3 SF Giants backup plans at first base after missing on Paul Goldschmidt

The San Francisco Giants made one of the earliest splashes of the offseason by signing Willy Adames to a seven-year deal, but as good of a signing as that was, Adames can't be the only move made by the team. So far, Adames is the only MLB signing that the Giants have made.

One position that made sense to upgrade for San Francisco is first base. Giants first basemen ranked 21st in WRC+ and 20th in fWAR, proving to be below-average overall. With that in mind, it wasn't much of a surprise that the Giants expressed interest in signing Paul Goldschmidt.

Sure, he was coming off arguably his worst season, but Goldschmidt's track record is outstanding, he's hit extremely well in his career at Oracle Park, and he was affordable. Unfortunately, Goldschmidt wound up signing a one-year deal with the New York Yankees, leaving the Giants still upgrade-less at first base. These potential backup options make sense for the Giants to consider.

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3. Justin Turner makes sense as a platoon partner with LaMonte Wade Jr.

With Goldschmidt off the market, the most likely path for San Francisco is to stand pat when it comes to the first base position, as unfortunate as that is. While that can be frustrating, the Giants have a clear path toward improving their first base production.

LaMonte Wade Jr. had a down year power-wise this past season, but still had a .380 OBP in 117 games played. Wade also boasts a rock-solid .790 OPS against right-handed pitching in his career, compared to a .564 OPS against lefties. With that in mind, keeping Wade in the lineup regularly against righties and adding an upgrade over Wilmer Flores, who had a dismal year in 2024, to perform against lefties could make sense. That's where Justin Turner would step in.

He might not be close to the star he once was, but Turner had a 114 OPS+ this past season split with the Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners. He also had a .758 OPS against lefties in 2024, and has a .821 OPS against lefties in his career.

Turner spent nine seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, putting up great numbers against San Francisco (and everybody else). If he's open to taking a cheap one-year deal to come to San Francisco and play on the short side of a platoon with Wade at first base while also seeing some time at DH, the Giants should consider it.

2. Carlos Santana is an affordable one-year stopgap for the Giants

Part of what made Goldschmidt an appealing option for San Francisco was that it was only going to take a one-year deal to get him to sign the dotted line. The reason why this is important is because San Francisco's top prospect, Bryce Eldridge, is a first baseman who ended this past season in Triple-A. Signing a stopgap while leaving the door open for him to take over in the not-too-distant future makes sense. Carlos Santana could be that stopgap.

Santana, like Goldschmidt, isn't the player he once was, but he, unlike Goldschmidt, is coming off a strong year. Not only did he hit 26 doubles, 23 home runs, and put up a 109 OPS+, but he won a Gold Glove at first base. An argument can be made that Santana is a better offensive and defensive player than Goldschmidt right now, while also providing value as a switch-hitter.

The one thing holding Santana back from really cashing in coming off a strong year is his age, as he's 38 years old. Assuming he's only looking for a one-year deal, the Giants should look to bring him in. He might not be as big of a name as Goldschmidt, but again, he might be a better player than him right now. He's certainly better than any first baseman on the roster currently, and would leave the door open for Eldridge to take over at first base sometime late this season or early in 2026.

1. The Giants can take advantage of a depleted Pete Alonso market

The New York Yankees ending up with Paul Goldschmidt takes another potential Pete Alonso suitor off the books. Both the Yankees and Houston Astros have signed first basemen in the last 48 hours, raising the question of where the best first baseman available, Pete Alonso, will go.

Obviously, the New York Mets have serious interest in keeping the most prolific slugger in the franchise's history on the roster, but they don't appear desperate to get a deal done as evidenced by the fact that he's still a free agent. The Astros and Yankees felt like serious fits, but they aren't anymore. Teams like the Washington Nationals and Seattle Mariners could use a first baseman, but will they spend money? The Toronto Blue Jays are eager to have a star player take their money, but they already have Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The Mets still loom as a fit, but why can't the Giants take advantage of a clearly depleted market? Alonso is probably looking for a massive deal, but considering the lack of realistic suitors for his services, he won't get that absurd payday.

If the Giants can sign him to a similar kind of deal that they signed Blake Snell and Matt Chapman to last offseason, Alonso makes a whole lot of sense. He'd add another big bat to this lineup and make the Giants legitimate Wild Card threats while also opening the door for him to cash in next offseason (like Snell) or even sign long-term with San Francisco (like Chapman.)