Well, let’s take a crack at deciding on part of the 26-man roster on Opening Day. Without forgetting how to count! Most teams keep 13 pitchers, so they can have only 13 players – although off days early in the year would permit the Giants to go 12 pitchers and 14 players for a week or a bit longer. But let’s say 13 players will see Opening Day. 2 will be catchers, 6 will be infielders, so we can keep 5 outfielders: 2+6+5 = 13 ✅. This means nobody is called a full time DH, since we have seen Devers can actually play 1B reasonably well.
The outfield might be clearer than the catchers, infield, rotation, and bullpen at this point. Remember, we can only keep 5 of these:
regulars: Ramos(0), Bader, Lee
on the 40-man: Brennan(2), Encarnacion(0), Gilbert(3), Matos(0), McCray(2)
in camp: Bericoto, Davidson, Oliva(2)
The number in parenthesis is the remaining years the player could be sent to AAA, and remain with the organization. Matos and Encarnacion and even Ramos have to be sure to stay they remain on the active roster, or be sent to waivers. Bericoto and Davidson have not yet been on a 40-man, so the Giants totally control where they are stationed. Tyler Fitzgerald has played a bit of outfield this year, but we’ll leave him for an infield preview. Let’s look at some of these names.
Will Brennan played outfield for a few years with Cleveland, but they did not tender him a contract last fall. Posey swooped in back in February with a split contract, $900K for any time he spends on the Giants, $400K if he is in the minors. His split contract hints at some willingness to take an assignment to Sacramento. He has 198 games in RF, 21 in CF, and 30 in LF during parts of four seasons as a Guardian, a career BA of 0.267, and is 28 years old.
Victor Bericoto has been playing in the Giants’ minors since age 17 in 2019, reaching the River Cats for 11 games last year. He will be 24 during this season, and that’s the right age to break out. And he’s hitting the old horse hide clean off the ball this spring. If he makes the team, he’s more or less coming straight from AA Richmond.
Luis Matos is another guy who has played with the Giants since age 17 in 2019, but he has been called up briefly in each of the last three seasons, so he no longer can be assigned to Sacramento. His face and body look all grown up this spring, and at age 24, it is also the time for him to break through. He hasn’t struck out this spring, in xx at-bats, and has 2 homers. Maybe it is his time? The Giants would like that, after paying a $725K signing bonus (Marco Luciano got most of the coin in 2019), and with a lot of coaching time is invested in Matos.
Grant McCray is a year older than Bericoto and Matos, and when called up last year, stuck with the team the remainder of the season. The organization did demote him after his first call up in 2023, and so has two options left.
Jerar Encarnacion will be 28, is out of options, and is not playing so well this spring. Right now, his advantage is that he can be used at 1B and DH, as well as LF. He definitely needs to put the foot down on the gas pedal in the remaining 3 weeks of camps.
Jared Oliva is 30 years old. Jon Miller would like you to know his name is pronounce ‘ah-lee-va’. He played for the Pirates in 26 games in ’20 and ’21, and has been bouncing around in the minors since then. He is very speedy, swiping 57 bags for the Brewer’s AAA team in 2025. He is proving a good defender, and about 2/3 of his games in the minors have been in center field. He’s got a big climb, just to get on the 40-man seems hard, but he is having a good camp.
The Giants may not be at all sorry that their projected starting outfield is all away at the WBC, for this is letting them take a longer look at the names just above.
Injuries could affect the decision, too. Jung Hoo Lee rolled an ankle in Korea, but says he’s okay. Drew Gilbert has not played for a week (shoulder impingement) and needs more seasoning at the plate anyway, so he seems a certainty for Sacramento. Bo Davidson is soaking it all up in camp, showing us why he’s an exciting prospect (whom nobody drafted!), but hasn’t got experience above the final 42 games at Richmond last year. Another River Cat, you’d have to think.
One more thing before you decide which two players to keep on Opening Day. These batting values include the game against the Reds on Friday. How are they hitting?
Ramos, 6G, 7-11 (0.636), 2 doubles, homer, 2 RBI
Bericoto, 9G, 9-18 (0.500), 2 doubles, 2 homers, 10 RBI
Matos, 10G, 9-20 (0.450), 2 doubles, 2 homers, 4 RBI
Brennan, 9G, 6-14 (0.429), 2 doubles, 2 RBI
Bader, 6G, 5-12 (0.417) 2 doubles, homer, 6 RBI
Lee, 4G, 5-12 (0.417), triple, 2 RBI
Oliva, 8G, 6-15 (0.400), all singles, 4 RBI
McCray, 10G, 4-12 (0.333), all singles, 3 RBI
Davidson, 9G, 3-10 (0.300), all singles, 0 RBI
Gilbert, 5G, 2-9 (0.222), both singles, 2 RBI
Encarnacion, 10G, 4-23 (0.174), all singles, 0 RBI
So, the regulars Ramos, Bader, Lee do all make the team, and maybe 610nm picks Matos and Brennan, after remembering Bericoto has very little AAA time. Type a comment if you disagree!
