SF Giants sign former Dbacks shortstop, two-time Gold Glove award winner
The SF Giants announced that the team has signed shortstop Nick Ahmed to a minor-league contract that includes an invitation to MLB spring training on Monday. Ahmed, the longtime shortstop for the Arizona Diamondbacks, immediately gives the Giants some much-needed veteran insurance at shortstop behind a bevy of young players at the position, including the current favorite to be the everyday option, Marco Luciano (Top 4 Prospect).
Dbacks shortstop Nick Ahmed hits an RBI single against the SF Giants. (2021)
John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports
Despite a long track record of big-league success, and a relatively thin free-agent class at shortstop, Ahmed is coming off the worst season of his career in 2023. The veteran hit an abysmal .212/.257/.303 with 10 doubles, a triple, and two home runs in 210 plate appearances with Arizona before he was designated for assignment. Ahmed has always been a below-average hitter (career .664 OPS), but his production has taken another step back over the past three seasons.
While he was drafted by Atlanta back in 2011, Ahmed has spent his entire 10-year MLB career in Arizona with the Dbacks. For most of the past decade, Ahmed has been the Dbacks everyday shortstop, providing excellent defense to make up for his quiet bat. In fact, Ahmed's defense earned him back-to-back Gold Glove award victories in 2018 and 2019.
He may not be the player he was during the prime of his career, but Ahmed still offers plenty of defensive value at shortstop. Given many scouts longstanding concerns about Luciano's viability at the position, adding a player with such an impressive defensive track record was an obvious fit with San Francisco. Even with his offensive struggles last season, Ahmed still graded out as an elite defensive shortstop, according to Statcast's Outs Above Average.
It's worth noting that Ahmed's offensive struggles in 2023 came after undergoing shoulder surgery in 2022, when he was limited to just 17 games. The fact that he remained an above-average defender following surgery leaves some room to hope that his bat could rebound another year removed from the operation.
Adding Nick Ahmed to the mix seems to further solidify that Brandon Crawford will not be returning to the SF Giants. The longtime shortstop remains a free agent and could have filled a comparable role on the team. However, San Francisco has decided to move in a different direction, adding another NL West stalwart with multiple Gold Gloves.
