SF Giants need a big step forward from 3 key prospects in 2026

The SF Giants have been eerily quiet this offseason, but there is still time for the team to make a surprise move or two. No matter who the Giants add, they are going to need some of their top prospects to take a step forward in 2026.

President of baseball operations Buster Posey has talked about the importance of improving from within which is a big reason why he decided to shake up the coaching staff and bring in a manager with no MLB experience in Tony Vitello.

SF Giants need young players to take step forward

The former University of Tennessee head coach has experience working with young players so the hope is he can translate the success he had getting the most out of college players to the professional ranks.

Let's look at three young Giants prospects who need to take that next step in 2026.

Bryce Eldridge

Obviously, the Giants are hoping their top prospect Bryce Eldridge can be something special. Assuming the team does not trade him, he has the potential to be a fixture of the lineup for a long time.

His brief debut in 2025 was not a disaster, but it certainly left quite a bit to be desired. He slashed .107/.297/.179 in 10 games, and while he hit the ball hard it would have been nice to see some more hits.

It was a very small sample size though so do not be surprised if we see a different version of Eldridge in 2026.

Carson Whisenhunt

Whisenhunt is the top pitching prospect in the organization and he showed some promise last season. In five starts he had a 5.01 ERA with 16 strikeouts and 12 walks in 23 innings.

He had a very strong start against the New York Mets but outside of that was fairly shaky. Maybe starting him off in a relief role next season similar to what the Giants did in 2025 with Hayden Birdsong could be beneficial to help build up some confidence before moving him into the rotation if he does well as a reliever.

Blade Tidwell

Acquired in a trade with the New York Mets last season, the former Tennessee product who played under Vitello had a rough go in a brief MLB showing with New York in 2025.

He surrendered 15 earned runs in 15 innings pitched for a nice round ERA of 9.00, but maybe being reunited with his old coach will help the Giants get the most out of him.

San Francisco needs to have better production from its prospects, so if these three players can establish themselves as big leaguers in 2026 it would go a long way towards helping the team achieve its goals.