Bryce Eldridge at bat during a live batting practice at San Francisco Giants spring training practice at Scottsdale Stadium in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Friday, Feb. 20, 2026.
Carlos Avila Gonzalez/S.F. Chronicle
New Giants call up Jesus Rodriguez in the dugout during the first inning as the San Francisco Giants played the St. Louis Cardinals at Oracle Park in San Francisco, on Monday, Sept. 22, 2025.
Carlos Avila Gonzalez/S.F. Chronicle
You know what they call for.
And that’s what the desperate, demoralized, discouraged San Francisco Giants are doing. Taking desperate measures that are the polar opposite of what they originally planned.
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On Monday, the free-falling team called up prized rookie Bryce Eldridge and sparkplug catcher Jesus Rodriguez, probably much earlier than they wanted, particularly in the case of Eldridge.
Come save the team rooks! No pressure!
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But the Giants had to take action, after their 0-6 road trip, in the midst of their current spiral. They can’t blow up their roster, though most of their fans would like to light the fuse. They need to do something different, even if it’s just to send a warning sign to big-money veterans: You are not getting the job done.
Yet this is exactly what president of baseball operations Buster Posey was trying to avoid. Putting the burden of rescuing the team on the back of a 21-year-old who has precious little experience. Who could use development in a non-pressured environment. Who has struck out 41 times in 114 at-bats, and that’s without facing major-league pitching.
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But the left-handed-hitting Eldridge has pop in his bat. He’s batting .333 and has five home runs, not amazing but more than anyone on the Giants’ roster has. Eldridge has also proved that he can work the count, with 20 walks, which also sounds tantalizing to the team that is last in the major leagues in walks (just 69 through 34 games).
The Giants are dead last in just about every offensive category in baseball: walks, home runs, runs, RBIs, stolen bases and on-base percentage.
“It’s honestly been a stressor from the first series, ‘How do we score, how do we score, how do we score?’” said rookie manager Tony Vitello. “You’re eager for runs, you’re searching for runs.”
So they simply couldn’t resist the temptation to call on their prospects for emergency help. And at least Eldridge isn’t arriving alone. He’s coming to San Francisco with Rodriguez, 24, who is hitting .330 and is a high energy, versatile player. He can catch, and has also played the outfield and second base. With backup catcher Daniel Susac on the injured list and starter Patrick Bailey batting a woeful .152, Rodriguez will get opportunities.
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A bigger question is where to play Eldridge, who is still learning to play first base and is also a designated hitter. Basically, the same positions that struggling Rafael Devers plays. When Devers plays first, Casey Schmitt has been the team’s designated hitter and has been one of the few Giants (along with Luis Arraez) whose offense isn’t offensive. You can’t take Schmitt out of the lineup, not right now, so does he play short or third and give Willy Adames or Matt Chapman some time on the bench? As Mike Krukow said on KNBR on Monday, no one should feel safe. No one with lousy numbers can justify their place in the lineup.
Offense isn’t the only concern for the Giants. But it’s the main concern. The starting pitching has been adequate. The bullpen — aside from Ryan Walker — has been better than expected. Even the untested manager has been OK. But the offense has been abysmal.
Everything went against the Giants on the last road trip, when they were shut out twice, and walked off three times, including twice in one day. Other troubling things emerged on the trip from hell, like the fact that the Giants may have difficulty getting respect around the major leagues.
The incident on Saturday, when they were robbed of a home run that hit off a catwalk, pulled back the curtain on what could be a prevailing attitude with long-time major league employees. The umpiring crew appeared to give no respect to the Giants. When pitching director Frank Anderson came out to argue, the home plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt told him “Who do you think you are?” and, to Vitello, made references to “pom poms” and “rah rah,” which pretty clearly seems to be disparaging jabs about coming from the college ranks.
The 2026 Giants were always going to need to prove they deserved baseball’s respect. So far, one-fifth of the way through the season, they simply haven’t been able to do that.
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Now they’re asking a 21-year-old to turn things around and get the 143-year-old franchise back on the track to winning and respect.