2024 SF Giants breakout rookie likely to have a position change in 2025

The SF Giants got a very welcome surprise in 2024 in the form of Tyler Fitzgerald. He got very hot with the bat and had to learn shortstop on the fly. It seems likely that he will be at a different position in 2025 though.

Coming into 2024, Fitzgerald was thought of as a solid utility option. He seemed like a versatile player who could play second base, third base, and shortstop as well as center field in a pinch. His speed also made him seem like a valuable option to pinch run late in games.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, he turned into Barry Bonds for a month. From July 9th to August 14th Fitzgerald hit 13 home runs including a stretch where he hit a home run in 5 straight games which no Giant since Bonds had done. This hot stretch even thrust him into NL Rookie of the Year talks briefly.

SF Giants breakout rookie Tyler Fitzgerald likely to be at new position in 2025

He did cool off significantly at the plate after that stretch which does raise some questions about what can be expected with his bat next season.

The fact that he hit so well is what forced him to be the team's starting shortstop for the last few months of the year. Fitzgerald is not a natural shortstop so it was a bit of an adjustment for him and the numbers reflect that.

In 594 innings at shortstop in 2024, Fitzgerald made 11 errors for a fielding percentage of .958. Compare that to Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson who made 5 errors in 1,273 innings at short for a .990 fielding percentage and it is clear that Fitzgerald has a lot of room for improvement. It is an unfair comparison since Dansby Swanson probably started playing shortstop when he came out of the womb while Fitzgerald has been forced to move around a lot and play different positions in his career, but it is still instructive.

Advanced metrics are not any kinder as Fitzgerald ranked 36th out of 40 among eligible shortstops in Outs Above Average.

Shortstop definitely seems like a position the Giants will target in the offseason. Whether they can land Willy Adames or Ha-Seong Kim in free agency or pull off a trade for someone like Carlos Correa, all of the signs point to Fitzgerald playing at a different position next season. That position will most likely be second base.

Fitzgerald has plenty of experience at the position in the minor leagues and it should not be too difficult of a transition for him. With him at second and someone like Kim at shortstop, the Giants could actually be quite strong up the middle next season.

Fitzgerald will definitely factor into the team's plans in 2025 one way or another. As of right now, it seems very likely that he will be the team's starting second baseman on Opening Day 2025.