The San Francisco Giants and Luis Arraez are in agreement on a one-year contract, sources told ESPN's Jorge Castillo on Saturday.
Arraez entered this winter looking to play second base full time, and that's where the Giants intend to play him, filling out an infield that includes Rafael Devers, Willy Adames and Matt Chapman.
At a time when hitters constantly chase, slug and strike out more than ever, Arraez, a contact-oriented player who prides himself on spraying balls to vacant areas of the field, stands as the ultimate outlier.
Arraez won three consecutive batting titles from 2022 to 2024, during which he boasted a .328 batting average and struck out a combined 106 times -- a total surpassed by 138 players in 2025 alone. In that three-year stretch, Arraez led the majors in hits (576) and strikeout rate (5.6%), but he was also tied for 130th in walks (109) and ranked 131st in slugging percentage (.426) -- a clear indication of both his strengths and his shortcomings.
A 32-year-old left-handed hitter from Venezuela, Arraez has made three All-Star teams and won two Silver Sluggers in a career that spans seven seasons, but two teams have already traded him away -- the Minnesota Twins in January 2023, and the Miami Marlins in May 2024.
The 2025 season marked Arraez's first full season with the San Diego Padres, who initially parted with three prospects to utilize him atop their star-studded lineup. It qualified as the worst offensive season of his career, as Arraez's batting average fell to .299 and his adjusted OPS dropped below league average for the first time. He walked 13 more times than he struck out, but he added only eight home runs and 11 stolen bases, prompting him to accumulate only 0.9 FanGraphs wins above replacement.
Arraez has shown the versatility to play both first and second base, but his defense has consistently been rated as subpar. The bat is his carrying tool.
ESPN's Alden Gonzalez contributed to this report.
