Should San Francisco Giants Play Waiting Game for All-Star First Baseman?

The San Francisco Giants could use some power at a corner infield spot and an impending free-agent All-Star may be the answer.

Sep 27, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) hits a single against the Miami Marlins during the eighth inning at Rogers Centre. / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants have certainly made waves this offseason with the signing of shortstop Willy Adames to the largest contract in team history.

But it isn't just Adames that looks good on paper. It’s the contract extension for third baseman Matt Chapman. It’s moving Tyler Fitzgerald to a more favorable position at second base. It’s a full season of outfielders Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee in the outfield.

But one glaring gap remains and that's first base. In baseball, a first baseman needs power. While LaMonte Wade Jr. is a solid hitter, he doesn’t have the power teams want at the position.

Bryce Eldridge might be that player. The Giants’ top prospect fits that power hitting first baseman mold and he finished last season at Triple-A Sacramento. He’s seen as a player that could help San Francisco this season. But there’s no telling how quickly or, more importantly, at what production level. After all, he’s barely 20 years old.

The first base market in free agency is rather dry, with the only exception being Pete Alonso. He’s been connected to the Giants plenty this offseason, but his market seems oddly small for a consistent power hitter and most signs have him returning to the New York Mets.

Perhaps it's too much to ask for new president of baseball operations Buster Posey to fix everything in one season. Baseball doesn't really work like that. It usually takes teams two or three years to fix what ails them. And perhaps that is the strategy the Giants should take with roughly six weeks left before spring training.

Maybe fixing first base is a next year problem. Perhaps Eldridge is the solution.

Perhaps it’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The Giants were connected to Guerrero at last season’s trade deadline. At the time, he was emerging from a slump, the Blue Jays were slipping out of the playoff race and there was a thought that Toronto wouldn’t want to risk losing him and getting nothing in return when he becomes a free agent after this season.

Toronto, smartly, held onto him. Guerrero slashed .323/.396/.544/.940 with 30 home runs and 103 RBI. He’s a four-time All-Star, the 2021 American League home run champion and nearly won the AL MVP that season. He enters 2025 with a lifetime .288 average, 160 home runs, 57 RBI and is entering his age 26 season.

In other words, Guerrero can either fetch the Blue Jays a haul at the deadline, Toronto can re-sign him or he can hit the open market and get paid in the neighborhood of $500 million in a long-term contract.

A Giants lineup with Guerrero in it would be a huge win. He played alongside Chapman in Toronto and it could help the process. His father played on the west coast. San Francisco has proven, with Adames, that it can land a big fish.

San Francisco would have to wait, but the wait would certainly be worth it.