SF Giants are coming to a crossroads with long-tenured first baseman

2025 has been an absolute grind for long-tenured SF Giants first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. The Giants have kept on hoping he would turn things around, but if his struggles continue the Giants will soon be at a crossroads with him.

In 46 games, Wade is slashing a dismal .162/.272/.265 with one home run and 14 runs batted in. Even early on there were reasons for concern. He has shown some positive signs and has had some good at-bats, but he just has not been able to get hot and pull himself out of his cold slump. There was hope that a pre-game batting practice session with Barry Bonds could turn him around, but that has not come to fruition.

SF Giants going to have a tough decision to make with LaMonte Wade Jr.

Earlier this season, it seemed like the Giants had no other choice than to ride things out with Wade. They did not have any other great options to play first base with Wilmer Flores serving as the team's designated hitter, but that could be changing very soon.

Jerar Encarnacion is set to begin a rehab assignment soon and could be back with the Giants in a week or so. He can play first base and has a big bat so he will definitely take some at-bats away from Wade. If he does come back on schedule, the Giants will have to make room for him on the big league roster. Would they make the tough decision of designating Wade for assignment?

Wade has no minor league options remaining, so they would not be able to send him down to Triple-A to see if he could find his swing in Sacramento. It would be a bit of an extreme measure, but the Giants may decide that is their best option.

There would be other candidates for demotion once Encarnacion returns. The Giants could send Christian Koss or Casey Schmitt down to Triple-A which may be the more likely outcome. Luis Matos could be another candidate for demotion although that would give them less depth in the outfield.

But if the Giants feel that Wade is simply a lost cause, then they may decide it is better to cut bait now rather than have him waste at-bats in the lineup.

Moving on from Wade relatively early in the year would go against the modus operandi of the new regime under Buster Posey. The team has shown a lot of patience with their players thus far even if they have been struggling. Maybe the Giants are willing to ride it out with Wade a little longer.

At some point Wade is going to have to start hitting, though. If he does not, the Giants will be left with no other choice than to move on from him.