San Francisco Giants shortstop Willy Adames is currently on the 10-day injured list with a left elbow sprain. NBC Sports Bay Area’s Alex Pavlovic reports that Adames got a second opinion on his elbow. He’ll receive a PRP injection in his injured elbow, with the plan to return in 3-4 weeks.
The timing of this update is significant, as the season ends in a little more than four weeks. With not much to lose, Adames will make an effort to rehab his elbow injury and play in at least one more game.
If Adames doesn’t make it into a game, his 2026 season was not up to par. The 30-year-old slashed .230/.289/.424 with 21 home runs and a 97 wRC+ before the injury. That’s not the type of offensive production the Giants had in mind when they inked him to a $182 million contract before the 2025 season.
What’s Next for Willy Adames and the Giants?
The next step for Willy Adames is seeing how his elbow responds to the injection. Giants manager Tony Vitello expressed optimism that Adames will return before the final game of the season on September 27. But anything short of an ideal recovery likely short-circuits those plans.
Adames suffered the injury in the Giants’ series finale against the Boston Red Sox. He slid safely into home plate, but collided with Red Sox catcher Adley Rutschman. He later left the game and was placed on the injured list the next day.
The Giants are relying on Christian Koss to handle shortstop in Adames’ absence. The 28-year-old has started their past four games there. With Adames out until likely the final week of the season at the earliest, that means Koss will continue to get a runway at shortstop.
Regardless of when Adames returns, the Giants didn’t get what they expected from their starting shortstop. That in itself presents a longer-term issue that impacts the roster and the options that president of baseball operations Buster Posey has to work with.
Giants Still Owe Willy Adames $140 Million
Willy Adames is under contract for the next five seasons at $140 million. His salary jumps from $10 million to $28 million next season. However, the expectations will remain relatively the same, since the Giants tabbed him to be a significant offensive contributor.
Under Posey, the Giants have three players on nine-figure contracts on their payroll, including Adames. Of the three, only Rafael Devers reasonably performed compared to expectations as a hitter.
Coming off a season in which the club will have one of the worst records in MLB, he’s got his work cut out for him to build a competitive roster for 2027.
The key for the 30-year-old shortstop is getting healthy and ready to play for 2027. While his goal is to get back before the end of the season, there isn’t much to salvage. Instead, he’ll need to get back to the level he played at from 2021-2025, when he averaged just under 4 WAR per season.
San Francisco Giants Provide Willy Adames Injury Update Before Diamondbacks Series