Bryce

Eldridge

The 21-year-old slugger underwent surgery in October to remove a bone spur from his wrist. While it delayed his usual offseason routine, Eldridge said he has been swinging a bat since mid-December and won’t have any restrictions in spring training. Eldridge and Rafael Devers are expected to cover the first base and designated hitter spots in the Giants’ lineup for the upcoming season.

It’s worth $12 million, according to The Athletic’s Katie Woo. Arraez wanted to play second base, and the Giants have decided to give it a try, though they would have room for him as a first baseman/DH if they need to send down Bryce Eldridge. Initially, though, it’ll be Casey Schmitt he’s displacing from the lineup. Arraez, of course, will be bringing three batting titles with him to San Francisco, but his OPS+s have dipped from 128 in both 2022 and ’23 to 107 in 2024 and 99 last season with the Padres. Given his lack of defensive value, he really needs to rebound beyond his 2024 production to be a quality regular.

Edridge’s name surfaced over the weekend in a report from the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser as a possible trade candidate, but it sounds like there are no immediate plans to send him packing. The 21-year-old slugging prospect struggled in his first taste of the big leagues this past season, but he’s one of the more promising power-hitting prospects in the game considering his combination of hard contact and solid contact skills for a player of his immense physical stature. He figures to split time at the cold corner with Devers heading into next season unless the Giants decide to make a splash by signing free agent Kyle Schwarber.

At this point, every MLB team should at least check in on Schwarber after he hit 56 home runs and drove in 132 runs and finished second in NFL MVP voting. With Rafael Devers in town and top prospect Bryce Elridge looking MLB-ready. It seems unlikely that the Giants will land Schwarber.

Eldridge is expected to need 6-8 weeks of recovery before being able to return to baseball activity. With the season over, the 20-year-old should be ready in time for the start of the regular season. He’ll likely be the starter at first base for the Giants in 2026.

Eldridge takes a seat on Saturday afternoon with Rockies southpaw Kyle Freeland toeing the rubber at Oracle Park. He’s hit just .115 (3-for-26) with four RBI and 12 strikeouts in nine games since ascending to the big leagues earlier this month. It’s not unexpected for a top prospect to hit some extreme turbulence upon arrival in the majors, especially when being thrust into a playoff race. The 20-year-old prodigy projects as a middle-of-the-order force and a big-time power producer down the road. It may not happen overnight, but his time as an impact fantasy contributor is coming.

Eldridge’s 360-foot drive to left off Tyler Glasnow would have been a homer in eight ballparks. He walked once and had a 108.4-mph groundout the other time he made contact tonight.

In his debut Monday, Eldridge went 0-for-3 with a 407-foot flyout that would have been a homer in 23 ballparks. Today, he went 0-for-3 with a 404-foot flyout that would have been a homer in 12 ballparks. It’s just that Arizona is not the place to be hitting long flies to center. Eldridge did get the game-winning rally in the 11th started with his walk, after which he was removed for a pinch-runner. He’s definitely off to a more interesting start than the 0-for-6 suggests.

No surprise here with veteran southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez taking the ball for Arizona. Eldridge went 0-for-3 on Monday in his major-league debut, but he also smashed a 407-foot fly ball to left-center field that would’ve been out in 23 other ballparks.

Eldridge’s seventh-inning flyout would have been a homer in 23 ballparks. His other ball in play was also hit hard, though it was just a grounder. The Giants went 2-for-29 as a unit tonight, so Eldridge was their second-best performer even if he did go hitless.