San Francisco Giants: What’s Up with All Those Infielders?

You know those really bad infomercials, where a person is holding way too many things in their arms, then trip and drop everything in the most comical fashion before turning to the camera looking as dejected as possible? That’s kind of how the San Francisco Giants are right now with infielders.

The Giants have so many infielders right now that they’re one misstep away from tripping and scattering them all over the place.

Of course, there’s the starters. Brandon Belt, Joe Panik, Brandon Crawford, and Eduardo Nunez are the projected starters, so let’s not worry about them right now. The depth is where things get pretty crowded.

The Giants have Ehire Adrianza, Kelby Tomlinson, Conor Gillaspie, Jimmy Rollins, and Ramiro Pena as experienced big league infielders. They also have prospects Orlando Calixte, Juniel Querecuto, Miguel Gomez, and their top prospect, Christian Arroyo. Just yesterday, they signed Korean infielder Jae-gyun Hwang to a minor league contract. Don’t forget about first basemen Chris Marrero, Kyle Blanks, Mike Morse, and Chris Shaw, either.

So what can the Giants do with all these infielders? Some of them, obviously, are going to be on the big league roster. They will keep two, although they could keep three if they are feeling risky and only keep one natural outfielder on the bench. Adrianza and Tomlinson both have some experience in the outfield, but it’s not really enough that it should make the Giants comfortable putting them out there. Gillaspie is as close to a lock to making the roster as there is in this group, but you won’t find him in the outfield.

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There are a few that are real longshots to make the opening day roster. Querecuto is really down the depth chart, so he will be in the minor leagues to open the year. Gomez is quite inexperienced, having played just two seasons on American soil and not advancing past Advanced-A yet. Hwang will probably need some time in the minor leagues to adjust to the game in the states. Arroyo probably needs a bit more seasoning as well, and it appears the team is not inclined to rush him. He likely starts the year getting his first taste of Triple-A action.

Rollins hasn’t played minor league ball as anything but rehab since 2000, so would he be willing to accept a demotion from the Giants? It seems unlikely, and he may ask for his release if he doesn’t crack the big league club.

Even if Rollins doesn’t stay with the team, the Giants still have an infield overload. They will have no problem filling the big league bench, and will be able to fill the upper levels of the minor leagues as well.

Gillaspie and Adrianza are both out of options, so this large infield contingent will provide some insurance should the Giants put either through waivers and lose them. Calixte is especially important to this plan, since he is already on the Giants’ 40-man roster.

Could it also be that the Giants are stocking up in case of a trade? It’s common knowledge that Panik has been asked about quite a bit in recent years, but it never really seemed as if they were close to trading him. If that were to happen late in the offseason, they have a group of more experienced infielders (Pena, Tomlinson) to play second base while younger players (Calixte, Hwang, Gomez, maybe?) learn the position.

And Belt has been common trade fodder among fans, but it seems unlikely that the team will trade him away after signing him to a big extension. But, all those depth first basemen have to play somewhere. Shaw is probably heading to Double-A, where he finished last year, leaving three first basemen for pretty much one job (assuming, of course, that Morse and Blanks are healthy and willing to play in the minor leagues). Marrero can also play the outfielder, so that eases the burden a little bit. Given their age and recent injuries, it may not be within Blanks and Morse’s skill sets to play outfield anymore.

Sending all these players down could really dig into playing time for them. Arroyo has been pegged as the Giants’ third baseman of the future, but Hwang had been mainly a third baseman in Korea. They could move Hwang around, maybe try him out at shortstop or second base, but that could hurt Pena’s and Calixte’s playing time. While having all these players could be beneficial for the Giants, it could also be detrimental for the individual players.

Next: Pitching Staff Almost Set, but Not Quite

There’s a lot that can be read into with the Giants signing all these infielders, but on the surface, it’s just a team stocking up on players to help a pretty thin farm system at the upper levels. Until something bigger happens, that’s all that we should think.

For now, the Giants’ infield is set, but there will be a lot of competition for the bench jobs. That will be something to watch in Spring Training.