Willy Adames made a stop at Oracle Park recently, and he ended up sharing some time with the player many around the Giants already see as his eventual successor.
The team’s annual “Oracle Camp” brought a group of prospects to San Francisco to spend time around Oracle Park and connect with the community. During the second day of the event, Adames visited and got a chance to meet Josuar Gonzalez, the organization’s top prospect. The Giants even posted a photo of the two together.
This wasn’t their first encounter. Adames and Gonzalez met back in 2024, when Gonzalez had just signed.
According to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic, international scouting director Joe Salermo joked then that Gonzalez was the player who would take Adames' job. Adames fired back with a joke of his own, saying he would have to wait at least seven years.
That timeline may not end up being so far off.
Gonzalez is only 19, but his stock is already soaring. He started 2026 in the Arizona Complex League before getting promoted, along with 18-year-old Luis Hernandez, to Single-A San Jose. There, he put together a loud line: .357/.444/.566 with three home runs, 35 runs batted in, and 13 stolen bases in 31 games and 153 plate appearances.
The Dominican-born shortstop brings a lot to the table. He’s viewed as a strong defender, he can run, and he hits from both sides of the plate.
The power is still developing, but there’s belief it will come as he gets older and stronger. There’s even a chance he could be ranked as the top prospect in baseball next year.
That kind of hype comes with baggage for the Giants, who have already gone down this road with young shortstop talent. Marco Luciano was supposed to be the future at the position, and it didn’t work out that way. Gonzalez will inevitably draw the same kind of attention.
Adames’ rough 2026 season, along with the injuries that slowed him down, only adds fuel to that conversation. He remains under contract through 2031, and Gonzalez is still several years from the majors, so there’s no immediate change coming. Still, the idea of Gonzalez pushing for the job could become a real storyline down the line.
For now, he’s just a teenager climbing through the system. But by 2029 or 2030, Gonzalez could be the one challenging Adames for the Giants’ starting shortstop role.
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