SF Giants have come to a very sad realization at first base 2 weeks into the season

Coming into the 2026 season for the SF Giants, first base was definitely a bit of a question mark but fans were not sweating too much over it. For much of the offseason there were debates about whether the Giants had too many first basemen given both Rafael Devers and Bryce Eldridge figure to be in the picture for a while. Ironically, the Giants have realized they actually don’t have any first basemen.

Of the three players the Giants have used at first base this season, Casey Schmitt, Jerar Encarnacion, and Rafael Devers, none of them are a natural or prototypical first baseman. Schmitt is a natural third baseman who can be an above-average middle infielder. Encarnacion should really be a designated hitter who maybe sees a little time in left field if there are no other options. Devers is a DH who has the most experience at third base in his career and is still learning first base.

None of them are ideal options to have playing first base regularly and the Giants have found that out the hard way in the first three weeks of the season. 

SF Giants are learning a tough lesson at first base

Schmitt’s struggles at first were well-documented as he struggled to bring in several throws from Matt Chapman that should have been caught. That led to the “Lip-read Heard ‘Round the World” in San Diego and Schmitt’s tight back led to Encarnacion getting playing time at first base.

Fans clamoring for Encarnacion quickly found out that he was an even worse fit at first base as he whiffed on a throw from Chapman on Saturday.

That likely accelerated Devers’ return to the position ahead of schedule as he was nursing a tight hamstring. He has started at first twice and on Sunday he was unable to dig a ball out of the dirt on a throw from Chapman. It was not an easy play but given the fact that Chapman dove to stop the ball and made a pretty great throw to first under the circumstances, it was a ball that Devers needed to grab.

On Monday night, he also missed a throw from Chapman again as he tried to extend while keeping his foot on the base but whiffed and the ball hit the runner.

The common denominator on all of these plays at first base are less-than-perfect throws from Chapman so he definitely deserves some of the blame. But with a more capable first baseman playing over there some of those plays get made. 

It seems pretty clear that the Giants do not have any legitimate first basemen on the team. They at least have a tall one in the minors in Bryce Eldridge, but he would inevitably make some mistakes at the position as well since he is so young and is still learning it.

Maybe when Brandon Belt comes back to Oracle Park later in April he can give some pointers to the first basemen on the team. Heck, maybe he could even start. He still hasn’t officially retired yet. 

One hopes the Giants can work through these issues and whoever ends up playing the most at first base this season will grow into it and get more comfortable, but it’s clear that the Giants do not have any strong options there right now which puts them in a tough spot going forward.