Where Giants’ outfield situation stands headed into offseason originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO — The two long homers got all of the attention, but a throw that Giants center fielder Grant McCray made in the ninth inning Saturday night in San Diego was just as impressive from an athleticism standpoint.
McCray went back to the edge of the track on Donovan Solano‘s long fly ball and noticed that Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr., the speedy and daring runner on second, was tagging even with the Giants holding a three-run lead. His 96 mph rocket from deep center bounced once on the dirt before settling into Matt Chapman‘s glove. Tatis, it turned out, wasn’t going anywhere, but when he saw the trajectory of the throw, he looked back out at center field in curiosity.
The throw brought a smile to the face of a manager who earlier in the day had talked excitedly about the athleticism the Giants now have in their outfield. After McCray’s two-homer game, Bob Melvin said the rookie is potentially changing the way the organization views the outfield heading into the offseason.
“You can’t help but look at it differently,” Melvin said. “Now there’s still some time to go and we want to see as much of him as we possibly can, but you can’t help to think with Jung Hoo (Lee) coming back, what it could look like in the outfield for us next year.”
Melvin does know one big piece of the puzzle. As good as McCray has looked defensively, there’s no doubt that Lee will be in center field on Opening Day. That’s what he signed for, and he looked good there before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.
“We look at a lot of numbers and it’s really good,” Melvin said of Lee. “The jumps, the ground he covers, the routes — it was really good. We were very excited about what he could do in center field.”
Lee has hit every checkpoint in his rehab and will have a normal spring. The real questions will come in the corners.
The Giants have eight outfielders on their 40-man roster and only one — Michael Conforto — will be a free agent. The veteran has hit in the heart of Melvin’s lineups in September and has 16 homers this season, but he figures to find a better fit elsewhere, especially with Heliot Ramos likely settling in as the left fielder.
Ramos’ second half hasn’t been nearly as hot as his first, but the 25-year-old has 20 homers overall and is viewed as a foundational piece. In the other corner, the Giants could again go with Mike Yastrzemski, who is entering his…