Battling for the National League’s third wild-card playoff berth, the San Francisco Giants are reportedly calling up their top minor-league prospect, first baseman Bryce Eldridge.
Eldridge, 20, advanced from Double-A to Triple-A in the Giants’ system this season, batting .260/.333/.510 with 21 doubles, 25 home runs and 84 RBI. Ranked by MLB.com as the team’s No. 1 prospect and No. 13 overall in baseball, the 6-foot-7, 240-pound slugger was San Francisco’s 2023 first-round draft pick (No. 16 overall) out of James Madison High School in Fairfax, Virginia. The roster move was first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser.
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At 75-74, the Giants are 1.5 games behind the New York Mets (77-73) for the NL’s final postseason spot going into Monday’s matchup with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The D-Backs (75-75) are only a half-game behind San Francisco in the wild-card standings as they begin a three-game series.
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Dominic Smith going on the 10-day IL with a strained right hamstring necessitated Eldridge’s call-up. However, the Giants could benefit from the production his left-handed bat could bring to the lineup at first base. Smith batted .284/.333/.417 with 12 doubles, 5 home runs and 33 RBI in 63 games this season.
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Overall, Giants first baseman have a combined .206 batting average, .615 OPS and 12 homers, ranking last in MLB in those categories.
Whether or not Eldridge will play first base full-time or hit as a DH with Rafael Devers at the position has yet to be determined. Devers has played 21 games at first base for the Giants this season after refusing to play there for the Boston Red Sox before being traded.
At 20 years old, Eldridge is the youngest position player to debut with the Giants since Jeff Ransom in 1981, according to MLB.com. Pitcher Madison Bumgarner was also 20 years old when he was called up in 2009.
