What can the SF Giants expect from a versatile middle infielder in 2025?

It was a tale of three seasons for rookie SF Giants infielder Tyler Fitzgerald in 2024. He struggled to find a role in the first part followed by a Bondsian stretch at the plate and cooling off the final month of the year. What can the Giants expect from him in 2025?

What can the SF Giants expect from a versatile middle infielder in 2025?

It is a tougher question to answer than one might think. On the surface, Fitzgerald had a successful rookie campaign as he slashed .280/.334/.497 (132 wRC+) with 15 home runs, 34 RBI, and 53 runs in 341 plate appearances. This includes a 6.5 percent walk rate, 31.7 percent strikeout rate, .217 ISO, and 17 stolen bases in 21 opportunities.

Generally, if a player is going to have a strikeout rate above 30 percent, then he will need to offset that with above-average power. Fitzgerald did just that. He had a 28.2 percent strikeout rate in the minors, so there is plenty of swing-and-miss in his game. The problem is if that strikeout rate increases to 35 percent, then it really becomes a problem.

While Fitzgerald definitely put up strong numbers in the aggregate, the league began to attack him differently and he struggled to adjust. The right-handed bat had an incredible July where he posted a 1.239 OPS with eight home runs and 15 RBI in 59 plate appearances. He simply hit his way into the everyday lineup with a stretch like that.

Fitzgerald followed that up with a .794 OPS in August. Still a solid mark and the type of production where your name should be in the lineup on a daily basis. He finished the year with a rough September, posting a .677 OPS in 86 plate appearances.

The 27-year-old hit his 14th home run of the season on August 14 and then added just one more after that. From August 15 onward, he struggled to a .592 OPS in 146 plate appearances.

The scouting report on Fitzgerald came out. When he went on a tear, it was because he was taking advantage of pitches that he could lift and pull. He does that quite well and it is the best batted-ball outcome.

However, the right-handed hitter struggled to hit pitches up in the zone and made contact on the outer half, but did not do much damage. Plus, if you look at his Baseball Savant page, there is quite a bit of blue, suggesting some below-average process stats.

The streak that Fitzgerald went on in July was one of the more surprising stretches from a Giants prospect over the last 25 years. He had put up solid numbers in the minors while being on the older side before this year, but not the type of production you would expect to see from an everyday player.

Perhaps, he made an adjustment this season that helped him flourish at the plate. Unfortunately, the season is over and the Giants need to make an evaluation here.

Undoubtedly, the Giants need a middle infielder. Preferably, it is a shortstop as Fitzgerald did not look like he could handle it on a daily basis. That is not his fault. The Giants needed to have more depth at a premium position and did not.

However, the Giants need to determine what type of player Fitzgerald is. There is a good chance that his actual upside is somewhere between the incredible streak he had in July and the struggles he had down the stretch. There is quite a bit of projection here and it is a tough decision. If the Giants make the wrong call, then it could create a hole in the lineup.