SF Giants 2026 Opening Day roster projection 1.0: Where does Eldridge begin season?

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona — Rookie manager Tony Vitello has checked off some boxes over the last week and a half. First day of camp. First full squad workout. First media snafu. On Saturday, he checked off two more. He experienced his first spring training game ever, then recorded his first Cactus League win.

Oh, and he absorbed his first big-league bruise, the product of being hit in the shin by a foul ball.

“This is my first game, and I got hit,” Vitello said with a smile. “I’ve had a broken face twice from baseballs, both times as a coach, and I got one off the shin pretty good here. I’ll be standing in a different place … I was tucked away over here. I realize it would be smarter to not be in the walkway, but I think by now you guys know I’m not that smart and I’m definitely not as quick as I used to be.”

Live batting practices and simulated games gave an early taste of who’s already making waves in camp, but Cactus League games are the start of true competition. San Francisco has a few roster spots that remain unsettled, and the next month of games will provide Vitello, Buster Posey and Zack Minasian with an opportunity to figure out who they want on the roster.

The most pressing question as Cactus League play begins is whether top prospect Bryce Eldridge starts his season in San Francisco or Sacramento. Do the Giants think he’s done enough to make the team? Or, does he need more seasoning with Triple-A Sacramento?

There’s also the matter of how San Francisco fills out the margins of its roster. Does the team carry two backup infielders? Who’s this team’s fourth outfielder? How does the bullpen shake out, and which young starter could make the team as a reliever?

Here’s an early crack at who could be standing on the third-base line when the New York Yankees come to Oracle Park on March 25:

Catchers: Patrick Bailey, Daniel Susac

Susac, Jesus Rodriguez and Eric Haase are the three main candidates to back up two-time Gold Glove Award winner Patrick Bailey, but Susac has the inside edge because of his Rule 5 Draft status.

The younger brother of former Giant backup catcher Andrew Susac, Daniel Susac was drafted in the first round of the 2022 MLB draft by the Oakland A’s. The 24-year-old possesses a strong arm and projects as an average defender, but his offense didn’t take meaningful steps as he hit the upper levels of the Athletics’ system.

In ’25, Susac had a .275 batting average and .832 OPS with 18 homers but was six percent worse than a league-average hitter by weighted runs created plus (wRC+), which accounts for offensive environment and ballpark factors.

Infielders: Matt Chapman, Willy Adames, Luis Arráez, Rafael Devers, Casey Schmitt, Christian Koss

San Francisco’s offseason-long pursuit of a second baseman ended when the team signed Arráez to a one-year, $12 million deal. Arráez had multi-year offers on the table, but he chose the Giants because they were willing to let him play second base. He’s been a below-average defender his entire career, so San Francisco is banking on Arráez making substantial improvement with the help of infield coach Ron Washington.

Arráez’s offensive profile has fans and detractors, but the three-time batting champion and three-time All-Star has the potential to elevate San Francisco’s offense if he can rebound from a two-year downward trajectory. If nothing else, his elite contact skills can be an irritant to opposing pitchers’ pursuit of a strikeout.

As things stand, it’s seems unlikely that Eldridge joins this group on Opening Day. The 21-year-old has only taken 321 plate appearances with Triple-A Sacramento, and while he had good surface stats last year (18 homers, .836 OPS), he was only slightly better than a league-average hitter by wRC+ (105). He struck out about 31 percent of the time, along with a concerning whiff rate to boot.

Eldridge isn’t guaranteed to start the season with the River Cats, and maybe the Giants’ front office could be swayed if he lights up Cactus League pitching. Still, Posey has repeatedly indicated over the last year that he’s not eager to rush Eldridge to the majors. It would be objectively fun to see Eldridge share a stage on Opening Night with Aaron Judge and the Yankees, but that meeting likely isn’t in the cards.

Outfielders: Heliot Ramos, Jung Hoo Lee, Harrison Bader, Jerar Encarnacion, Will Brennan

The outfield received a much-needed boost with the addition of Bader, one of the best outfield defenders of his generation. Bader likely won’t replicate his career year with the bat, but his defense will be invaluable for a team that had one of the worst outfield defenses in the majors last season.

With Bader in the fold, Lee will shift over to right field, a position he hasn’t played since his time in the KBO. Lee was a below-average defender in center field (-5 outs above average), but his athleticism and elite arm should give him a solid foundation as he shifts to a corner.

Brennan didn’t sign his one-year deal with the Giants until the start of camp, and his major league experience may give him a leg up on Drew Gilbert.

The 28-year-old has experience at all three outfield positions (though he’s mostly played right field) and has had decent success against right-handed pitching (.281 batting average, .720 OPS). Gilbert may be the more versatile of the two, but he struggled offensively during his first stint in the majors (.598 OPS) aside from his big series against the Rockies.

Rotation: Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, Landen Roupp, Adrian Houser, Tyler Mahle

The Giants’ front office, as expected, avoided the top-end free agent starting pitchers of this past class, instead signing Houser to a two-year, $22 million deal (with a club option) and Mahle to a one-year, $10 million pact. Houser unlocked two ticks of additional velocity en route to a career year, while Mahle had his first semi-healthy season in years.

After Webb, this rotation is filled with question marks. Were Ray’s second-half struggles just a blip? Can Roupp sustain success while taking on a larger workload? Was Houser’s breakout legitimate? Can Mahle stay healthy?

Following those five, the Giants have a quartet of young starters waiting in the wings: Hayden Birdsong, Blade Tidwell, Carson Whisenhunt and Trevor McDonald. No team gets through a season with just five starters, and some combination of this group will be called upon to contribute innings.

Bullpen: Ryan Walker, Erik Miller (L), José Buttó, JT Brubaker, Spencer Bivens, Gregory Santos, Matt Gage (L), Hayden Birdsong

Vitello has said that the bullpen competition is “pretty wide open,” a testament to this team’s lack of relievers who are true locks.

Despite the quantity of high-leverage relievers available on this year’s free-agent market, San Francisco made minimal investment into its bullpen, signing left-hander Sam Hentges and right-handers Jason Foley and Rowan Wick. Wick is out for the season (he has a club option for 2027), Foley won’t be ready until midseason and Hentges may not be ready for Opening Day.

While investing significant money into free-agent relievers brings risk (e.g. Mark Melancon), the Giants’ bullpen needed a high-leverage relief option (or two) with All-Star Randy Rodríguez out for 2026 after undergoing Tommy John surgery. This unit desperately lacks high-octane strikeout stuff, and Vitello’s transition to the professional game becomes more difficult without proven late-game options at his disposal.

Birdsong’s pursuit of a bullpen spot got off to a rocky start on Saturday as he only retired one of the six batters he faced, but still showcased the stuff that makes him such an alluring pitcher. Tidwell, who played for Vitello at Tennessee, got off to a much smoother start, striking out three in his scoreless inning of work.

McDonald and Whisenhunt both impressed leading up to Cactus League play, and it will be fascinating to see which one of these young starters snags a bullpen role. Non-roster invitee Michael Fulmer, a one-time All-Star, and Carson Seymour should be in the mix as well.