Alen Hanson was the flashy superutility player the Giants had been missing

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty ImagesSTAT LINE 110 games, 310 PA, .252/.274/.425, 8 HR, 39 RBI, 7/10 SB

We’re two years removed from the middle infielder glut of 2016, when Ruben Tejada, Ramiro Pena, Ehire Adrianza, Grant Green, Kelby Tomlinson, and Gordon Beckham all competed for utility time. That group combined for 4 home runs and 33 RBI in 339 at bats while slashing .265 / .322 / .357 (.679 OPS). It took six players to do all that but Alen Hanson did basically all that and a bit more all by himself in 2018.

Look, I’m not going to sit here and say that I think you should think that Alen Hanson had a great year, but he was certainly an exciting player for half a season — certainly,…