On paper, this critically important position is locked down by for at least the next 3 seasons by Jung Hoo Lee but he is coming off a major injury/surgery, fortunately on his non-throwing shoulder.
MLB:
Jung Hoo Lee: .262/.310/.331, 2 HR, 2 SB, 6.3 BB%, 8.2 K%, 156 PA.
Grant McCray: .202/.238/.379, 5 HR, 5 SB, 4.6 BB%, 43.1 K%, 130 PA.
Luis Matos: .202/.238/.379, 5 HR, 3.2 BB%, 15.4 K%, 156 PA.
Wade Meckler: AAA: .288/.357/.508, 8 HR, 3 SB, 196 PA.
Giants are in a bit of a weird situation in that Lee is paid a whole lot of money to be the starting CF for at least the next 3 years(I think he has a opt out after his 4'th season. The weirdness comes from Grant McCray obviously having louder tools and a higher ceiling. That situation can be easily defused by giving McCray the salt he needs with more time in AAA. The other reason for optimism is almost everybody expected a transition period from the KBO to MLB for Lee. There were signs he might be coming out of his early season struggles with .310 BA over his last 7 games before he was hurt, but does he start over now? Also note Mike Yastrzemski would be #2 except he's the starter in RF. One likely scenario is the Giants sign a RF in free agency and move YtY to a 4'th OF role in which he would be the #2 CF. Less likely the Giants will not tender him a contract offer at the arbitration deadline and he becomes a free agent.
AAA:
Hunter Bishop: (2 teams) .245/.315/.380, 11 HR, 15 SB, 518 PA.
Bishop is probably not a CF at the MLB level but played about 1/3 of his games there in the minors this season.
AA:
Carter Howell: .272/.347/.391, 30 2B, 7 3B, 3 HR, 15 SB, 9.3 BB%, 19.6 K%, 505 PA.
Turner Hill: A+: .270/.383/.414, 3 HR, 15 SB, 13.5 BB%, 10.1 K%, 207 PA. AA: .266/.364/.324, 14 SB, 10.8 BB%, 14.0 K%, 222 PA.
A couple of UDFA's who more than held their own in a notoriously hitter-unfriendly environment. No defensive scouting reports but both appear to have enough speed to play CF. Both need a bit more HR power.
A+:
Jonah Cox: A: .297/.412/.384, 2 HR, 38 SB, 13.1 BB%, 22.5 K%, 275 PA. A+: .225/.324/.350, 3 HR, 20 SB, 11.9 BB%, 31.9 K%, 185 PA.
A:
Bo Davidson: .328/.438/.608, 7 3B, 9 HR, 6 SB, 14.2 BB%, 23.9 K%, 226 PA.
Jose Ortiz: ACL: .306/.455/.400, HR, 10 SB, 12.5 BB%, 17.9 K%, 112 PA.
Bo Davidson is another UDFA with some size and tools. Probably too advanced for A ball. Getting a few more higher level PA's in the AFL. Should start next season at A+ and we'll get a better feel for his potential. Ortiz was a HS draftee out of Puerto Rico in 2023 so still has some time to develop.
ACL:
Rayner Arias: .250/.371/.364, 8 2B, 3 SB, 11.4 BB%, 25.7 K%, 105 PA.
Don't forget about Rayner Arias. One of the most highly rated international prospects from the 2023 cycle. Early development slowed by a wrist injury. Looking forward to seeing what he can do another winter of recovery.
DSL:
Oliver Tejada: .300/.405/.488, 5 HR, 13 SB, 10.7 BB%, 18.5 K%, 205 PA.
Miguel Blanco: .255/.398/.336, 5 SB, 17.5 BB%, 20.5 K%, 171 PA.
Luis Frias: .224/.327/.329, HR, 13 SB, 10.8 BB%, 29.9 K%, 143 PA.
Baseball America had high praise for the Giants 2024 international signing cycle. Tejada was one of those signings who performed well in his pro debut. Blanco and Frias are 19 and 20 yo respectively and probably too old to be considered Dominican Dandies.
Summary:
The Giants have a lot riding on a comeback from Jung Hoo Lee after a devastating injury. Grant McCray has a higher ceiling but needs more seasoning. There are some intriguing prospects in between but Rayner Arias is the next highly rated CF prospect but he's been long projected to end up in a corner OF position. Time will tell.
Just like the rest of the OF right now, CF is a mess and a crapshoot...Lee MAY be able to be the man in CF but I wouldn't bet on it...RAMOS better in corner OF but even then he needs to repeat and improve on last year....And McCrya I think is still a real good prospect but doesn't look ready..FZ left the position players in a shambles..
ReplyDeleteSteveVA
FZ left the MLB roster in a mess with a few intriguing possibilities and a whole lot of uncertainty.
DeleteThere seems to be 1 outfielder position, 1 middle infield position, a DH, an iffy 1B, and a b/u catcher to fill with potentially a lot of money to spend if Snell opts out which is expected.
ReplyDeleteFarhan wasn't up to this challenge, is Buster?
I think that's about right.
DeleteI like Lee, Ramos, YtY, Matos, Meckler as opening day major roster OF'ers. Those last 2 guys don't seem to get respect for overall good '24s, particularly at AAA (near .800 OPSs, respectable homers, respectable steals, few Ks) which with defensive versatility (especially if Meckler can be occasional L-batting 2B'er) make them good bench/platoon prospects (could be YtY/Matos in RF & Meckler getting some of the 2B starts vs. RHP. Let McCray work on cutting down his Ks as long as he needs at AAA. Use the remaining year of YtY to figure out if McCray & Tibbs are ready to be lefty major leaguers & take that info to '25 F.A. market.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that might be a consideration if Buster decides to upgrade SS and 1B instead of OF.
Deleteand DH?
Delete