San Francisco Giants DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin said on Wednesday that outfielder Jung Hoo Lee (shoulder) is a full-go for spring training. Lee played in just 37 games in 2024 in his first year in the big leagues after injuring his left shoulder and undergoing season-ending labrum surgery in June. Before injuring his shoulder in a collision with the outfield wall, the 26-year-old Japanese outfielder hit .262/.310/.331 with a below-average .641 OPS, two home runs, eight RBI, two steals and 15 runs scored in 145 at-bats. He figures to once again be San Fran's primary leadoff hitter in 2025, which will give him plenty of opportunities to score runs for fantasy managers. Lee is an elite contact hitter, but his .310 on-base percentage was a disappointment, albeit in a small sample size. His 41.8% hard-hit rate from 2024 should translate to more power in 2025, but fantasy managers should be targeting Lee as a No. 4 or 5 outfielder going into his sophomore season.

San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin said on Wednesday that right-handed reliever Ryan Walker will open the season as the team's closer. Walker took over as the Giants' closer in the second half last year and never looked back after Camilo Doval was removed from the ninth-inning role. All in all, the 29-year-old was excellent with a 1.91 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 99 strikeouts, 18 walks, 10 wins, 10 saves and 21 holds in 80 innings pitched for San Fran. Walker's 26.9 K-BB percentage ranked 10th in the league as well. The former 31st-round pick has been rewarded for his breakout 2024 campaign and should now be considered a top-10 fantasy closer now that he's officially been named the team's primary closer entering the 2025 season. Walker's biggest threat to closing duties if he struggles will probably be Doval if he's able to bounce back.

MLB.com's Maria Guardado projects San Francisco Giants right-hander Hayden Birdsong to be on the outside looking in for a starting rotation spot to begin the 2025 season. Entering spring training, Guardado lists Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, Justin Verlander, Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison as the team's five starters, with Birdsong, Landen Roupp and Keaton Winn as other possibilities. In his big-league debut in 2024, Birdsong went 5-6 with a 4.75 ERA (4.67 FIP), a 1.39 WHIP and 88:43 K:BB in 72 innings over 16 starts. The 23-year-old showed some nice strikeout upside and plenty of stuff that plays at the big-league level, but he would probably benefit from more seasoning with his control on the farm to open 2025. If he improves his command and gets another shot in the rotation at some point in 2025, fantasy managers should be running to the waiver wire to take a chance on him.

San Francisco Giants infielder Brett Wisely could have the inside track on a bench job in spring training due to the fact that the team already has a plethora of right-handed infield bats, MLB.com's Maria Guardado writes. Wisely has that going for him, but Casey Schmitt and Osleivis Basabe both offer just as much defensive versatility and could force their way onto the Opening Day roster if they impress during spring training. The 25-year-old Wisely has showed very little offensively in the Bay Area in his first two big-league seasons, slashing .218/.263/.320 with a weak .582 OPS, six home runs, 39 RBI, four stolen bases and 35 runs scored in 403 plate appearances over 142 games played. At best, Wisely should be considered a decent middle-infield glove option for the Giants off the bench, and he can also fill in at center field in a pinch.

MLB.com's Maria Guardado writes that San Francisco Giants outfielder Jerar Encarnacion should get plenty of chances to stick on the big-league roster in 2025 since he's out of minor-league options, and she even goes as far as to project him as the team's primary designated hitter. Encarnacion hit .248 with a .702 OPS and five home runs in 35 games for the Giants last year. The 27-year-old Dominican outfielder has 50 career home runs in 223 games at Triple-A in the minors and has impressive raw power. Although he struck out plenty in a limited sample size last year in just his second stint in the big leagues, Encarnacion had a 58.8 percent barrel rate and 95 mph average exit velocity. If he takes advantage of early-season playing time, he could be a deep-league power sleeper, but fantasy managers definitely shouldn't expect much in the batting average department.