The San Francisco Giants resigned infielder Osleivis Basabe to a new minor league contract.
Basabe was traded from the Tampa Bay Rays last February and logged 477 PA, playing in 125 games for Triple-A Sacramento over the 2025 season. The 24 year old didn’t do much to distinguish himself offensively and was booted from the 40-man roster in June. He cleared waivers and stayed with the River Cats for the rest of the year, slashing a non-descript .249/ .309/ .412, before entering minor league free agency
at year’s end.
Basabe turned 25 in September. Youth is in his favor, and obviously the front office sees some untapped potential there, though plate consistency has proved elusive so far in his professional career. Once an eyed prospect for the Rays, expectations have flat-lined, which honestly might be the best thing for him in this second-chance tour with San Francisco.
Second base is the only infield position with a somewhat murky outlook for the Giants in 2026. Casey Schmitt, then Christian Koss are considered front runners to fill that role — but we said that about Tyler Fitzgerald about a year ago. Nobody in the organization is a “lock” right now, and don’t count on a Bo Bichette free agent solve. The front office is doing their due-diligence and stockpiling options for spring. Options are good. A team wants a deep pool. They want to splash around and stir up competition. Competition breeds spring surprises. Koss came over to the Giants in a winter trade in ‘24, played a year in Triple-A, then turned an under-the-radar Cactus League invite into a contributing role on a Major League roster.
Supposedly “crazy” things like that happen all the time…
