Did young SF Giants outfielder do enough to earn a role on the 2026 roster?

Young SF Giants outfielder Drew Gilbert provided an immediate burst of energy when he was added to the roster in August. Did he do enough on the field to earn a role on the 2026 team?

Did young SF Giants outfielder do enough to earn a role on the 2026 roster?

The Giants acquired Gilbert, along with José Butto and Blade Tidwell, in a deal that sent Tyler Rogers to the New York Mets. San Francisco was slumping toward the trade deadline, and Buster Posey made the call to sell off some tradable assets.

At the time of the trade deadline, the Giants had a 54-55 record and had been swept in successive series by the New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates. Selling was certainly the right call. On the other hand, it is hard to ignore how badly the bullpen struggled following Rogers' departure. It went from a strength to a liability. The season-ending injury to Randy Rodríguez only exacerbated the issues with the bullpen by the end of the year.

If the Giants had retained Rogers, they may have won another game or two, which would have brought them extremely close to reaching the playoffs. This is not to second guess the decision by the front office. The Giants did not give them the performance they needed to go out and buy at the trade deadline.

The Giants added a young outfield prospect in Drew Gilbert. After five games with the Sacramento River Cats, the Giants added him to the roster.

There was plenty of playing time in right field, as the Giants also shipped Mike Yastrzemski at the trade deadline. They gave some looks to a handful of internal options, including Gilbert.

Overall, the left-handed bat slashed .190/.248/.350 (66 wRC+) with three home runs, 13 RBI, and 12 runs in 109 plate appearances. This included a 6.4 percent walk rate, 18.3 percent strikeout rate, and .160 ISO.

On the positive side, Gilbert did show a little bit of power, even if two of his three home runs came against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. As his 86.6 MPH average exit velocity indicates, he does not have much raw power.

Gilbert's power numbers will likely be tied to how often how can lift and pull the ball down the line. Oracle Park is a tough environment on hitters, but there is an opportunity for left-handed hitters to sneak the ball over the fence down the line in right field. That is where Gilbert's power has shown up in the minors.

The 25-year-old hitter took advantage of fastballs, but struggled badly against breaking balls and offspeed pitches. He will need to learn and adjust, but as long as he continues to struggle against those pitches, pitchers will take advantage of that scouting report.

Overall, the offense was not much, and there might not be a ton of upside in Gilbert's bat. That said, he was competent defensively in the outfield. He put up -2 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS), 2 Outs Above Average (OAA), and 2 Fielding Run Value (FRV). Gilbert could find some at-bats just by being a good defensive outfielder. The Giants' outfield defense graded out as the worst in baseball, so this is one area where they need to show improvement.

Gilbert checks off that box and might be a solid backup to Jung Hoo Lee in center field. However, the fit is a bit tough, as both hit from the left side.

The rookie outfielder will need to hit more to earn a larger role with the team. However, his defense might be what gives him an edge over some of the other internal options. Gilbert's overall performance did not separate him from the rest of the group, so he will need to compete for a spot next spring. He did show some traits that could eventually lead to being a quality fourth outfielder.