Giants win arbitration case against Donovan Solano

The Giants have won their arbitration case against infielder Donovan Solano, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Solano will earn $3.25M in 2021 after filing for $3.9M.

Solano, who previously appeared in the majors with the Marlins and Yankees, has turned into an unexpected success story since the Giants signed him to a minor league deal before the 2019 season. Since then, Solano has batted .328/.362/.459 in 431 plate appearances, and even though he hasn’t shown much power (.131 ISO, seven home runs), his overall output has still been 20 percent higher than the league-average mark, according to FanGraphs. Defensively, Solano has mostly lined up at second for the Giants, with whom he has managed one Defensive Run Saved and a minus-3.0 Ultimate Zone Rating in almost 600 innings.

Solano should again earn plenty of playing time in San Francisco in 2021. It could be the 33-year-old’s last season in San Francisco, however, as he’s slated to become a free agent next winter.