SF Giants Player Review 2026: Patrick Bailey needed to leave to learn how to hit again

Our SF Giants Player Review 2026 series continues. Yesterday we took a look at Harrison Bader who made more noise off the field than on it this season and today we take a look at catcher Patrick Bailey.

Things started going the wrong way for the SF Giants in 2026 from Opening Night onward, but they at least tried to shake things up to stop the bleeding and one of the biggest moves they made was trading Patrick Bailey to the Cleveland Guardians back in May after he got off to a horrendous start at the plate.

In 30 games with San Francisco this season, Bailey hit .146/.213/.183 with one home run and five runs batted in. That one home run, a clutch one that helped the team beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, boosted his numbers quite a bit and without that swing of the bat his lack of production would have been even more ghastly. Roughly two weeks after that homer, Bailey was gone.

Clearly, president of baseball operations Buster Posey had had enough though. There were already signs that he did not view Bailey’s sterling defensive metrics the same way others did when he emphasized the importance of managing the pitching staff over pitch framing. 

While Bailey does have two Gold Gloves to his name, his defense came into question especially against the Philadelphia Phillies early in the season when he kept calling the same pitch over and over with Keaton Winn and then Ryan Walker on the mound in both games doubleheader which resulted in hits that changed the course of both contests. The Giants lost both of those games and after that Daniel Susac, who was swinging a hot bat, started getting more opportunities.

The Bailey trade was certainly a surprise but maybe it was the best for all involved. Bailey probably needed a fresh start given how much he struggled offensively in San Francisco and after going to Cleveland he definitely turned things around.

In 82 games with the Guardians he hit a much more respectable .228/.292/.390 with nine homers and 32 runs batted in. Had Bailey been hitting like that to start the year with the Giants, he probably never would have been traded but a change of scenery and a new coaching staff in Cleveland led by manager Stephen Vogt, a former catcher, may have brought about those better results.

Both sides are probably pleased after Patrick Bailey trade

The Giants cannot declare victory in the Bailey trade just yet and as of right now it seems like both sides may be happy. San Francisco got Matt Wilkinson, a pitcher who showed promise in 2026, and a draft pick they used on left-handed pitcher Carson Bolemon, one of the more intriguing pitching prospects in the 2026 MLB Draft.

If either of those guys can turn into solid big league pitchers then the trade will likely have been worth it especially since the Giants found out they have two competent, capable catchers in Susac and Drew Cavanaugh.

It’s a shame things ultimately didn’t work out in San Francisco for Bailey because he had some really memorable moments in a Giants uniform, but both sides needed to move on and they’re probably both better off for that decision. 

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