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Multiple times this season, this SF Giants team has played like a turnaround was on the horizon. In their first game after the All-Star break, they shut out the Seattle Mariners and looked every bit like the team they set out to be. But the belief that this team might finally live up to expectations has quickly faded.
Following their latest loss to the last-place Kansas City Royals, the Giants now sit 17 games under .500, and their 59 losses through 101 games are their most at this point in a season since 2017, when they went 38-63 before eventually losing 98 games. They have become just the fourth team in the San Francisco era, which began in 1958, to lose at least 59 of its first 101 games.
Throw in the fact that they now own the worst interleague record in baseball at 9-17, have failed to score more than four runs in seven of their last eight games, haven’t won a road series since their two-game sweep of the Braves in mid-June, and still haven’t managed to string together four consecutive wins, and saying “Things are looking bad right now” becomes an understatement.
That doesn't mean that the 2026 campaign automatically becomes a lost season on all fronts. This franchise still has a lot to look forward to and, more importantly, a lot to address before the 2027 season begins.
The starting rotation and the bullpen will be the front office's main priorities throughout the rest of this season and during the offseason. The infield isn't expected to undergo major changes—barring any far-fetched trades involving their big-contract players—aside from the very likely departure of Luis Arraez, who should be supplanted by Schmitt. On the grass, though, things could look different come next year.
How has the Giants' outfield looked this season?
When Harrison Bader signed a two-year, $20 million contract with the club this past offseason, the overall sentiment surrounding an outfield that finished 2025 as the worst defensive outfield in the majors was that a) it would take a leap in that aspect of the game and that b) the trio of Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos, and Bader would be logging most of the innings out there.
Now more than 100 games into the season, the Giants' outfield ranks 29th in Outs Above Average and owns the second-lowest fWAR in all of baseball. Not only that, but six players have taken at least 50 plate appearances while manning the outfield, including Schmitt who had never played professional baseball in the outfield before this season. He ended up starting 29 games in left field.
Injuries have caused most of that chaos. Bader has been on the injured list since May 30, his second trip on it, and has participated in just 30 games this season. Ramos also missed 38 games earlier in the season due to a quad strain. Those absences have led to Drew Gilbert starting in center field almost every day, Jonah Cox getting promoted straight from Double-A Richmond, Victor Bericoto making his big-league debut, and even rookie catcher Jesus Rodriguez starting a few games in the corners.
Both Gilbert and Cox (in his limited playing time) have been solid defenders in center field, but their impacts with the bat has remained minimal. Bericoto, on the other hand, has shown flashes on both ends, making some impressive diving catches on defense and showing off his power and contact ability at the plate — he posted a .293 batting average and hit four home runs in 58 at-bats before being placed on the IL on July 10.
Poor seasons cause major changes, and a few of them are expected in the Bay. Could it be trading one of Ramos or Lee? Absolutely. It could even make sense.
What is the market for both those guys and who would replace them?
Lee's value mainly comes from his ability to put the ball in play and rarely strike out, a toolkit similar to that of his teammate at second base. Meanwhile, Ramos is viewed as a powerful right-handed outfielder who hits lefties well. Both players boast a skillset that could immediately help basically every contending team. According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, scouts from the Phillies and Yankees — two teams in need of outfield depth — were in the stands in Kansas City.
Ramos will enter his arbitration years next season, and Lee is set to make over $20 million in each of the next three seasons, with a player opt-out after 2027. Lee — a fan favorite in the Bay Area — made a rather surprising appearance at No. 18 on ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan’s list of the top 100 trade candidates and was given a 40% chance of being traded. Ramos didn’t make the list.
Just like with everybody else on the roster right now — with the exceptions of Logan Webb and Bryce Eldridge — the front office must at least listen to what teams have to offer, especially if doing so can net them some more pitching.
The current state of the farm system could facilitate a move. We’ve already seen Bericoto and Cox come up this season, but the Giants have a lot more brewing at the lower levels. Some prospects could even be given an opportunity as soon as this season.
Let’s start with the more distant future. The organization recently promoted two young outfielders from High-A Eugene to Double-A Richmond. Trevor Cohen, whom the Giants drafted in the third round last year, and Dakota Jordan, who appeared in the Futures Game in Philadelphia, were the ones to make the jump. Cohen can play both center and right field and batted .297 with an .803 OPS, 48 walks, and 26 stolen bases in 80 games at High-A this season.
Jordan can also play both positions and boasts one of the most promising power-speed combinations in the system. In 81 games at High-A, the 23-year-old and former wide receiver at Mississippi State hit 18 home runs and swiped 15 bags. A realistic call-up for either of them would probably come at some point next season. Some prospects who have started playing one level above, however, have the potential to receive one in the coming months.
Following the promotions of Jordan and Cohen, the Giants brought up a couple of players from Double-A to Triple-A: Bo Davidson and Parks Harber. Davidson has a profile similar to Jordan’s: a center fielder with plus power and speed. In 73 games this season, Davidson hit 19 home runs and stole 14 bases.
Meanwhile, Harber is a little more intriguing, as he started almost the same number of games in left field (21) as he did at third base (24) this season in Richmond. He has started all four of his games at the hot corner since joining Sacramento, which makes him a less likely candidate to join the big leagues this season, given the current infield situation and because another outfielder currently in Triple-A could be ahead of him on the depth chart.
Turner Hill, 27, has seen time at all three outfield spots since being called up back in April, starting 17 games in both corners and 31 in center field while batting .331 with a .890 OPS and 24 stolen bases.
With that being said, here is the list of potential outfielders battling for a spot on the Opening Day roster next season: Drew Gilbert, Grant McCray, Jonah Cox, Victor Bericoto, Turner Hill, and Bo Davidson. The last two might be long shots, but neither can be ruled out entirely.
The outfield situation is still very cloudy as of right now. It should clear up once the trade deadline is behind us.
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This article was originally published on aroundthefoghorn.com as SF Giants have plenty of reasons to listen to trade offers on a pair of outfielders.
