Who Were the San Francisco Giants Top Position Players in 2024 Season?

Who produced the most for the San Francisco Giants at the plate during the 2024 campaign?

Sep 30, 2023; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants center fielder Mike Yastrzemski (5) and San Francisco Giants center fielder Tyler Fitzgerald (49) and San Francisco Giants left fielder Heliot Ramos (12) celebrate after the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oracle Park. / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

The 2024 MLB regular season was a disappointing one overall for the San Francisco Giants.

They are missing the postseason for the third straight year and the seventh time out of the last eight; their only appearance was in 2021 when they won 107 games. 2022 is the only other time in this stretch they even finished .500.

Despite the lack of success in the win column, there were a few positive takeaways for the team. The biggest, in the opinion of Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report, was the performance of Matt Chapman.

“Matt Chapman has been nothing short of excellent in his first season with the Giants, posting a 126 OPS+ with 36 doubles, 27 home runs and 78 RBI while playing his usual stellar defense at third base. His 7.1 WAR ranks second in the National League and seventh in all of baseball,” Reuter wrote.

Signed to a three-year, $54 million deal ahead of the 2024 campaign, the last two years on that deal were ripped up in early September. It was replaced by a six-year, $151 million deal as this partnership will continue for years.

With third base now figured out for the foreseeable future, the front office can focus on upgrading other areas on the roster. Two more positions they have to feel good about is shortstop and at least one outfield spot.

Those are occupied by breakout rookie Tyler Fitzgerald and All-Star Heliot Ramos. They finished No. 2 and No. 3 on Reuter’s list of top position players in San Francisco this year.

“How much worse would this season have been for the Giants if not for breakout performances from Tyler Fitzgerald and Heliot Ramos? There is still a lot of work to do assembling a competitive lineup, but those two have a chance to be solid homegrown pieces to build around in the coming years,” the MLB expert wrote.

Fitzgerald came out of nowhere after being an afterthought in spring training. The shortstop job was being competed for between Nick Ahmed and Marco Luciano. Neither panned out, opening the door for the fourth-round pick in the 2019 MLB draft to burst through.

Most of his innings defensively were logged at shortstop but he also gave Bob Melvin innings at center field, second base, left field and first base. In 2023, he even made appearances at third base.

Ramos has played all three outfield positions this season. His future likely lies in the corner, where his numbers are infinitely better than they are in the center.

But, what fans love the most is the unbrittled power he provides at the plate. He became the first right-handed batter ever to hit a home run into McCovey Cove this season.

Rounding out Reuter’s list of the top-five hitters for the Giants in 2024 are outfielder Mike Yastrzemski and first baseman Lamonte Wade Jr.