SF Giants Player Review 2026: Osleivis Basabe faded after promising MLB return

I felt bad letting our very own Nick San Miguel dive back into that disastrous 2026 season all by himself. So today, after Nick looked back on Scott Bandura's first stint in the majors yesterday, I'll be in charge of today's edition of our SF Giants Player Review 2026 series featuring Osleivis Basabe. As was the case for a big chunk of the 71 players that donned the Giants' colors this season, Basabe's opportunity came once the injury gods started cursing the team.

To Basabe's credit, his path back to the big leagues was as sinuous as the Giants' season was spoiled by injuries (okay, maybe not as much). Just a few months after being acquired by San Francisco from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for cash, Basabe got designated for assignment. The Giants did retain him in Sacramento after the right-hander cleared waivers, before eventually signing him to a minor-league contract in November. Fast-forward four months, and Basabe joined the Giants' spring training as a non-roster invitee. That's when his rebirth as a major-leaguer commenced.

An encouraging start led to a disappointing finish

Despite a strong spring training — he hit .387 with a 1.051 OPS in 31 at-bats — Basabe kicked off his season with the River Cats. He eventually got his shot once the injury bug started biting the Giants. His contract was selected on July 28 following the news that Casey Schmitt had suffered a torn meniscus (Matt Chapman was also already sidelined with a core muscle injury). The next day, he appeared in his first major-league game since 2023. His first few outings made that revelation impossible to believe.

On August 1, in his third game as a Giant, he hit his first MLB home run in three years and roped a game-tying double off Mason Miller in the 8th inning of an eventual loss to the Padres in San Diego. The ball he hit for a double came off his bat at an exit velocity of 109.6 mph, the hardest-hit ball allowed by Miller at that point. Over his next three games, he homered two more times, giving him three deep shots in four days.

During that same period, the Giants went on a trading spree, which included sending second baseman Luis Arraez to the Phillies. As a result, Basabe received even more playing time and opportunities. Unfortunately, that also marked the dawn of a major decline in productivity.

Over his first 16 games, Basabe hit .283 with a .795 OPS. From then on until the end of the season (30 games), he went 11-for-76 (.145) with just three extra-base hits.

The lowlight of his season came on September 1 against the Pirates, when Basabe's bad throw from third base cost the Giants the game despite the offense putting up 12 runs. Overall, defense was an issue for Basabe. He finished the year with four errors and a -6 Outs Above Average mark split between second and third base.

Basabe posted a couple of not-often-seen splits

Basabe's splits were unusual, to say the least. First, as a right-handed batter, he hit just .115 with a meager .406 OPS in 60 plate appearances against left-handed pitching. For comparison, the league average for righties against southpaws stood at .249 for the batting average and .741 for the OPS.

Surprisingly, that probably wasn't his most intriguing split. What about the fact that his entire run production came on the road? Yes, every single one of Basabe's 13 runs driven in and five home runs happened away from Oracle Park. He only appeared in 22 games at the ballpark by the bay, but it's still kind of an uncommon stat.

With his second stint in the big leagues now behind him, the question becomes whether or not Basabe will be on the roster whenever next season starts. On the Opening Day roster? The answer is a clear no. On the 40-man roster? Some signs indicate that he probably won't.

The Giants still have 17 players listed on the 60-day IL, and most of them will need to be added back to the 40-man roster before the World Series ends. Besides, the Giants would probably prioritize adding a few prospects such as Joe Whitman or Henry Lalane to protect them from the upcoming Rule 5 draft rather than sticking with Basabe.

As for necessity, the infield isn't projected to be tinkered with much. By the start of next season, Chapman, Schmitt, and Willy Adames will all be back. And players such as Christian Koss, Marcelo Mayer, or even Jonah Cox — who took some reps at second base towards the end of the season — are probably higher in the pecking order than Basabe.

A reunion with the River Cats next season is a possibility. Opting to hit free agency once/if he gets removed from the 40-man is another. Giants fans should be rooting for the guy anyway.

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