Young SF Giants infielder is proving that his name needs to be in the lineup

Casey Schmitt has been the SF Giants' best hitter early in the season. He is proving that his name needs to be in the lineup.

Young SF Giants infielder is proving that his name needs to be in the lineup

Schmitt ended last season as the everyday second baseman. However, the Giants added Luis Arráez in the offseason, thereby pushing Schmitt into a different role.

Arráez gave the Giants a skill that the front office wants in a hitter, and one that adds more variance to the lineup.

There were a couple of roles that the Giants envisioned for Schmitt when the season began. If they carried Bryce Eldridge on the roster, then he would be splitting time with Rafael Devers at first base or DH.

Along with first base and DH, Schmitt's best position is third base, and he is still a work in progress at second base. That said, he would have been blocked at all those positions. As it has been demonstrated with Christian Koss in the early going, playing time in this role would have been sparse.

Of course, the Giants did not keep Eldridge on the roster. If you are wondering how he is doing, well, he is off to a strong start with Sacramento.

This opened up playing time at DH, and Schmitt has run with the opportunity. He is slashing .315/.373/.519 (151 wRC+) with two home runs, seven runs, and six RBI in 59 plate appearances. He notched his second home run of the year in a 10-5 win over the Washington Nationals on Friday.

Since June 1 of last year, the 27-year-old bat has put up a 112 wRC+ across 364 plate appearances.
Why June 1? Schmitt began last season in the same way that Koss is starting this year. He saw 43 sporadic plate appearances through the first two months, but a Matt Chapman injury paved the way for an opportunity.

Schmitt has seemingly only gotten better with regular playing time. There is still no path that allows him to see regular playing time at third base, but he is proving his bat needs to be in the lineup. With how the offense has struggled to start the year, there is no way they can leave him out of the lineup. That remains true even if the Giants bring Bryce Eldridge up. How they plan to insert Eldridge, Schmitt, and Rafael Devers into the lineup is a different story!

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow