SAN FRANCISCO — Seventeen years ago, the Giants made the franchise-altering decision to take Buster Posey with the fifth overall pick of the 2008 MLB Draft.
Now that the three-time World Series champion is calling the shots as the club’s president of baseball operations, he’ll have a chance to handpick the next generation of players who could develop into future cornerstones for the Giants.
Draft coverage:
Day 1 (Rounds 1-3): Sun., July 13, 6 p.m. ET (MLBN/MLB.com/ESPN)
Day 2 (Rounds 4-20): Mon., July 14, 11:30 a.m. ET (MLB.com)
Posey will oversee his first Draft as an executive beginning on Sunday, when the Giants will kick off Day 1 by making the 13th overall selection in the 20-round event. While the process will be fairly new to Posey, he’ll be able to lean on senior director of amateur scouting Michael Holmes, who has led the organization’s drafting efforts since 2019.
• Day 1 of Draft, Rounds 1-3
• Sunday, July 13, 3 p.m. PT (MLBN/MLB.com/ESPN)
• Day 2 of Draft, Rounds 4-20
• Monday, July 14, 8:30 a.m. PT (MLB.com)
Under former president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, the Giants seemed to prioritize players who controlled the strike zone, which drew them to promising first-round hitters like first baseman Bryce Eldridge (the club’s No. 1 prospect per MLB Pipeline) and outfielder James Tibbs III (who was dealt to the Red Sox as part of the Rafael Devers trade) in each of the last two years.
It will be interesting to see if the organization’s philosophy changes under Posey, who has emphasized his desire to build a core of homegrown players who can help spark a dynastic run, similar to the one he spearheaded during his 12-year career in San Francisco.
MLB Pipeline’s latest mock Draft has the Giants taking Oklahoma right-hander Kyson Witherspoon with their first-round pick this year. However, they’ve also been linked to college hitters such as Auburn outfielder/catcher Ike Irish, Wake Forest shortstop Marek Houston, Texas A&M outfielder Jace LaViotte and Arizona outfielder Brendan Summerhill. Other possibilities include prep shortstops Daniel Pierce and Kayson Cunningham and UC Santa Barbara right-hander Tyler Bremner.
COMPLETE GIANTS PROSPECT COVERAGE
The Giants won’t have their full complement of picks for the second straight year, as they had to sacrifice their second and fifth-round picks after signing qualified free agent Willy Adames in December.
Still, drafting well will be more important than ever, given the sizable financial commitments the Giants have taken on within the last year. After giving a combined $333 million to Adames and third baseman Matt Chapman, San Francisco was also willing to absorb the remaining $250 million on Devers’ contract, which runs through 2033 and is now the largest deal in franchise history.
With a large chunk of their payroll now dedicated to three position players who will be here through the end of the decade, the Giants will need to establish a steady pipeline of cost-controlled talent to ensure that they can fill other holes internally and emerge as sustainable contenders in the years to come.