2 weeks agoSan 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.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
2 months agoSan 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NBC Sports Bay Area - Alex Pavlovic
7 months agoFirst baseman/outfielder
LaMonte Wade Jr. and third baseman
Matt Chapman each homered twice in the San Francisco Giants' 9-0 win over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday. The homers were the seventh and eighth for Wade Jr. and the 25th and 26th for Chapman. Both players knocked in two runs each. On the season, Wade Jr. is hitting .267 with eight home runs, 33 RBI, two stolen bases, and 44 runs scored. Chapman, who just signed a long-term extension to stay with the team, is hitting .249 with 26 home runs, 75 RBI, 15 stolen bases, and 95 runs scored. Wade Jr. and Chapman should be key components for the Giants next season.
--Mike Carter - RotoBallerSource: San Francisco Giants on mlb.com
8 months agoSan Francisco Giants first baseman/outfielder
LaMonte Wade Jr. and outfielders
Michael Conforto and
Mike Yastrzemski are all out of Wednesday's series finale against the Chicago White Sox at Oracle Park against All-Star left-hander
Garrett Crochet.
Mark Canha is starting at first base and batting second, rookie
Grant McCray is in center field and hitting ninth, and
Jerar Encarnacion is in right field and in the five-hold. Fantasy managers shouldn't be surprised at all that any of these three left-handed hitters are sitting out with a southpaw on the mound. Wade has only had 34 plate appearances against lefties in 2024. Crochet has been one of the most dominant pitchers in all of baseball this year, so none of Canha, McCray or Encarnacion should be particularly attractive DFS sleepers on Wednesday. Canha makes the most sense given his lineup spot and his .272 average (25-for-92) against lefties in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NBC Sports Bay Area - Alex Pavlovic
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