SF Giants option struggling infielder bringing his future into question

The SF Giants just demoted David Villar per the team's transaction log to make room for new additions. While Villar has been decent at times this season, his latest demotion brings his future on the team into question.

David Villar demotion brings SF Giants future into question

Villar's demotion was part of several moves the Giants made recently. NBC Sports Bay Area's Alex Pavlovic reports that the Giants have added Mark Canha and Jerar Encarnación to the roster and Sean Hjelle is back from the bereavement list. Blake Sabol and Villar got sent to Triple-A while Derek Hill was designated for assignment after a brief stint with the team.

The Giants are adding both Canha and Encarnación in the hopes that they can provide a spark to an offense that has struggled a lot this season. It would not be surprising if they both started tonight against left-handed starter Andrew Abbott in Cincinnati tonight.

Turning back to Villar, he was really only in the big leagues because Wilmer Flores is injured. Villar is a right-handed batter who can play first base, second base, and third base just like Flores so he is a natural replacement.

Villar's numbers this season have been respectable in a small sample size. He has 9 hits in 35 at-bats with 1 home run and 4 RBI. But he has struggled a little bit as of late, recording only 4 hits in his last 19 plate appearances. In Triple-A he has been solid this season, slashing .271/.363/.494 with 14 home runs and 52 RBI.

So far, his repeated success in Sacramento has not resulted in consistent big league numbers. He looked good enough in a brief MLB stint at the end of 2022 that the Giants were prepared to give him the starting third base job to begin 2023. He struggled mightily in the role and was subsequently demoted.

The Matt Chapman signing further limited his staying power in the big leagues. Villar is now in a very similar situation to Casey Schmitt where they have both shown promise but will really only get big league action if there is an injury.

Villar is now 27 and the Giants will soon be faced with a decision on what to do with him. If Chapman opts out of his deal this offseason, then Villar may compete with Schmitt and potentially even Marco Luciano for third base duties. Similarly, if Wilmer Flores is let go in the offseason, Villar could end up competing to be a backup to LaMonte Wade Jr. at first base and see action mainly against lefties.

No matter what, he is going to have to start producing consistently at the big-league level if he is going to have any role on the big league team. We have seen from Heliot Ramos this year that development at the big league level is not linear. Villar could surprise us all next season and establish himself as the future third baseman of the team. But time is running out for him to prove that he can be a consistent producer for the Giants.