Following 2022 Hiatus, Michael Conforto Making Fantastic Impression in First Spring with Giants
The 2022-23 off-season revolved around what signings didn’t transpire for the San Francisco Giants, who swung and missed on top free agents like Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa. But one player who was signed and could pay off is Michael Conforto.
Conforto, who inked a two-year deal worth $36 million over the winter, has only played six exhibition contests with his new team thus far (entering Friday’s slate). So it’s still very early into his Giants tenure. Nevertheless, the initial returns on his arrival have been met with immense success this spring.
With Opening Day less than three weeks away, the 30-year-old appears to have already found his stride offensively, hitting .313/.368/.875 with a .563 ISO and .484 wOBA across 19 Cactus League plate appearances. And he certainly hasn’t shied away from displaying his power stroke lately.
Few ballparks have been able to contain Conforto’s fly balls this week, as his team-high three home runs have occurred in consecutive games, with his latest blast sparking San Francisco’s 5-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday.
Conforto missed all last season due to right shoulder surgery, though you likely wouldn’t be able to tell by looking at him in 2023. The left-hander hasn’t missed a beat during the early stages of spring training competition, signalling he’s determined to make up for lost time.
Evaluating small sample sizes this time of year can be more challenging than predicting the weather a week in advance – both tend to be misleading and constantly change. Nevertheless, Giants manager Gabe Kapler and his staff must feel encouraged by what they’ve seen from the former Met.
The ultimate test, of course, will come once the regular season begins, where Conforto will have to prove his early success is more than just a spring-training bump. And he’s no doubt aware of that. But considering these are his first live at-bats in 17 months, it’s hard not to get excited about his progression coming off such a significant injury.
After rehabbing his shoulder for nearly an entire year, it would have been understandable if the 2017 All-Star endured a less-than-impressive offensive showing out of the gate. But instead of showing signs of rust, the veteran outfielder has looked rejuvenated following his one-year hiatus.
Now, entering his eighth major-league campaign – his first away from the Mets – the Giants are counting on Conforto to enjoy a bounce-back performance in 2023, needing his difference-making offensive skill set to re-emerge on the west coast.
A healthy Conforto – who can opt out next winter if he reaches 350 plate appearances – sat amongst the top-performing outfielders in the majors not long ago. Though it took him a few seasons to settle in at the big-league level, the 6-foot-1 lefty broke out in a big way in Year 3 with New York and was a reliable source of offense from 2017 to 2020.
Across those four stellar seasons, Conforto ranked seventh in fWAR (14.9), 13th in RBIs (273), 14th in wRC+ (133) and OBP (.369), tied for 14th in walk rate (12.7 percent) and 15th in home runs (97) among qualified outfielders, according to FanGraphs.
The 10th overall selection from 2014 also showcased one of his top abilities: his availability, playing at least 90 percent of New York’s schedule in three of those four campaigns. So if healthy, Giants fans should expect to see a ton of him this season.
Conforto did, however, endure a disappointing 2021 campaign as he struggled at the plate, faltering to a .232/.344/.384 slash line and a 106 wRC+ – the second-worst of his career – over 125 games. He was also worth 1.4 fWAR, his lowest rating since 2016 (1.1).
While his results were unimpressive on the surface, they actually shouldn’t have been as poor as they were, at least based on his underlying metrics. Despite generating a .253 xAVG, .436 xSLG and a .350 xwOBA, he was one of the game’s unluckiest hitters that season.
Why was there so much disparity between Conforto’s traditional and advanced numbers? Luck played a role, but so did his batted-ball distribution, which became far too predictable.
The former Met’s 40.8 percent pull percentage wasn’t out of the ordinary, although his opposite-field percentage (22.4) was the second-lowest of his career. With a career-high 44.7 percent ground ball rate, opposing defences could stack three defenders on the right side, turning several potential hits into outs.
That won’t be the case in 2023, though, amid MLB’s ban on infield shifts. Teams can position two outfielders on the same side, which a few have experimented with this spring, leaving a corner outfield spot unguarded. But for the most part, the new rule should benefit lefties like Conforto.
Much of Conforto’s build-up has focused on his offensive tools this spring, with the veteran limited to the designated hitter spot across his first five games. And that allowed him to feel comfortable in the batter’s box again. He wasn’t acquired solely for his offense, though.
The Seattle, Wash., native returned to the field Thursday, logging six innings in right before departing for the afternoon. While eager to make his first defensive play of 2023, there wasn’t a single ball hit in his direction, meaning he’ll have to wait a little longer for that moment.
Conforto’s first Cactus League start in the outfield was uneventful, but it wasn’t without purpose, as it was a significant milestone in his post-surgery journey. It may also be one of the few occasions he has an opportunity to patrol right field, his preferred position.
By acquiring Mitch Haniger in free agency, San Francisco’s front office upgraded its right field position, but it also likely pushes Conforto to left, which he hasn’t played since 2018. That wouldn’t be ideal in most cases. In this one, however, it may work out pretty favourably.
After making his major-league debut in 2015, Conforto spent the majority of his first four seasons with the Mets in left field, logging 2,045 career innings. He wasn’t a Gold-Glove calibre defender, though his results were impactful, creating +10 DRS and +8 OAA.
Those figures might be an unrealistic expectation, especially considering the veteran outfielder went a full season without game action and is coming off shoulder surgery. Even so, an outfield trio of Conforto-Mike Yastrzemski-Haniger should pack a bigger punch than last season’s group.
It probably won’t be enough to turn the Giants into a playoff contender on its own, though it could shorten the gap between themselves and the upper class of the NL East Division: the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Arturo Pardavila III. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.