3 SF Giants players who made the Opening Day roster but won't finish the year on it

To open the 2023 regular season, the SF Giants sit at 3-3, right at .500. This is where the club finished last year, too, and is a hump the team is surely desperate to get over after failing to meet expectations in 2022. The team is still filled to the brim with talent, despite the fact that it has one of the oldest groups of position players and pitching staffs around the league.

3 SF Giants players who made the Opening Day roster but won't finish the year on it

On the position player side of things, this year's Giants will feature largely the same cast as the previous. Mike Yastrzemski, Thairo Estrada, Brandon Crawford and LaMonte Wade Jr. are all back. Then there's shiny new outfielder Michael Conforto, who is making his triumphant return to Major League Baseball after sitting out last year with an injury.

For pitchers, Ross Stripling, Taylor Rogers and Sean Manaea are the three newest additions. Logan Webb, Alex Wood, Alex Cobb and Anthony DeSclafani are back to form 75% of the starting rotation while Camilo Doval and Tyler Rogers return to their crucial bullpen roles.

When the Giants announced their Opening Day roster, there weren't too many surprises. However, there are a few players who began the season on the roster but are not likely to finish the season on it.

Let's check out 3 Giants players who opened the season on the roster but will not finish the year on it.

3 SF Giants players who made the Opening Day roster but won't finish the year on it

1. Corner infielder J.D. Davis

Davis, 29, is a man without a position for the 2023 Giants. He has lined up at third base, first base and left field over the course of his seven-year career but does not play any of them particularly well.

Acquired last year at the trade deadline for a package including Darin Ruf (who is a comparable player to Davis), he hit well on his new club in a 49-game showing (eight home runs, 140 OPS+) but remained without a solid defensive home.

During the current season, Davis has made three appearances; two at third base and one at first. He is a guy who can also spend time at designated hitter on days Joc Pederson either has off or plays first/outfield, so there are at-bats to be had for Davis. The main issue, if there was one, is that Davis and Wilmer Flores are essentially the exact same player.

For the Giants, it depends on how long you're comfortable rostering two slow, power-hitting corner infielders who have virtually identical offensive profiles. One would think that at some point down the line, there becomes a need for some additional roster flexibility with one of these bench spots.

Davis is a solid hitter who has performed well on offense wherever he's played. He is not a free agent until the conclusion of next season and does have two minor league options left, so a demotion could be in the cards for him if he's the one the Giants choose to cut loose.

3 SF Giants players who made the Opening Day roster but won't finish the year on it

2. Utilityman Matt Beaty

Beaty, 29, was acquired from the Giants at virtually the last second before Opening Day. Young outfielder Bryce Johnson appeared to have made the roster before the club pivoted and acquired Beaty from the Royals.

At this point in his career, Beaty is a well-traveled veteran who has shown promise over the years, but he may not have a spot on this current roster for long. Over the course of his five-year career, he's spent time with two NL West rivals, the Dodgers and the Padres.

In 262 career games, the left-hander has 18 home runs and 92 RBI with an OPS+ of 93. He's had his fair share of ups and downs over the years.

On defense, Beaty plays all four corners on the field; first base, third base, left field and right field. While he is not an above-average defender at any particular position, he can hold his own wherever he lines up, which is a plus.

The main thing keeping Beaty from being a long-term piece to the puzzle for the Giants is the fact that he is too similar to multiple other players on the roster. David Villar, Thairo Estrada and Wilmer Flores are all multi-positional, not to mention other minor leaguers on the 40-man including Brett Wisely and Isan Díaz. Beaty just does not offer a skillset the Giants can't find elsewhere.

However, he does have one more minor league option, so the Giants would not necessarily have to pass him through waivers before optioning him. I believe Beaty is more likely to finish the year in Triple-A than he is to finish it on the big league bench.