San Francisco Giants Veteran Anchoring Surprisingly Hot Start With MVP Performance

A San Francisco Giants veteran has raised his performance to MVP levels to aid in the team's incredible start.

Apr 4, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants third base Matt Chapman (26) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the sixth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Oracle Park. | Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images

One of the biggest surprises in the early going of the 2025 regular season has been the San Francisco Giants.

They have gotten off to an incredibly hot 8-2 start; unfortunately, that still has them in third place in the National League West behind the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, who have already won nine games apiece.

If the Giants are going to keep up with their NL West rivals, they are going to need some of their players off to great starts to sustain that level of performance throughout the season.

There have been a lot of players chipping in and playing at a high level, aiding in the team’s excellent performance on the field.

That is a welcome change to how things were at points in 2024. Too often it was a one-man show for third baseman Matt Chapman, who is once again leading the charge with MVP-level production.

Outfielders Heliot Ramos, Mike Yastrzemski and Jung Hoo Lee have been incredible, recording OPS of .854, .952 and .885, respectively. Along with designated hitter Wilmer Flores, who has a team-high four home runs, San Francisco has four starters along with Chapman, above the .850 mark in OPS.

The star third baseman is off to another strong start with a .257/.395/.486 slash line, hitting two home runs and two doubles while producing a team-high 0.7 WAR through 10 games and 43 plate appearances.

His presence in the lineup elevates the performance of everyone else around him and his teammates are answering the call to this point.

The Giants’ offense isn’t even clicking on all cylinders yet. Their biggest free-agent addition, shortstop Willy Adames, has gotten off to a slow start with a .220/.267/.268 slash line, yet to provide the infusion of power they were hoping.

Chapman is certainly talented enough to hold things down until he gets hot at the plate and the above-average performance of his teammates is certainly helping as well.

What separates the veteran third baseman from his teammates is that he is getting the job done as a two-way player, remaining elite with the glove.

His defense at third base is a weapon in itself, winning five Gold Glove Awards, two Platinum Glove Awards and the Wilson Overall Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2019.

Chapman has been in the MVP discussions previously in his career and is putting himself in a position to be in the discussion once again in 2025.

He is going to get noticed even more with the Giants playing at a high level. As long as they remain competitive, there will be more eyes on him and the team, bringing more attention to just how good of a player he is.