Giants offseason preview: Should team just go young in outfield? originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO — On his first Opening Day, Buster Posey’s left fielder was Pat Burrell, now his hitting coach. On his last Opening Day, it was Austin Slater, who recently signed with the Chicago White Sox, his fourth team over the last calendar year.
In between, Posey watched a different player take the field in left every single season. The Giants extended their streak of different Opening Day left fielders to 18 last year when Michael Conforto got the nod, and it’ll keep going next season. Heliot Ramos is likely to become the 19th different left fielder in 19 years, which would tie the MLB record.
It’s a position of change. Overall, though, the outfield might be as set as any group on the roster.
By signing Mike Yastrzemski to a one-year contract last Friday, the Giants brought back a valuable insurance option and gave themselves the makings of an everyday outfield. Ramos, Jung Hoo Lee and Yastrzemski might not be the most star-studded trio in the NL, but given the roster holes elsewhere — most notably shortstop and the rotation — the Giants look poised to spend most of their energy worrying about other spots.
After chasing Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani and other superstars, they have stayed out of the mix on Juan Soto, who reportedly has five offers. They still could — and likely will — add to their outfield group, but at the moment it appears to be a position where going young might be the best option. Here’s a breakdown …
On the 40-man
Jerar Encarnación, Jung Hoo Lee, Marco Luciano, Luis Matos, Grant McCray, Wade Meckler, Heliot Ramos and Mike Yastrzemski are the current Giants outfielders, although there’s some flexibility there. Luciano is making a change after coming up as a shortstop and Meckler spent his final weeks at Triple-A taking grounders at second base, so he might end up as more of a utility guy.
What Went Right
On March 11, the Giants made their first significant round of spring cuts, sending 11 players to their minor league facility. The group included Ramos, who was optioned so early in part because teams have become increasingly wary of keeping 40-man players in camp too long since they go on the big league 60-day IL if they get hurt in camp. There was much more to it than that, though.
The Giants didn’t believe Ramos was one of their best outfielders. It’s as simple as that. They had five others set for their…