MLB Top 5: San Francisco Giants Second Basemen and Shortstops

By Kevin Rakas

This is the third article in a series that looks at the five best players at each position for the San Francisco Giants. In this installment are second basemen and shortstops.

The Giants have had quite the collection of middle infielders take the field in the orange and black over the past 142 years. Among them are six Hall of Famers, several who had long tenures with the franchise, more than a few playoff standouts and the all-time leading home run hitter among second basemen.

The Best Second Basemen and Shortstops in San Francisco Giants History

Second Basemen

Honorable Mentions – Danny Richardson was a native of Upstate New York who joined the then-Mutuals in their second season. After three years on the bench, he moved into the starting lineup, had six hits in a June 1887 game and was an integral part of two World’s Series winners, totaling 14 runs, 17 hits, three doubles, three home runs, 14 RBIs and six stolen bases in 19 games. Richardson had his best season the year of the second championship in 1889, hitting seven home runs, scoring 80 runs and stealing 32 bases and setting career highs with a .280 average and 100 runs batted in. After a season in the Players’ League, he returned to the National League Giants for one season, then spent a year each with Washington, Brooklyn and Louisville before retiring in 1894. Richardson passed away in 1925 at age 63.

After 13 stellar seasons with the Cardinals, Rogers Hornsby was sent to the Giants late in 1926 in a swap of second basemen. He responded with a third-place finish in the MVP voting after batting .361 with 205 hits, 26 home runs, 125 RBIs, 333 total bases and league-leading totals of 133 runs, 86 walks and a .448 on-base percentage. Hornsby also had a stint as the team’s manager, leading New York to a 22-10 mark late in the season. However, his overbearing personality wore on full-time manager John McGraw as well as executives and teammates, and he faced a lawsuit for his vice of gambling on horse races. “Rajah” lasted just one year with the Giants, as he was traded to the Braves in 1928. He spent one year in Boston as well and had stints with the Cubs and both St. Louis teams before retiring in 1937. Hornsby was a minor league player and manager, returned to the majors for two years as a skipper, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1942 and passed away in 1963 after having a stroke and then a heart attack at age 66.

Hughie Critz (last name rhymes with “bites”) was a Mississippi native who was the son of a college president. He began his career with Cincinnati and was so impressive with his glovework and timely hitting that he earned MVP votes three times, including a runner-up finish in 1926. After two years of trying to acquire him, McGraw finally brought Critz to the Giants during the 1930 season. The second baseman had his best campaign in New York the following year, batting .276 with 90 runs and 50 RBIs to go with career-best totals of 182 hits and 32 doubles. During his six seasons with the Giants (1930-35), Critz won three fielding titles and led the league in putouts and double plays twice each and assists three times. Although he was held to a pair of runs and three hits during the 1933 World Series, New York defeated Washington in five games. Following his retirement, Critz returned to his home state to run a plantation and a car dealership. He passed away in 1980 at age 79.

Davey Williams made his name playing in the All-American Game in 1945 at his future home in the Polo Grounds. He enlisted in the Army and was training to be a paratrooper when he was put on the base team. After two seasons with brief callups sandwiched around a full season in the minors, Williams finally got a full-time spot in 1952 and set career highs with 70 runs, 137 hits, 13 home runs and 55 RBIs. He earned his only All-Star selection the following year after hitting a personal-best .297. Williams was part of the magical 1954 team that upset the powerful Indians in the World Series. Although he went 0-for-11 against Cleveland, he will still be remembered for something no one will get a chance to see. In the eighth inning of Game 1, Willie Mays sprinted back to the depths of center field in the Polo Grounds to make an over-the-shoulder grab of a ball that was so iconic, it has since been referred to in baseball circles simply as “The Catch.” His throw was equally as fantastic, although the cameras never panned to see it, and Williams held the advancing runner, future Hall of Famer Larry Doby, at third. His career was over less than a year later at age 27, thanks to an arthritic spinal condition that was made worse by being run over by Jackie Robinson in a play where he was covering first base in April 1955 and sliding into home during his final game in July. Williams spent two years as a Giants coach, one as a player-manager in Texas, and he worked as a criminal investigator and expediter for a heavy equipment company. He passed away in 2009 at age 81.

Tito Fuentes was one of the final players signed out of Cuba before the U. S. embargo against the Communist island nation in 1962. Fuentes joined the Giants three years later as a shortstop and was a part of one of the most famous brawls in baseball history. On August 22, 1965, the Giants and Dodgers engaged in a fight (later called the “Battle of Candlestick” that took nearly 15 minutes to separate and included San Francisco pitcher Juan Marichal hitting Los Angeles catcher John Roseboro with a bat, a gash that took 14 stitches to close. Fuentes finished third in the Rookie of the Year voting in 1966 but slumped the following year and spent all of the 1968 season in the minor leagues. After one year as a reserve, he took over the starting role at second base in 1970. “Parakeet” (nicknamed for his chatty nature) worked on improving his defense, going from leading the league in errors in 1971-72 to posting a .993 fielding percentage (then a record) and winning a fielding title in 1973. He was traded to the Padres before the 1975 season, finishing his nine-year Giants career (1965-67 and 69-74) with 417 runs, 1,000 hits, 152 doubles, 34 home runs, 306 RBIs and 1,320 total bases in 1,045 games. Fuentes spent time with the Tigers and Athletics before retiring, played in the short-lived Inter-American League and was a longtime analyst for the Giants’ Spanish language broadcasts.

5. Joe Panik – The New York native was taken by the Giants in the first round in 2011. He made the big leagues three years later and had a variety of memorable moments during his six seasons with San Francisco (2014-19). Panik started his baseball heroics as a rookie, hitting a two-run home run in a win over the Cardinals in Game 5 of the NLCS to help his team clinch the pennant. In the third inning of Game 7 of the World Series against the Royals, Panik made a diving stop of a ground ball, flipped it with his glove to the shortstop, who completed one of the most stellar double plays in series history (with the original safe call being overturned after a long replay). The Giants went on to win the game, 3-2, to take home their third championship in five years. He followed that with his only All-Star selection in 2015 and a gold glove and yet another memorable postseason moment the following year, with a walk-off double in Game 3 of the Division Series (although the Cubs won the series and proceeded to “break the curse”). Pamik was released during the 2019 season, finishing his time in San Francisco with a .271 average, 288 runs, 631 hits, 117 doubles, 36 homers and 221 RBIs in 643 games. He spent time with the Mets, Blue Jays and Marlins before retiring in 2019. Panik is now a special assistant with the Giants.

4. Robby Thompson – He was drafted second overall by the Giants in 1983 and made his debut three years later. Thompson became the first player to be thrown out trying to steal four times in a game, but recovered to bat .271, lead the league with 18 sacrifice hits and finish as the Rookie of the Year runner-up. He earned his first All-Star selection in 1988 but missed the game due to a pinched nerve in his leg. The following year, he led the league with 11 triples and 13 times being hit by a pitch. Thompson appeared in the playoffs twice with the Giants, totaling nine runs, eight hits, three home runs and seven RBIs in 16 games, but he went just 1-for-11 with two RBIs in a loss to the Athletics in the 1989 World Series. He had his best season in 1993, earning his second All-Star selection, although he couldn’t play in the game due to another leg injury. Thompson also won a silver slugger and gold glove for the only time in his career scored 85 runs and set personal bests with a .312 average, 154 hits, 30 doubles, 19 home runs and 65 runs batted in. Injuries plagued him over his final three seasons, and he missed considerable time due to a concussion and surgeries on both shoulders. Thompson played all 11 seasons with San Francisco (1986-96) amassing 671 runs, 1,187 hits, 238 doubles, 119 homers, 458 RBIs, 103 steals and 1,860 total bases in 1,304 games. He served as a coach for more than a decade with the Giants, Indians and Mariners.

3. Frankie Frisch – He joined the Giants in 1919 after graduating from Fordham University. After a rough first season, Frisch moved to third base and picked up his play, batting .341 in 1921 with 121 runs, 211 hits, 100 RBIs, a career-high 17 triples and a league-best 49 stolen bases. He moved back to the “keystone position” the following year, batted .327 and helped the Giants win their second straight title over the Yankees. The rest of Frisch’s time in New York was littered with fantastic performances and hovering near the league lead in several offensive categories. He topped the N. L. with 223 hits and 311 total bases in 1923 while batting .348, scoring 115 runs and driving in 111. The next season, his average (.328) and hits (198) dipped, but he batted .328 and smacked 15 triples to finish third in the MVP voting.

Despite all his success and leadership abilities, the “Fordham Flash” took quite a bit of verbal punishment from McGraw, and it showed in his play. He was sent to the Cardinals in the trade for Hornsby after the 1926 season, finishing his eight-year Giants career (1919-26) with six seasons hitting .300 or better, six with 160 or more hits (and two with at least 200), four scoring 100 or more runs and two with at least 100 runs batted in. Frisch is tied for fifth in franchise history with a .321 average to go with 701 runs, 1,303 hits, 180 doubles, 77 triples, 54 home runs, 524 RBIs, 224 stolen bases and 1,799 total bases in 1,000 games. He also appeared in 26 postseason games in four World Series appearances, totaling 11 runs, 37 hits, five doubles, four RBIs and five steals. With St. Louis, Frisch won the MVP Award in 1931, played in the first three All-Star Games and was an integral part of four pennant-winners and two title teams, including 1934, when he was the player-manager for the “Gas House Gang.” He also managed for the Pirates and Cubs, finishing his 16-year career with a 1,138-1,078 record. Frisch was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947 and joined the Hall’s Veterans Committee 20 years later. While driving home from a March 1973 meeting, he got into a car accident ant passed away at age 75.

2. Larry Doyle – Of all the talented second basemen in the long and storied history of the franchise, the Deadball Era star was a starter at the position for longer than anyone else. Doyle joined the Giants and converted to second base in 1907 but his play was less than stellar, and both fans and the press were calling for him to be traded. McGraw kept the young player around and he gained confidence, leading the league with 172 hits in 1909. Doyle was a key piece for a team that won three straight pennants. He finished third in the MVP voting in 1911 after batting .310 with 77 RBIs and 38 stolen bases, scoring a career-high 102 runs and leading the league with 25 triples, which also ranked second in franchise history. The following year, Doyle won the MVP Award after batting .330 with 184 hits, 10 homers, 36 steals and a personal-best 91 RBIs. In those three World Series, he had nine runs, 19 hits, three doubles, one home run, five RBIs and four stolen bases in 19 games, but the Giants lost each year.

“Laughing Larry” won his only batting title (.320) and led the league in hits (189) and doubles (40), but he was traded to the Cubs in August 1916. He spent just one full season with Chicago and was traded twice in a four-day span, first to the Braves and then the Giants. Doyle missed part of 1918 with an illness and started the next two years before retiring in 1920. Over his 13 seasons in New York (1907-16 and 18-20), he ranked fourth in franchise history in triples (117), seventh in stolen bases (291), eighth in games (1,622), hits (1,751, including five seasons with 160 or more) and total bases (2,461), and ninth in runs (906) and doubles (275). Doyle batted .292 (including five seasons at .300 or better) with 67 home runs and 726 RBIs, and he also led the league in assists twice. Doyle worked as a minor league manager among various positions with the Giants over the next two decades. He was diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1942 but survived more than 30 years with the condition, passing away in 1974 at age 87.

1. Jeff Kent – He spent less than half the time with the club than some of the others on this list, but his production had rarely been seen at the position before. Kent was drafted by the Blue Jays in 1989 and, after a brief call-up three years later, was sent to the Mets in the trade for David Cone. Despite showing an increase in power, fans did not take to his ego, brooding nature and cocky attitude in New York, and he was traded twice in 1996, first to the Indians and then the Giants in a six-player deal that included star third baseman Matt Williams. Kent put together a dominant six-year run in San Francisco (1997-2002), amassing at least 80 runs, 35 doubles, 20 home runs and 100 RBIs each year. Kent hit 29 homers and drove in 121 runs in the 1997 regular season and hit two more home runs in the playoffs, but San Francisco fell to eventual champion Florida in the Division Series. The following year, he posted a .297-31-128 stat line, but the Giants lost a one-game playoff against the Cubs and failed to reach the postseason.

Two years later, Kent put together the most productive season of his career, becoming the eighth second baseman to win the MVP Award and taking home his first silver slugger after hitting 33 home runs and setting career highs with a .334 average, a .424 on-base percentage, a .596 slugging percentage, 114 runs, 196 hits and 125 RBIs. Despite his performance, the Giants fell to the Mets in the Division Series. In 2001, Kent earned his third straight All-Star selection, drove in 106 runs and set a team record with 49 doubles, but he was overshadowed by teammate Barry Bonds, who broke the single season record by hitting 73 home runs. The second baseman started the next season on the disabled list with an injured wrist he claimed occurred while washing his truck, but others say happened while popping wheelies on his motorcycle, which would have been a violation of his contract. Kent and Bonds feuded, but the pair both had stellar years at the plate, with Kent posting a .313-37-108 stat line with 102 runs and 195 hits. After the Giants lost to the Angels in the World Series, he left San Francisco and signed with Houston, finishing with a .297 average, 570 runs, 1,021 hits, 247 doubles, 175 home runs (tied for tenth in franchise history), 689 runs batted in and 1,837 total bases in 900 regular season games and 13 runs, 24 hits, four doubles, three homers and nine RBIs in 21 postseason contests.

Kent’s numbers dropped a bit after leaving the Bay Area but, at least for his two years with the Astros and his first season with the Dodgers in 2005, he continued his productive ways. Back and knee injuries hampered him later in his career, and he retired following the 2008 season, finishing his 17-year major league tenure with 377 home runs, including a record 354 as a second baseman. Kent was a spring training instructor for the Giants, appeared on the Survivor reality television competition and started a women’s scholarship program in California. After being around Bonds and the Giants during his career, he has been an advocate for baseball to institute stronger tests for human growth hormone and other banned substances. Kent received 46.5 percent of the vote in his most recent Hall of Fame election attempt in 2023 and fell off the ballot. He, like Bonds, will have to be inducted by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, which will vote again at the end of 2025.

Shortstops

Honorable Mentions – Like many players on these lists, Dave Bancroft was known primarily for his defense and “baseball brains.” He could beat you by working out a walk, getting a timely hit or catching runners off guard when cutting off throws from the outfield. Bancroft was the captain on three straight pennant winning teams, scoring more than 100 runs in the first two, batting .300 three times and setting single season records (at the time) in chances and doubly plays by a shortstop. In 1921, he batted .318 with 193 hits and set personal bests with 121 runs, 15 triples, 17 stolen bases and 15 RBIs. The following year, he scored 117 runs, drove in 60 and posted career highs with a .321 average and 209 hits. Following a loss to the Yankees in the 1923 World Series, “Beauty” was traded to the Braves and spent the next four years as the player-manager for the struggling franchise. He played two years with the Robins (later Dodgers) and 10 games following his return to the Giants in 1930, and he won a fielding title in 1920 and led the league in putouts, assists and double plays three straight seasons. Bancroft was a coach in New York for three years, then was a manager of minor league and all-girls teams. He also worked as a warehouse supervisor, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1971 and passed away the following year.

After solid runs in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia (including being selected to play in the first All-Star Game in 1933), Dick Bartell brought his brand of timely hitting, slick fielding and aggressive play to New York in 1935. He became the sparkplug for the Giants, playing on four straight winning teams (including two pennant-winners), reigniting the rivalry with the Dodgers and earning a second All-Star selection in 1937 after batting .306 with 91 runs, 158 hits, 14 home runs and 62 RBIs. After stints with the Cubs and Tigers, Bartell returned to the Giants in 1941 and played three seasons at third base. He spent more than two years coaching an Army baseball team during World War II and came back for one more season as a player-coach, ending his eight-year Giants tenure (1935-38, 41-43 and ’46) with a .279 average, 434 runs, 858 hits, 167 doubles, 60 home runs, 293 RBIs and 1,231 total bases in 835 games. Bartell was a minor league manager and a third base coach for the Tigers and Reds. After his baseball career, he worked a variety of jobs in California and passed away due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease in 1995 at age 87.

John “Buddy” Kerr was a typical middle infielder for his era, all field and little hit. He set career highs with nine home runs, 63 RBIs and 14 stolen bases in 1944, posted personal best marks with a .287 average, 73 runs and 157 hits (as well as a then-record 68-game errorless streak) in 1947 and earned his only All-Star selection as an injury replacement the following year. Kerr’s downfall came when the team hired Leo Durocher as manager only three days after the All-Star break. The former Brooklyn skipper who was suspended for a season for ties to gamblers and coined the phrase “Nice guys finish last” when referring to his New York neighbors now managed them. Unfortunately for Kerr, he was one of those “nice guys,” and he was replaced in the lineup in 1949 and traded to the Braves after the season. He finished his seven-year Giants tenure (1943-49) with 315 runs, 756 hits, 117 doubles, 269 RBIs and 995 total bases in 843 games. Two years later, his major league career ended when he was released by Boston. After four minor league seasons, Kerr returned to the Giants as a minor league manager, helping young Spanish-speaking players the team was signing to adjust to life in the United States. He became a scout and spent more than 30 years with the Giants and Mets. Kerr passed away in 2006 on the day after his 84th birthday.

Al Dark was a three-sport collegiate athlete at LSU who began his major league career with the Boston Braves, winning the Rookie of the Year Award in 1948. Two years later, he was sent to the Giants as part of the trade that involved Kerr, and he became a three-time All-Star and one of the best hitting shortstops in baseball. “The Swamp Fox” may have had his best year when he wasn’t selected to the Midsummer Classic. In 1953, he batted .300 and set career highs with 126 runs, 194 hits, 23 home runs and 88 runs batted in. He became injury prone later in his tenure with New York and was sent to St. Louis in 1956, finishing his seven-year Giants tenure (1950-56) with a .292 average, 605 runs, 1,106 hits, 205 doubles, 98 home runs, 429 RBIs and 1,665 total bases in 933 regular season games and seven runs, 17 hits, three doubles, one homer and four RBIs in 10 World Series contests. After bouncing around to four teams in his final five seasons, Dark became Giants manager in 1961 and had a successful tenure that ended after allegedly making racist comments against his diverse team. He went 994-954 in 13 seasons as a skipper and led the Athletics to a championship in 1972. Dark passed away in 2014 at age 92.

North Carolina native Hal Lanier was the son of Max Lanier, a two-time All-Star pitcher who spent 12 of his 14 major league seasons with the Cardinals and sued baseball after the commissioner banned him for trying to play in the Mexican League after World War II. Hal signed with the Giants in 1961 and made his debut in San Francisco three years later. After three years as a starter at second base, he moved to shortstop in 1967 and won the fielding title the following season. Lanier was solid until his final season with the Giants, when it became public knowledge that he had epilepsy and had suffered several seizures during his professional career. He was sold to the Yankees in 1972, ending his eight-year run with the Giants (1964-71) with 283 runs, 803 hits, 105 doubles and 262 RBIs in 1,101 games. After two years with New York, Lanier began his second career as a manager, first in the minor leagues, then as a coach on two Cardinals pennant-winning team in the early 1980s. He got a chance to be a major league manager with the Astros in 1986, and his focus on fundamentals helped the team win 96 games, earned him the Manager of the Year Award and got Houston to the cusp of the World Series before falling to the Mets in a marathon Game 6 in the NLCS. Lanier had two more respectable years before being fired in 1988. He was a coach with the Phillies and spent more than two decades managing independent league teams until 2018, when he was dismissed by Can-Am League’s Ottawa Champions.

Chris Speier was a Bay Area native who was drafted by the Giants with the second overall pick in 1970 after he was scouted while playing in Canada. Less than a year later, he was playing for his hometown team and supplanted Lanier as the starting shortstop. Speier got by on his defense his first season, but he had four runs and five hits in an NLCS loss to the Pirates, then was selected as an All-Star in each of his next three season. His best campaign was 1972, when he hit .269, set career highs with 74 runs, 151 hits, 15 home runs and 71 runs batted in and led all shortstops in assists. Contract issues and team direction led to Speier being traded to the last-place Expos early in the 1977 season, but the shortstop had an inconsistent decade before returning to the Giants in 1987. Although he hit for his second career cycle (and first in a decade), his play began to suffer due to a recurring back injury, and he retired in 1989, finishing his 10-year run in San Francisco (1971-77 and 87-89) with 445 runs, 924 hits, 153 doubles, 70 home runs, 409 RBIs and 1,341 total bases in 1,114 games. Speier spent nearly two decades as a coach and minor league manager, winning a title as third base coach with the Diamondbacks in 2001.

Johnnie LeMaster was an Ohio native who was drafted by the Giants in the first round in 1973. Two years later, he was in San Francisco hitting an inside-the-park home run in his first at-bat. However, that was not a harbinger of things to come. LeMaster was one of the best fielding shortstops in the league, but his hitting was so bad, and fans were on his case so much that he come to the plate for one game in 1979 with “BOO” on his jersey instead of his last name. He got off to a great start offensively in 1983 and, even after a steep decline late in the season, he drove in 30 runs and set career highs with 81 runs, 128 hits, six home runs and 39 stolen bases. LeMaster played for three teams in the 1985 season, ending his 11-year Giants tenure (1975-85) with a .225 average, 313 runs, 695 hits, 109 doubles, 220 RBIs and 905 total bases in 986 games. After a year off, he finished his career with the Athletics in 1987 and spent time as a high school baseball coach in Kentucky.

5B Rich Aurilia – The New York native was drafted by the Rangers in the first round in 1992 and was traded to the Giants two years later. After a September call-up in 1995, Aurilia took over the starting spot the following year and hit the first grand slam in interleague play in 1997 despite dealing with injuries the entire season. His hitting continued to improve until his highlight season in 2001 in which he earned his only All-Star selection and silver slugger after setting career highs with a .324 average, 113 runs, 37 doubles, 37 home runs, 97 RBIs, 364 total bases, a .572 slugging percentage and 206 hits, which also led the National League. Aurilia spent time with the Mariners, Padres and Reds, then came back to the Giants for his final three seasons, which were marred by neck injuries. He retired in 2010 and ended his 12-year tenure in San Francisco (1995-2003 and 07-09) with a .275 average, 574 runs, 1,226 hits, 232 doubles, 143 homers, 574 RBIs and 1,921 total bases in 1,292 regular season games and 17 runs, 22 hits, six doubles, six home runs and 18 RBIs in 25 postseason contests.

5A Art Fletcher – The brash and fearless shortstop joined the Giants in 1909 and became one-quarter of one of the best infields of the early part of the 20th century. Fletcher was a master at getting on base, hitting .319 in his first full year as a starter in 1911 and leading the league in getting hit by a pitch five times during his 12-year tenure in New York (1909-20). The Giants won four pennants with him as their shortstop, including three in a row from 1911-13 and another in 1917, but lost all four times in the World Series. Although he was solid at his position, winning two fielding titles and leading the league in assists four straight years, he had assists in back-to-back World Series that cost his team a game. Fletcher was traded to the Phillies in the deal that brought Bancroft to the Giants in 1920, ending his career in New York with a .275 average, 602 runs, 1,311 hits, 193 doubles, 65 triples, 585 RBIs, 153 steals and 1,697 total bases in 1,321 regular season contests and five runs, 18 hits, three doubles and seven RBIs in 25 World Series games. After sitting out a year following the loss of both his brother and father, he finished his career with Philadelphia in 1922. Fletcher managed the Phillies for four seasons and coached the Yankees for nearly two decades (including a brief stint as manager at the end of the 1929 season when Miller Huggins left to deal with a bacterial skin infection that claimed his life a few weeks later). Heart problems forced Fletcher to retire in 1945 and he passed away due to a heart attack five years later at age 65.

4. John Montgomery “Monte” Ward – He was a descendant of English settlers who came to modern-day Connecticut in the 1600s and whose family later settled in Pennsylvania. Ward joined the Providence Grays as an 18-year-old in 1878, led the National League with a 1.51 earned run average as a rookie, topped the circuit with 47 wins and 239 strikeouts the following year and threw the league’s second perfect game in 1880 while leading the N. L. with eight shutouts. He began to play in the outfield on days he didn’t pitch and continued to do so after joining the Gothams, the newest National League team, in 1883. After suffering an arm injury on a slide the following year, Ward stopped pitching, began batting left-handed and had a brief stint as manager. When the team became the Giants in 1885, he moved to shortstop and became a terror on the basepaths. Ward’s best season was 1887, when he won the fielding title, totaled 114 runs, 184 hits, and 53 RBIs, and he set career highs with a .338 average and 111 stolen bases, which also led the league and set a team record. He was a part of two straight World’s Series-winning teams, batting .400 with 14 runs, 26 hits, 13 RBIs and 16 stolen bases in postseason play.

Ward studied law at night and in the offseason, and he put his law degree to use by being the main proponent for the creation of the Players League. He found financial backers and playing sites, recruited players, set up the schedule and created the union. After a year as a player-manager with Brooklyn, he joined that city’s team when the ill-fated league closed after one season. Ward rejoined the Giants as a player-manager for his final two seasons, scoring 129 runs and amassing a career-highs 193 hits in 1893. During his nine-year tenure with New York (1883-89 and 93-94), he batted .279 with 830 runs, 1,248 hits, 136 doubles, 57 triples, 548 RBIs, 332 steals (fifth in franchise history) and 1,549 total bases in 1,072 games. Ward passed the New York bar exam, set up a law practice in Brooklyn and became one of the top amateur golfers in the country. His standing in the baseball world was damaged by a reserve clause case for another player on this list, and his career with the sport ended when the short-lived Federal League did, as he was a business manager for the Brooklyn club. Later in life, Ward focused on golf and running his Long Island farm. He passed away from pneumonia in 1925, one day after his 65th birthday, and he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1964.

3. Brandon Crawford – He was a fourth-round pick of the Giants in 2008 out of UCLA and hit a grand slam in his major league debut. Crawford was a starter on San Francisco’s final two championship teams, hit a grand slam against the Pirates in the 2014 Wild Card Game and combined with Panik to complete a fantastic double play against the Royals in Game 7 of the World Series. Although he improved as a hitter throughout his career, he was stellar as a fielder, earning four gold gloves and two Wilson Defensive Player Awards. Crawford was named an All-Star for the first time and earned his only silver slugger in 2015 and posted a .275-12-84 stat line with a career-high 152 hits and a league-leading 11 triples the following year.

“Crawdaddy” was an All-Star starter in 2018 and was selected for a third time in 2021. He posted the best season of his career, finishing fourth in the MVP voting after setting career highs with a .298 average, 24 home runs, 90 RBIs and 79 runs. Crawford spent two more seasons with the Giants, winning the Lou Gehrig Award in 2022, before signing with the Cardinals in 2024. He ranks third in franchise history in strikeouts (1,268), seventh in games (1,654) and eighth in doubles (290) to go with 669 runs, 1,392 hits, 44 triples, 146 home runs, 744 RBIs and 2,209 total bases in the regular season and 14 runs, 35 hits, seven doubles, two homers and 19 RBIs in 43 playoff contests. Crawford is one of the longest-tenured Giants in the history of the franchise and he is the active major league leader among shortstops in putouts, assists and double plays.

2. George Davis – Davis began his career as an outfielder for the Cleveland Spiders in 1890 and spent his first four years with the Giants as a third baseman before converting to shortstop in 1897. That season, he batted .353 with 112 runs, 184 hits, 10 home runs, a career-high 65 stolen bases and 135 runs batted in, which was both a personal best and led the league. The two-time fielding champion also led all shortstops in putouts and double plays in 1897. Dissension arose near the end of Davis’ tenure in New York, and the clubhouse was split between veteran Giants who supported him and newcomers who were loyal to player-turned-manager Buck Ewing. Davis took over the club in the middle of the 1900 season and led the team to a respectable showing before the Giants dropped back in the standings the following year.

“Gorgeous George” left New York for Chicago in the upstart American League in 1902, with John McGraw coming in to manage the Giants. Davis signed back with his old club the following year and played four games before White Sox owner Charles Comiskey brought about legal action. Ward (a former Giants shortstop himself) argued that both contracts were legal, and Davis should get to choose, but the U. S. Court of Appeals sided with Comiskey, and Davis returned to the White Sox in 1904 and played his final six seasons in Chicago. He ended his decade with the Giants (1893-1901 and ’03) ranked second in franchise history in stolen bases (357, including six seasons with 30 or more), third in average (.332, with nine seasons of .300 or better), seventh in triples (98) and eighth in RBIs (819) to go with 844 runs, 1,432 hits, 53 home runs and 2,016 total bases in 1,100 games. Following his playing career, Davis managed a bowling alley, coaching at Amherst College, scouting for the Yankees and selling cars in St. Louis. He passed away in 1940 at age 70 and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1998.

1. Travis Jackson – The Arkansas native joined the Giants for a three-game stint as an 18-year-old and spent the next 15 years with the team (1922-36). Jackson eventually took over the starting role when Bancroft was traded to Boston, and he was an underrated bat in a stacked New York lineup. He batted .302 with 81 runs, 76 RBIs and a career-best 180 hits in the 1924 season but slumped in the World Series loss to Washington, which was shrouded in rumors of a bribe offered by Giants infielder Jimmy O’Connell and backed by coach Cozy Dolan. After the loss, the Giants, despite having a team full of stars, failed to win another pennant for nearly a decade. Jackson continued to be one of the team’s lead contributors, and he was named team captain for his efforts. He posted a .318-14-98 stat line in 1927 and batted .294 with 162 hits, 94 RBIs and career-high totals of 92 runs and 21 home runs two years later.

Jackson was extremely error-prone early in his career (he led the league with 58 in 1924), but he worked to improve and eventually had one of the strongest arms in the game. Nicknamed “Stonewall,” not for the esteemed Civil War general but for his ability to keep balls from getting by him, he won two fielding titles and led the league in assists four times and double plays twice. He also gained notoriety for being one of the game’s best bunters, which allowed him to register a batting average of .300 or better six times. However, Jackson also had his share of injuries and ailments, missing time with an appendectomy, the mumps, the flu and having balky knees that both required surgery and cost him most of the 1932-33 seasons. He returned at the end of the latter campaign (playing third base) to lead the team to the pennant and help New York upend Washington win the World Series. The following year, Jackson returned to shortstop and was selected as an All-Star starter after driving in 101 runs, the only time he hit the century mark in his career.

Jackson primarily played third base over his final two seasons, hitting .301 in 1935 and playing in his fourth World Series the following year, which the Giants loss to the Yankees. With his knees bothering him again, he retired and became a minor league manager for the team. Jackson finished his tenure ranked sixth in franchise history in games (1,656) and RBIs (929, including eight seasons with 70 or more), seventh in hits (1,768), doubles (291) and total bases (2,636) and tenth in triples (86) to go with a .291 average and 135 home runs. He played in 19 World Series games, totaling seven runs, 10 hits and four runs batted in. Jackson went from the minors back to the Giants as a coach, although he missed time when both his parents passed away three weeks apart and again when he contracted tuberculosis. He stayed with New York until 1948, then managed in the Boston Braves’ minor league system for 13 years. Most of Jackson’s former teammates had received the sport’s greatest honor well before he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1982. He passed away five years later due to Alzheimer’s disease at age 83.