Scouting the 2023 Draft: Review of Giants Draft Rounds 1-10

Time for a formal review of the the Giants haul from Days 1 and 2 of the draft.  Whatever you think of the individual picks, one thing seems clear:  The Giants went in with a plan and executed it perfectly. That's not automatic as it also seems likely the Padres and Dodgers had their pockets picked and had to scramble for back up plans in real time.  From that perspective you have to give the Giants an A grade.  Let's dive into the player summaries and then finish up with some general comments.  

Round 1 #16:  Bryce Eldridge RHP/1B(HS). DOB:  10/20/2004.  B-L, T-R.  6'7", 223 lbs.  We've already made quite a few comments but to recap, Eldridge is tall and lean but with an athletic frame that has room for more mass.  He is as true 2-way player who scouts legitimately debated whether he is more likely to end up a hitter or pitcher.  Hitting is generally the more difficult side for 2-wayers but the majority of scouts like Eldridge more as a hitter than pitcher.  Although tall hitters frequently have trouble controlling the strike zone, scouting reports say Eldridge has a short compact swing that is quick to the ball, yet maintains the leverage his length gives him for tremendous power projection.  As for the pitching side he has a big over-the-top delivery with tremendous finishing power.  He's been up to 97 with his fastball and should easily top 100 with maturity and coaching.  He's a statement pick by the Giants who are not hiding their intent to aggressively pursue and develop 2-way talent.  Is that a statement someone named Shohei Ohtani is reading?  The sky is the limit for this kid.  I will go so far as to say he has the highest ceiling of the entire draft, although the bust potential is admittedly pretty high too. If you haven't seen video of this kid, I encourage you to look it up.

Round 2 #16:  Walker Martin SS(HS).  DOB:  2/20/2004.  B-L, T-R.  6'2", 188 lbs. 2-sport athlete in HS playing QB in football.  Has athleticism and arm to stick at SS but enough projected bat to play at lower premium positions.  Giants interest was smoked out with some talk of him being their first round target, although Keith Law thought they were possibly targeting him in round 2.  That seemed unlikely as most rankings had him in at least in the top 40 but just like that, he fell to the Giants at #52.  Giants have a relative organizational need for power bats in general and lefty power bats in particular.  They addressed that with the first two picks but it may take awhile for both to develop.  

Round 2C #69:  Joe Whitman LHP(College).  DOB:  9/17/2001.  6'5", 200 lbs.  2023:  9-2, 2.56, 81 IP, 29 BB, 100 K.  Made one appearance in the Cape Cod League this summer and struck out 9 batters in 5 IP with 0 BB.  Unheard of prior to transfer to Kent State from Purdue for his junior season.  Put together a strong season and got late attention from draft analysts as the top college LHP in a relatively weak class.  Has a low-mid-90's FB with a sharp slider and some fade to a changeup he mostly kept in his back pocket.  Scouting reports say he has a legitimate 3-pitch mix and projects as a MLB SP.   Some comps to Carson Whisenhunt LHP except The Whiz's main secondary pitch is a changeup.  Many rankings had Whitman going in the top 40 so the Giants can claim to have landed 3 top 40 prospects with their first 3 picks.  MLB had them ranked at #23, #30 and #37.  My guess is Whitman's  upward trajectory in the Giants system will be a bit slower than Whisenhunt's.

Round 3 #85.  Cole Foster SS(College).  DOB:  10/8/2001.  B-S, T- R.  6'1", 193 lbs.  2023:  .336/.429/.570, 13 HR, 5 SB, 30 BB, 50 K, 263 PA.  MLB scouting report says he was the second ranked HS SS out of Texas in 2020 but ended up going undrafted in the shortened 5-round draft.  Has the tools to stick at SS but as more of a solid than spectacular defender.  Solid approach from both sides of the plate using all fields with gap and occasional HR power.  May end up as a utility player which is a plus in Giantsland.  

Round 4 #117.  Maui Ahuna SS(College).  DOB:  3/11/2002.  B-L, T-R.  6'1", 170 lbs.  2023:  .312/.425/.537, 8 HR, 4 SB, 37 BB, 77 K, 247 PA.  More of a plus defensive SS than Cole Foster but more of a question mark with the bat.  Hit .396 for Kansas as a sophomore before transferring to Tennessee and struggling to make contact.  He did draw a lot of walks.  Perhaps he became too selective?  MLB scouting report says his swing tends to get long and he has trouble readjusting.  Still has some room to fill out a wiry strong frame.  A bit of a project but probably has a higher ceiling than Foster.

Round 5 #153.  Quinn McDaniel 2B(College).  DOB:  9/27/2002.  B-R, T-R.  5' 11", 180 lbs.  .354/.513/.688, 16 HR, 32 SB, 60 BB, 44 K, 261 PA.  Unranked by MLB, #322 by Prospects Live.  Terrific stat line for Maine but against iffy competition.  On video he appears to have an incredibly quick swing with wrist strength that allows him to kind of flick the ball to all fields with power although it also shows him trying to jerk-pull the ball several times.  College 2B profile puts pressure on the bat but it's hard to ignore that stat line.

Round 6 #180.  Luke Schliger C(College).  DOB:  9/27/2002.  B-L, T-R.  5' 9", 180 lbs.  2023:  .336/.523/.582, 11 HR, 14 SB, 69 BB, 56 K, 328 PA.  Bowling ball shaped catcher with enough speed to steal 14 bases?  Now that's a unique profile!  Hit .273 on the Cape.  Plus hit tool with elite on-base skills.  All other tools are average to below.  Lefty hitting catchers are always have a shot.

Round 7 #210.  Scott Bandura OF(College).  DOB:  8/2/2001.  B-L, T-R.  6'4", 190 lbs.  2023:  .363/454/.665, 12 HR, 15 SB, 31 BB, 36 K.  One of the more interesting human interest stories of the draft.   The kid who was Mo'Ne Davis's catcher in the 2014 Little League World Series grew up to be an athletic looking 6' 4" and playing baseball for Princeton U.  The Ivy League cancelled their 2021 season and Bandura was injured for much of 2022 but broke out in 2023.  Yes, the Ivy League is not a strong league but Princeton played a strong non-league schedule and Bandura shined against those teams.  The frame looks like it has room to carry more mass and get stronger. 

Round 8 #240.  Josh Bostick RHP(JC).  DOB:  10/20/2001.  6'4", 205 lbs.  Muscular strong looking pitcher.  Scouting report says FB sits low 90's but has touched 97 MPH with a solid slider as a secondary pitch.  Raw and needs development but has the frame and strength to pitch a lot of innings.  

Round 9 #270.  Charlie Szykowny 3B(College).  DOB:  6/30/2000.  B-L, T-R.  6'4", 225 lbs.  2023:  .335/.426/.655, 16 HR, 21 BB, 34 K, 237 PA.  You may reasonably discount the stat line from Univ of Illinois-Chicago but Youtube video footage shows impressive athleticism while playing SS and tremendous size with a quick, short swing to the ball at the plate.  Older senior prospect but I'm calling him a sleeper in the system.

Round 10 #300.  Ryan Vanderhei RHP(College).  DOB:  6/1/2021.  6'6", 185 lbs.  2023:  4-3, 6.75, 42.2 IP, 25 BB, 43 K.  Highly ranked prep prospect whose stats did not progress much in college despite a transfer from Kansas to TCU.  Coaching project for the Giants pitching gurus.

This was the draft equivalent of a 3-true outcomes player.  They either hit it out of the park or struck out.  Gotta love the aggressiveness and shoot-for-the-moon mentality after literally decades of mostly safe draft picks.  

One more thought but not about the Giants, at least directly:  Gotta love Kim Ng blowing up her old organization's plans by grabbing Thomas White LHP at #35, one pick ahead of the Dodgers whose first pick was #36 because they were penalized due to exceeding a payroll threshold.