That the Giants are in the market for help at second base is well known by now, but ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports that San Francisco has been particularly “aggressive” in their pursuit of late, with recent talk about the NL Central standout: Nico Hoerner At Mantshontsho once Brendan Donovan of the Cardinals. Both were already targets for the Giants, but it’s worth noting that they are combining their efforts to make a deal.
Giants second basemen were among the least productive in all of baseball in 2025, hitting a combined .217/.273/.343. The result was a 73 wRC+ (which indicates he was 27% worse than average at the plate) ranking 27th in the majors, leading only the Angels, A’s and Rockies. Tyler Fitzgerald led San Francisco with 233 plate appearances as the team’s second baseman, followed by Casey Schmitt (193), Christian Koss (137) and Brett Wisely (43). All four posted below-average numbers per bat while playing second base (although Schmitt hit better while playing other positions and was close to league average per bat overall).
Donovan or Hoerner would stand as a huge improvement. Both will play next season at the age of 29. Both are contact hitters who are established by working in different ways on defense, although the presence of Matt Chapman again Willy Adams to the left side of the infield would reduce the need for the Giants to use that flexibility. Donovan, who agreed to a one-year contract worth $5.8MM to avoid arbitration last week, is controlled through the 2027 season. Hoerner is owed $12MM in the final season of his three-year contract, $35MM this season.
Donovan’s stats will be the easiest of the two in trade talks. The Cardinals are in the early stages of a multi-year rebuilding effort under new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom. They are already exporting Sonny Gray again Wilson Contreras in a separate trade to the Red Sox, and have been showing interest in the lefty JoJo Romero while also working to find a taker Nolan Arenado. Donovan’s remaining two years in charge of the club do not correspond to a realistic approach to St. Louis, and of all the team’s offseason assets, he stands as one of the most likely to reap the benefits.
Since making his MLB debut four years ago, Donovan has done nothing but hit. He owns a lifetime .282/.361/.411 slash in the batter’s box (119 wRC+) and has consistently proven to be one of the hardest hitters in the game. He took walks in 8.2% of his plate appearances in 2025 (9.1% career) and walked at a clip of only 13% (13.5% career). Donovan’s power is below average — he’s never topped 14 in a season — but he’s an All-Star and Gold Glove winner and can handle third base and the corner outfield (and maybe shortstop, too).
Hoerner is statistically one of Donovan’s most comparable hitters. Over the past five seasons, his .285/.342/.388 line (106 wRC+) has nearly matched Donovan’s production. Hoerner runs a lot (131 steals to Donovan’s 15) and could be an outfielder at shortstop if it weren’t for the fact that he’s been lying at second base for a while. Dansby Swanson in a short time.
Unlike the Cardinals, however, the Cubs are in clear win mode right now. Trading Hoerner just days after agreeing to a five-year deal with the Alex Bregman it will take away much of the good that the Bregman signing brought. Given that, it seems likely that the Cubs will be looking for MLB talent immediately in any trade involving Hoerner, and the acquisition costs will be prohibitive. Chicago can always move a top front prospect Matt Shaw at second — he may be the heir apparent now — but the Cubs could keep all three outfielders through the 2026 season and use Shaw in a relief role before giving him full-time second base in 2027.
Payroll-wise, the Giants should have little trouble fitting either player into the picture. RosterResource is currently a $185MM San Francisco payroll project. That’s up a few million from last year’s levels but is still a ways shy of the franchise record $200MM set for 2018. And considering the fact that in the last 18 months, ownership has made three separate nine commitments (Chapman’s $151MM extension, Adames’ $182MM contract, Develops’s $250 contract to open it up to at least MM) it adds up.
