Crawford told of position change after Correa signing

With the offseason addition of Carlos Correa, San Francisco Giants legend Brandon Crawford will be forced to move off his natural position.

Less than 15 minutes after the news of the signing, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and manager Gabe Kapler told the shortstop he'd be forced to play a different position next season, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic.

For Crawford's part, the four-time Gold Glove winner is prepared to make the best of the situation.

"(Correa's) been one of the better players in the league for years, and it's obviously exciting to get a player of his caliber to San Francisco," Crawford told Baggarly. "That being said, he is a shortstop, and since the signing the other day, I've been told that that's where he'll stay. So, that puts me in a much different situation than I've ever been faced with in professional baseball.

"So, the rest of this offseason, spring training, and during the season, I will be working my hardest to be the best I can be at a different position and help us get back to the postseason."

Zaidi has referred to the 35-year-old Crawford as the best shortstop in franchise history. He's been worth 128.2 Def over his 12-year career, according to FanGraphs, saving 69 runs by DRS and 44.6 via UZR. He ranks sixth all time among shortstops by Def and fifth by DRS.

While he's been extremely valuable defensively, Crawford's offensive output has tapered off. After impressive 2020 and 2021 campaigns, the three-time All-Star hit .231/.308/.344 last season with nine homers and one stolen base over 118 games.

Prior to Correa signing a 13-year, $350-million contract with San Francisco, there had been no indication that Crawford might have to move off shortstop, per Baggarly.

"Maybe I can finally get an inning on the mound," Crawford jokingly added.

Crawford is entering the final season of a two-year, $32-million contract extension he signed in August 2021, months before he would've been able to hit free agency.