The SF Giants already have a primary solution to address leadoff woes

SF Giants leadoff hitters posted a .296 on-base percentage, which was the worst mark in baseball for that spot in the lineup. They already have a primary solution to address this issue in Drew Gilbert.

I say primary solution because the caveat here is who is on the mound. If the Giants are facing off against a right-handed pitcher, then it makes sense to plug Gilbert into the leadoff spot.

The left-handed bat did well in those matchups, slashing .264/.357/.444 (124 wRC+) in 343 plate appearances. This includes a healthy 10.5 percent walk rate.

The goal for a leadoff hitter is to take pitches and reach base. Gilbert checks off that first box, as he had one of the lowest swing rates on the team at 41.6 percent. In fact, only Turner Hill (39.8 percent) had a lower swing rate among Giants hitters with at least 100 plate appearances in 2026. Plus, Gilbert does a nice job of staying within the zone. He is not just watching pitches go by.

SF Giants could use Drew Gilbert in the leadoff spot for the bulk of the matchups

Of course, Gilbert also reaches base at a healthy clip. His .357 on-base percentage against right-handed pitching was tied with Bryce Eldridge for third on the team in that category. Only Rafael Devers (.392 on-base percentage) and Luis Arráez (.368 on-base percentage) reached base at a higher clip.

The downside of this is that the Giants will not always face a right-handed pitcher. When a southpaw pitcher is on the mound, the Giants will need someone else to lead off. As a team, the Giants struggled badly in those matchups, and they will need to address this in the offseason.

More often than not, the Giants will be facing a righty, so they have that side of the matchup covered. The tricky part will be finding a platoon partner, whether that is an internal option or they try to address this through trades or free agency. Jonah Cox proved to be a dynamic player, even if his strikeout rate sat at nearly 40 percent.

Willy Adames, Jung Hoo Lee, and Arráez led the team with plate appearances at the leadoff spot. They used over 15 players at the spot in the lineup, but to no avail. That said, Adames and Lee should likely be hitting lower next season, and Arráez is no longer with the club.

Who bats after Gilbert? Rafael Devers was second on the team with 206 plate appearances at the No. 2 spot. One interesting idea would be to have Bryce Eldridge hit behind Gilbert. That would give the Giants two strong hitters in terms of at-bat quality.

Normally, it is not a good idea to line up too many left-handed hitters in a row because that leaves a team vulnerable to a left-handed reliever later in the game. That said, Eldridge was one of the best left-on-left hitters in baseball in 2026.

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