Previewing the 2026 San Francisco Giants - Can Buster Posey get SF back in the playoffs with Tony Vitello as the new skipper?

Will the Buster/Tony V tandem get SF back to the playoffs? (Photo by Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/GettyImages)

By Connor Buestad | Connor@Section925.com 

For the last four seasons in San Francisco, the Giants have been mired in a vicious cycle of mediocrity. Despite almost half the MLB making the playoffs in the current format, the Giants haven’t been able to punch an October ticket since 2021’s bizarre year of 107 wins filled with Gabe Kapler platoons, pitching “openers” and seemingly dumb luck. Since then, SF has been almost exactly average every year, toeing the 81-81 mark repeatedly. 

Now that Buster Posey is comfortably in the driver’s seat of San Francisco's baseball operation, he has gone ahead and tried to shake things up in an effort to get back to the old Giants of the 2010’s and step off the 81-81 hamster wheel. The steady handed and experienced skipper that is (was) Bob Melvin has been shown the door, replaced by wild card Tony Vitello, the first MLB manager to assume a managerial role straight from the college coaching ranks. Tony V has taken over the Giants dugout with no professional experience either playing or coaching. Instead, his resume has been built over the last eight seasons as the Tennessee Volunteers head coach, where he revitalized the program enough to win them a national championship and make the Vols a staple in Omaha.  

According to the betting public, Vitello has inherited a team that again is expected to lose another 81 games. 19 teams have shorter odds of winning the World Series than the Giants currently do. A playoff appearance is always expected when you talk Giants baseball, but when you consider their division consists of the Dodgers, Padres and Diamondbacks, playing beyond September could look like a stretch at the moment. 

Two impact players that San Francisco won’t have back from last year are 42-year-old Justin Verlander and Wilmer Flores (who still remains a free agent). In their place, the Giants have acquired starting pitches in Tyler Mahle and Adrain Houser, as well as outfielder Harrison Bader and second baseman Luis Arraez. Suffice it to say, the stove could have been a bit hotter for the Buster this winter, if we’re being honest.

Arraez very well might be the Giants leadoff man this year, but not because of his speed (he’s only good for about 9 stolen bags a year) but instead because of his ability to not strike out. While most of the Giants are whiffing about 25% of the time, Arraez has just a 3% strikeout rate, as he features an uncanny ability to put bat to ball in an era where that is no longer sexy. The .317 career hitter from Venezuela hit just 8 homers last year in San Diego while mostly playing first base. For the Giants, he’ll move back over to second, where he’ll try to improve on his defensive woes with the help of glove whisperer Ron Washington, one of Vitello’s recent coaching hires.

The Giants need a monster year from Rafael Devers (Photo by Jeff Chiu/AP)

The Giants best player is Rafael Devers. The Dominican slugger who came over from the Red Sox last season will man first base all year while making $30 million dollars. Last year, he delivered 35 homers. 40 would be nice in 2026, especially if the Giants have hopes of a playoff berth. 

Willy Adames, another Dominican star who, like Devers, won’t compete in the World Baseball Classic next month, contributed 30 homers of his own last season in SF while playing a smooth shortstop. His issue last year was his low .225 batting average, especially for a guy making $26 million a year. 

Bay Area staple Matt Chapman will again be the team’s best defender. At 32 years old, Chapman is the elder statesman among the everyday players on the squad. Back in 2019 Chapman hit 36 homers with the A’s in Oakland. With just 21 bombs last year, can Chappy rekindle some of that old Oakland magic this season? 

Fan favorite June Hoo Lee was healthy all last year after playing just 37 games the year prior. In 2025, Lee patrolled the outfield for 150 games with his entertaining and fearless style of play. He’ll look to improve on his 10 stolen bases and 8 homers from a year ago as he learns to play the ball off the bricks in right field.

In left the Giants will trot out Heliot Ramos. Ever since Barry Bonds departed left field, San Francisco still hasn’t figured out how to get proper production out of this key power spot in the lineup. The 2017 first round pick from Puerto Rico is a home grown success story for the Giants, but now that he’s 26, they’re hoping for upwards of 30 homers in a breakout season.  

The aforementioned Bader will patrol center field for the Giants this year. Now with his seventh organization, Bader will try to make a home for himself at 3rd and King. He’ll bring some flair to the position, but Vitello and Posey are counting on some real production as well. 

Lower down in the lineup, Bryce Eldridge will likely be in the DH spot. Still just 20 years old, Eldrige has unlimited upside with the bat in his 6 foot 7 inch frame. Eldrige is considered the organization's number one prospect, but in his 10 big league games at the end of last year, he struck out 35% of the time in his 37 plate appearances with 0 homers. A hot start in 2026 would help his confidence immensely. 

Patrick Bailey and his silky smooth catching abilities will again be behind the dish for the Giants. He won the Gold Glove last season and was durable enough to play135 games. His defense is flawless and a joy to watch. Offensively, not so much. Six homers and a .222 average needs to be improved on from last year. 

With free swinging Casey Schmitt and energizer bunny Drew Gilbert as their current bench options, the Giants will be looking to add a bat or two as the season progresses. As it stands, the offensive firepower might not be enough to support a pitching staff that features All-Star Logan Webb, talented lefty Robbie Ray and three other ho-hum starters with uninspiring numbers. Perhaps the weakest link to the Giants 26-man roster lies in the bullpen. Ryan Walker who features a sinker and slider figures to be the closer as of now. However, outside of Walker, it’s anybody’s guess how this Giants pen will stack up in the mid to late innings against teams like the Dodgers and Padres. Posey will need to find a competent lefty sooner rather than later to come get some outs.

Recent debates in the baseball world have invariably circled back to the Dodgers and if their gigantic payroll is starting to “break baseball.” If you listen to Giants brass, they will tell you they are up for the challenge and are motivated to rise to the standard. As it stands, the Evil Empire from SoCal is sitting at 2 to 1 odds to three-peat as World Series champs, while the Giants are ridiculous long shots at 65 to 1. Tony Vitello and his scrappy roster no doubt have their work cut out for them if they want to keep their head above water in the NL West. That being said, in 2026 a playoff appearance should be the goal, if not an expectation, regardless of the circumstances. Jon Miller would have it no other way.

Jung Hoo Lee is already dialed in for Opening Night vs. the Yankees on March 25th in San Francisco (photo via x.com/SFGiants)