The SF Giants likely need to start over with their outfield

The SF Giants are more than one-quarter of the way through the season. There are plenty of takeaways so far, but one that stands out is that it is just not working with the current outfield alignment.

That unit is hitting just .234/.278/.363 (81 wRC+) with a 5.2 percent walk rate, 20.7 percent strikeout rate, and .129 ISO. The 81 wRC+ is the sixth-worst mark in baseball.

They have also produced -0.4 fWAR, which is last in baseball. That is being held down by an extremely slow start by Harrison Bader, but that observation also overlooks the rest of the group.

How does the rest of the SF Giants outfield look?

Drew Gilbert filled in during Bader’s absence. He had a few nice moments following his promotion. That said, Gilbert now has a .611 OPS through 80 plate appearances. Even when the hits were falling, it was pretty clear that he was overperforming his underlying metrics.

Gilbert plays with great energy, but he is likely best suited as a second-division fourth outfielder. On a good team, Bader is a solid fourth outfielder, but the Giants are asking him to fill an everyday role to upgrade the defense.

Jung Hoo Lee is in his third season with the Giants, and it has been more of the same. He shows flashes of being a dynamic player, but that is usually followed by a brutal slump. Lee can be a solid role player on a good team, but that is likely his ceiling.

It would likely be in Lee’s best interest to be platooned against left-handed pitching, but the Giants are seemingly opposed to that concept in general. Every team platoons. The Giants have struggled again against left-handed pitching and Lee’s spot in the lineup is one of the few where they could more effectively play matchups.

Lastly, Heliot Ramos got off to an abysmal start, but he has rebounded nicely since then. He has the power to hit 20 or more home runs with ease, but does not generate a lot of offensive value outside of that. Ramos is hardly the problem with the club’s offensive struggles.

The 26-year-old outfielder has struggled badly on defense. In fairness, he has looked better with the glove this year. It still raises the question of whether Ramos’ offensive value outweighs his defense. It does, but by how much?

The easy part is identifying the problem. The hard part is finding a solution. Lee and Bader are under multi-year deals, and Ramos will not reach arbitration until the offseason. He is still a relative bargain and that will likely not change if and when he receives a raise in 2027. 

The lack of flexibility makes it difficult to upgrade this area. The Giants have a lot of options, and few solutions. If they continue at this pace, the outfield will be an expensive unit but with little relative value. 

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