LaMonte Wade Jr. DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

San Francisco Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski and first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. are not in the starting lineup on Saturday afternoon as the Giants will face left-handed pitcher Nick Lodolo. Instead, Luis Matos will enter the outfield and bat sixth, and Wilmer Flores will shift to first base. This opens up the designated hitter spot for Casey Schmitt. Yastrzemski did not see many opportunities against southpaws last season, either. Across 140 total games, Yastrzemski posted a .231/.302/.437 slash line with 16 doubles and 18 round-trippers. Wade also saw limited opportunities against southpaws last season but was productive in his limited stint, as he slashed a .324/.429/.412 line across 43 plate appearances. Both Flores and Matos are worth a look in DFS while facing Lodolo, who held a 4.76 ERA in 2024.

San Francisco Giants first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. is expected to be the leadoff hitter against right-handed pitching to begin the season. Wade lacks the speed of the usual leadoff hitter, but makes up for it by drawing walks. Wade is hitting below .220 this spring, but he also has 10 walks, which does help make up for his lack of a batting average and lackluster speed. The 31-year-old would likely see a boost in fantasy value with the move to the top of the lineup. The leadoff hitter usually gets more at-bats and sometimes better pitches to hit because pitchers don't want to walk the first batter before getting to the two or three hole hitter.

San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin said that the team is toying with the idea of using outfielder Jung Hoo Lee in the third spot in the batting order in 2025 as he returns from a season-ending shoulder injury. First baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. is also healthy, and the Giants like his on-base skills at the top of the order in the leadoff spot. So as things stand at the beginning of spring training, it looks like Wade will lead off, followed by new shortstop Willy Adames, Lee, third baseman Matt Chapman and outfielder Heliot Ramos in the top half of the order. Lee played in only 37 games in his first year with San Fran in 2023, and while he made plenty of contact, his superior on-base skills from Japan didn't transfer over. A move down the order slightly would mean fewer runs scored but also give him more chances to drive in runs. Lee hit the ball hard in his small sample size last year, so more power could be coming in 2025.