looking more and more like that could soon change.

If the San Francisco Giants decide to non-tender Kevin Pillar and don’t want to rush Heliot Ramos to the majors, they could be in the market for an outside addition at the position.

Starling Marte of the Pittsburgh Pirates is probably the best center fielder available this offseason, assuming he does in fact hit the trade block as expected.

The 31-year-old had another terrific season in 2019, hitting .295/.342/.503 with 23 home runs and 25 steals for his second straight 20/20 season.

He’s under team control for two more seasons by way of an $11.5 million club option in 2020 and a $12.5 million club option in 2021, so adding him to the mix would mean parting with some prospects from the farm system.

If that’s not an avenue the Giants are ready to explore, there are also some viable options on the free-agent market.

Cameron Maybin put together his best season in years with the New York Yankees, hitting .285/.364/.494 with 17 doubles, 11 home runs and nine steals in 82 games. The 32-year-old could be a good fit if he’s willing to accept a short-term deal.

Meanwhile, speedsters Billy Hamilton and Jarrod Dyson are both capable of wreaking havoc on the bases while also providing above-average defense. However, they profile better as fourth outfielders than everyday options.

Again, it will all come down to what they decide to do with regard to Pillar’s final year of arbitration.

I fully expect Kevin Pillar to be the starting center fielder for the San Francisco Giants next season.

As far as his backup is concerned, Duggar may be on the move this offseason, so the team could try to find a cheap backup through free agency or just use Mike Yastrzemski in center when Pillar needs a day off.

Looking further down the road, if Heliot Ramos progresses faster than expected or the Giants slip out of the race, the team could opt to trade Pillar in an effort to get Ramos some valuable experience.

That said, I don’t think the Giants should rush Ramos to the big leagues. He’s still young and his offensive game remains a work-in-progress. It could be disastrous if they call him up too quickly with high expectations only to see him get shell-shocked and lose confidence in himself.

The best move might be to wait until September to get a look at him, with Pillar holding down the fort for the bulk of the season.

It is abundantly clear that the state of the outfield is much stronger headed into 2020 than it was in 2019.

Even if no outside additions are made this offseason, an Opening Day outfield of Mike Yastrzemski, Kevin Pillar and Alex Dickerson is head and shoulders above the Michael Reed-Steven Duggar-Connor Joe trio that kicked off the 2019 season for the San Francisco Giants.