San Francisco Giants Are “Frontrunners” To Land All-Star, Insider Says

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Brendan Donovan reacts during the fifth inning against the Miami Marlins on July 30, 2025.

On Saturday December 13, 2025, Katie Woo of The Athletic reported that the San Francisco Giants are among the frontrunners to acquire All-Star and Gold Glove second baseman Brendan Donovan in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Donovan, 28, has three more years of team control on his contract including 2026. He would be an immediate starter for the Giants, who have been looking to upgrade at second base all offseason.

In 118 games last season with St. Louis, Donovan hit .287 with 10 home runs and 50 RBI. He’s a career .282 hitter who also has an elite glove.

The Seattle Mariners are considered the other frontrunners to land Donovan.

What would it take for the Giants to acquire Donovan?

Reports indicate that the Cardinals are looking for two well-respected prospects in exchange for Donovan.

Woo reported that two prospects who have been brought up in talks between the Cardinals and Giants are left-handed pitcher Carson Whisenhunt and the Giants’ 2025 first-round draft pick, infielder Gavin Kilen.

Kilen is the Giants’ No. 3 prospect while Whisenhunt checks in at No. 7. Both players would be tough for the Giants to part with.

Kilen has ties to new Giants manager Tony Vitello, who coached him at Tennessee. Whisenhunt is a favorite to crack the Giants’ 2026 Opening Day rotation as of right now; San Francisco only has 3 starting pitchers on the roster that are locks to be in the rotation in 2026.

It all depends on how strongly the Giants feel about Donovan and if they believe his skillset is worth parting ways with two potential future stars.

What Acquiring Donovan Would Mean For Casey Schmitt, Others

Casey Schmitt emerged as the Giants’ starting second baseman last season amidst a productive, but not spectacular, offensive year.

In 95 games during the 2025 season, Schmitt hit .237 with 12 home runs and 40 RBI. His batting average leaves something to be desired compared to Donovan, but he does have intriguing power potential.

A trade for Donovan would probably mean that the Giants don’t believe Schmitt can be a good everyday second baseman. But they would likely still want to keep him on the roster as a utility infielder and power bat off the bench. Schmitt played third base, second base and first base and even shortstop last season.

Which could then make it tough for utility man Christian Koss to crack the Opening Day roster. The Giants would have 6 infielders on their roster already before Koss: Matt Chapman, Willy Adames, Donovan, Schmitt, Bryce Eldridge and Rafael Devers.

The Giants would be playing 5/6 of those infielders at a time, given that Eldridge and Devers are likely going to switch off playing first base and designated hitter. So maybe they would want to keep a seventh infielder, but that would leave them with only 4 outfielders and 2 catchers. And there are so many outfielders on the Giants 40-man roster. So many.

The Giants’ final 40-man infielder, Tyler Fitzgerald would face an even steeper climb to making the Opening Day roster than Koss.

Giants fans, what do you think about the Brendan Donovan rumors? Is he worth the potential prospect cost? Is he a clear upgrade on the field over Casey Schmitt?

Ethan Inman is a sports journalist covering USC football, the San Francisco 49ers, San Francisco Giants and Las Vegas Raiders for heavy.com. He also co-hosts a college football podcast for The Voice of College Football. He has previously covered the greater USC Athletics, the NHL, college baseball, and the intersection of sports and popular culture for other publications. He is based in the greater Los Angeles area. More about Ethan Inman