According to Ken Rosenthal, the SF Giants are looking to improve the depth at shortstop, but it won’t be Tim Anderson, the longstanding shortstop for the Chicago White Sox.
The San Francisco Giants, led by president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, have stated repeatedly that they intend to add some depth at shortstop as they approach the end of the winter. Even if they still want to give shortstop Marco Luciano a chance to start, the squad does not have any seasoned insurance. Having said that, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that the Giants will not be signing a free agent such as former Los Angeles Dodgers free agency Amed Rosario or longtime Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson.
“The additional shortstop, according to a source briefed on the Giants’ thinking, could be a flexible, multi-positional type, another young middle infielder to compete with Luciano or, perhaps least likely, a front-line player who would force the Giants either to demote Luciano or play him at second or third,” Rosenthal wrote. “The only option not under consideration is a veteran such as Amed Rosario or Tim Anderson who might be only marginally better than Luciano.”
Anderson just finished what was undoubtedly his worst season to date. This season, in 524 plate appearances (123 games), the two-time All-Star and previous Silver Slugger could only muster a.245/.286/.296 triple-slash with 21 extra-base hits (only one home run). Recent years have also seen a decline in his defense and speed, as evidenced by Statcast metrics like Outs Above Average and Sprint Speed.
Even after such a dismal season, Anderson, 31, still has a strong enough resume to be given a chance to play in the major leagues the following year. After all, he hit.313/.347/.474 from 2019 to 2022, making him one of the Chicago White Sox’s finest players without a doubt.
Rosario, a seasoned infielder with much experience, hit.263/.305/.378 between the Guardians and Dodgers in the previous season. Although his offensive statistics matched his career totals, his shortstop defense has consistently received terrible grades based on metrics such as Outs Above Average. Granted, Rosario did perform significantly better in a limited sample with the Dodgers.
However, according to Ken Rosenthal, the San Francisco Giants have no interest in signing Amed Rosario or Tim Anderson, two experienced free agents. Rather than replace Brandon Crawford as the team’s regular shortstop, Farhan Zaidi will be adding another layer of protection for Marco Luciano.