Casey Schmitt

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Casey Shawn Schmitt

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Biographical Information[edit]

Infielder Casey Schmitt was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 2nd round of the 2020 amateur draft, out of San Diego State University. He was soon regarded as the heir apparent to long-time fixture Brandon Crawford as the Giants' shortstop of the future, although that almost changed after the 2022 season when the Giants signed free agent SS Carlos Correa to a huge multi-year contract. However, the deal fell through at the last moment when Correa failed a physical exam, putting Schmitt once again at the center of the team's plans with Crawford unlikely to keep his job for more than one season. In any case, he also played third base in college and in the minors, and could have fallen back on that position.

Schmitt had done well in his first two minor league seasons, batting ..247 with 8 homers and 29 RBIs in 64 games for the San Jose Giants in the Low-A West in 2021, and putting up a line of .293/.365/.489 with 21 homers and 78 RBIs in 126 games in 2022. Those games were spread among three teams: the Eugene Emeralds of the Northwest League, the Richmond Flying Squirrels of the Eastern League, and the Sacramento RiverCats of the Pacific Coast League as he went from High-A to AA to AAA in one season. He started 2023 with Sacramento, hitting .313 in 32 games, then was called up to San Francisco to make his debut on May 9th. He started the game at shortstop, batting 7th, against the Washington Nationals and in his second at-bat of the game, homered off Patrick Corbin for a two-run shot that sparked a 4-1 win. He had a great first three games, as he went 8 for 12, including a 4 for 4 performance with his second big league homer in a 6-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 11th. The 8 hits tied Willie McCovey for most by a Giants player in his first three games since 1901. He ended up hitting .206 in 90 games, with 5 homers and 30 RBIs, for an OPS+ of 60. Defensively, he played 42 games at shortstop, 35 at third base and 19 at second base.

Heading into the 2024 season, he expected to be the Giants' main back-up at third base, his best defensive position, backing up J.D. Davis, but things changed in early March when the Giants unexpectedly signed veteran Matt Chapman to play third. Given that Chapman had hardly ever missed a start at third over the previous few seasons, Schmitt now had to fight for a spot as a middle infielder, but was more likely to start the year back in AAA.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Molly Burkhardt: "Giants' No. 4 prospect brings unique energy to spring: Schmitt could be depth option at shortstop for big league team sooner than later", mlb.com, March 15, 2023. [1]
  • Maria Guardado: "Schmitt provides spark, homers in 2nd Major League at-bat", mlb.com, May 10, 2023. [2]
  • Maria Guardado: "Schmitt (4-for-4, HR) ties McCovey with historic first 3 games", mlb.com, May 12, 2023. [3]
  • Maria Guardado: "Schmitt welcoming Chapman's presence, shifts focus to shortstop", mlb.com, March 6, 2024. [4]

Related Sites[edit]

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