Guess who's tied with Pete Crow-Armstrong for the second-most Outs Above Average (9) behind Bobby Witt Jr. Nico Hoerner? Byron Buxton? Believe it or not, the answer is former Twins infielder Luis Arráez, who has been the San Francisco Giants' starting second baseman this season. Arráez is also tied for the 11th most Defensive Runs Saved (5) in MLB.
Throughout his career, Arráez has always been known for his elite contact skills. Since making his MLB debut with the Twins in 2019, Arráez, 29, has managed an outstanding .317 batting average with a 6% strikeout rate over 875 games. However, hitting for average has been his only strength for most of his career. The Venezuela native has a low career walk rate (6.4%), has hit just 36 home runs and stolen only 35 bases, and had -2 career Defensive Runs Saved before the 2026 season.
Offensively, Arráez has been on brand in his first season with the Giants, who signed the former Twin infielder to a one-year deal worth $12 million in the offseason. Over 36 games in 2026, Arráez has slashed .312/.336/.390 with a 106 wRC+ and zero home runs. Despite Arráez being pretty much the same hitter he has been throughout his career, his drastically improved defense has helped him produce 1.3 fWAR and 1.4 bWAR, both higher than his totals from each of the last two seasons.
Arráez has been bright spot for Giants in rough 2026 season
It's remarkable that Arráez has gone from a known poor fielder to one of the best defenders in baseball (at least for now) in such a short time. He didn't sign his deal with San Francisco until Feb. 10, likely partly because he had made it known he would only sign with a team willing to allow him to play second base regularly. Many, including myself, believed that was a poor decision by Arráez at the time. However, he has clearly proved me wrong thus far in 2026 with his elite fielding.
While the Giants are having a rough season, trailing the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers by nine games with a 15-24 record, Arráez has been a bright spot for the team. Ron Washington, who has 10 years of managerial experience with the Texas Rangers (2007-14) and Los Angeles Angels (2024-25), is San Francisco's infield coach. Given his strong coaching pedigree, Washington, 74, likely has played a big part in Arráez's drastic improvement at second base.
Unless the Giants make a surprising turnaround, the club will likely shop Arráez at the Trade Deadline. If Arráez continues to hit above .300 while playing elite defense, San Francisco should be able to secure a solid prospect in exchange for the second baseman.
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