Why the Giants’ Trade Hesitance Shows Faith in Bryce Eldridge

For years, the San Francisco Giants have gone into the offseason with the same goal: to upgrade their team externally and draw bigger names to the Bay Area.

However, it’s now January, and the Giants have once again fallen short of most of their top targets.

The Giants were rumored to be the top potential suitor for Corbin Burnes, but missed out, with Burnes signing with the Arizona Diamondbacks. They were also rumored to be a team to watch for lefty Max Fried, but he elected to sign with the New York Yankees.

They’ll also be losing two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell to the Los Angeles Dodgers, when he opted to leave the club early in the offseason.

The Giants were, however, able to land star shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million dollar deal. But, they decided this wasn’t enough.

According to The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly, the Giants “made legitimate offers” for both Kyle Tucker and Garrett Crochet. Ultimately, the Giants eventually ended talks, when their top prospect Bryce Eldridge‘s name came up.

Despite the Giants’ goals to make these significant upgrades, they viewed Eldridge as the much more important piece. Why might they be so hesitant to trade the 19-year-old? What makes him worth holding on to?

Why Eldridge is Too Valuable to Let Go

In 2023, the Giants selected Eldridge 16th overall in the MLB Draft. After the draft, he signed for just shy of $4 million, showing how highly the Giants thought of him. He was announced as a two-way player, but during spring training ahead of the 2024 season, the Giants announced that he’d focus on hitting moving forward.

This decision paid off, as Eldridge took his game to new heights throughout the 2024 campaign.

In 116 games across the minor leagues, Eldridge hit 23 homers, drive in 91 runners, walk 11.4% of the time, posted a slash line of .289/.372/.513 with a .398 wOBA, and a 137 wRC+.

He also completed the rare feat of playing at every level except the Major Leagues. His best stint was with high-a Eugene, where he posted a 187 wRC+, while hitting 12 home runs in just 48 games.

He also earned First-Team All-MiLB Prospect Team honors after the season, highlighting the production he showcased throughout the season. He also worked his way up to No. 42 overall on the JustBaseball Top 100, and earned even more recognition for his play.

Eldridge’s frame has always made him stand out, with his 6-foot-7, 223-pound build gives him the rare combination of power and athleticism that scouts dream of. When he’s fully developed, his frame may become even scarier for opposing pitchers.

He’s one of the stronger players in minor league baseball due to his frame, possessing the ability to generate high exit velocities, unreal power, and high bat speeds.

All of these traits will be very important for Eldridge moving forward, as they not only give him the ability to drive the ball with authority, but also help him adjust to better pitching.

His power will always be the most impressive of his tools though, projecting to be a potential 35 homer threat. This will eventually be important in making him a valuable piece for the middle of the order.

With this type of power projection, McCovey Cove will be getting plenty of Splash Hits from the 19-year-old.

While his main concern is the hit-tool as a whole, the quick bat speeds he’s shown across the minors should significantly help him in this area. His quick bat will provide him with the ability to catch up to pitches deeper in the zone, which will help him maximize his offensive game moving forward.

I was very impressed with the few games I saw Eldridge play when he was at Double-a Richmond last season as well. His bat was one of the more impressive tools I saw all season in Altoona, with the sound the ball made coming off his bat far louder than any other player I saw all year.

Two-run triple ✅
1️⃣1️⃣0️⃣ mph off the bat ✅
Squirrels back in front ✅

Bryce Eldridge can hit. pic.twitter.com/CSQmIz9jil

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) September 10, 2024

Given his frame, power, discipline, and age, it makes complete sense that the Giants wanted to hold on to Eldridge, and not entertain the idea of moving him in a trade.

The idea of losing a player with the potential he has is a nightmare for any organization—especially when you consider that the Giants have one of the weaker farm systems in baseball.

Where He Fits Into the Giants’ Future Plans

With the Giants deciding that Eldridge’s frame is far too promising to move on from, it’s clear that they view him as their first baseman of the future.

The Giants currently have LaMonte Wade Jr. and Wilmer Flores slated to be their first basemen in 2025, but with both of these players on expiring deals, the stage is set for Eldridge to be next in line.

If he progresses as quickly as he did in 2024, there’s also a real possibility his arrival comes in the middle of the 2025 season—especially if the Giants choose to make a deadline move to offload either of their expiring first basemen.

The Giants as a team are also still lacking a true power-hitting threat in the middle of their lineup. There hasn’t been a Giant to hit 30 home runs in a season since Barry Bonds in 2004, a streak that could end with Eldridge.

The Giants have an interesting offense overall, with stars like Adames and Matt Chapman leading the way. Other impact players include Tyler Fitzgerald and Heliot Ramos, who both finished with wRC+ marks north of 120.

Pairing Eldridge with Chapman and Adames makes for a truly dangerous stretch of hitters, and allows the team to have a much more complete offense than they’ve had in the last few seasons. If the Giants get the same level of production from Ramos and Fitzgerald, their lineup really begins to take shape.

As long as Eldridge continues to develop, the Giants have a real franchise cornerstone on their hands. It’s possible that the next golden era of the Giants is led by Eldridge, with the organization placing their confidence in his immense potential.

While it may be risky to hold on to one prospect over making immediate upgrades on the trade market, Eldridge has certainly proven his value as a cornerstone talent worth building around.