DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #7 Keyner Martinez

7.  Keyner Martinez RHP.   DOB:  8/16/2004.  6' 1", 165 lbs.  Rule 5 Eligible Dec. 2026.

2025(ACL):  3-1, 1.90, 47.1 IP, 12.74 K/9, 1.90 BB/9, 1.28 GB/FB.

2025(A):  2-1, 2.86, 22 IP, 12.27 K/9, 4.50 BB/9, 1.65 GB/FB.  

When Baseball America says you have the best fastball and best slider in the organization, how can you not be the top pitching prospect?  Martinez was a "pop-up" pitching prospect in 2025, dominated two levels and enters 2026 with big expectations.  The only issue with him is the pesky Rule 5 Draft.  Since he was 19 years old when he signed in 2023 he is eligible after 4 years.  He did not pitch in 2023 but that still counted as a year of service time so he's eligible at the end of this season.  If he remains healthy and continues to show premium stuff, The Giants will have to burn a 40-man roster spot to protect him.  Not that it's never been done but the Giants in recent years have been loathe to spend a roster spot on prospects who are still 2-3 years away.  If the stuff is for real, they might want to be aggressive with him, push him to A+ with the goal of having him finish the season in at least AA.

DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #8 Jacob Bresnahan

8.  Jacob Bresnahan LHP.   DOB:  6/27/2005.  6' 4", 195 lbs.  Rule 5 Eligible Dec. 2027.

2025(A):  9-3, 2.61, 93 IP, 12.00 K/9, 4.16 BB/9.

Before I looked at Bresnahan's numbers and MLB Pipeline scouting report, I didn't think I would rank him this high.  I saw him pitch against Rancho Cucamonga early in the season and wasn't that impressed with his stuff and the first 6 weeks of his season were rough.  Through his first 3 starts his line stood at 0-1, 8.18, 11 IP, 8 BB, 12 K.  I think I saw him in the third game of that stretch.  The rest of the season he went 9-2, 1.85, 82.2 IP, 12.19 K/9, 2.81 BB/9 which is elite and at just his age 19 season.  

His MLB Pipeline scouting report has his FB 91-94 MPH topping out at 96.  I think the game I saw him he was at the lower end of that range.  Presumably he either gained command or built his velocity as teh season progressed.  His best secondary pitch is a fading changeup and also has a sweeping slider.  

He's a big kid who still has room to fill out his frame and get stronger.  He should start out 2026 in A+ ball with a chance to move up to AA before the season is over.  Starting to get some national recognition as a nice prospect but still qualifies as a sleeper with a lot of upside and a high ceiling.

Hot Stove League Update: Spring Invites Reveal Under Radar Move

The Giants revealed their list of non-roster spring training invitations.  There weren't a lot of surprises but a name that is causing some buzz is Michael Fulmer RHP.  Once upon a time, Fulmer was one of the best young pitchers in the game for the Tigers before his career got derailed by a series of injuries.  He made a  comeback as a reliever for the Cubs in 2023 but then missed the entire 2024 season after a revision of his previous Tommy John surgery.  He rehabbed his way through AAA stops with 4 different organizations in 2025 but appeared in just 3 MLB games between the Cubs and Red Sox.  Let's break it down:

Michael Fulmer RHP.  DOB:  3/15/1993.  6' 3", 224 lbs. 

2023(Cubs):  3-5, 4.42, 57 IP, 10.26 K/9, 4.42 BB/9, 2 Saves, 94.3 vFA.

2025(AAA-4 teams):  1-3, 3.39, 66.1 IP, 11.67 K/9, 3.93 BB/9, 5 Saves.

2025(MLB- Cubs, Red Sox):  0-0, 4.76, 5.2 IP, 4.76 K/9, 3.18 BB/9, 93.5 vFA.  

While the K/BB at the MLB level is not great, it's an extremely small sample and the AAA numbers look much better.  The FB is is a couple of ticks down from the 96 MPH at his peak but is also not terrible. 2026 will be his second season back from surgery which sometimes correlates with an uptick in performance.  You don't have to squint too hard to see Fulmer making the Opening Day roster out of the bullpen and even taking on some Save Opps during the season.

DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #9 Trevor McDonald

9. Trevor McDonald RHP.  DOB:  2/26/2001.  6' 2", 201 lbs.  40-Man Roster, 1 Option.

2025(AAA):  9-9, 5.31, 142.1 IP, 9.11 K/9, 3.92 BB/9, 2.03 GB/FB.

2025(MLB):  1-0, 1.80, 15 IP,  8.40 K/9, 1.20 BB/9, 2.30 GB/FB.  

I really liked McDonald as a pitching prospect since I saw him pitch in A ball.  He finally made it to The Show late last season and opened a few eyes in the process allowing just 1 ER in 13 IP over his final two games and striking out 10 in his final start.  His ground ball rates are elite.   His pitch mix includes a 93-94 MPH sinker which he threw 40% and a tight, hard curveball which he threw 50%.  Fangraphs also has him throwing a changeup and slider about 5% each.  The changeup was his least effective pitch.  Looking back in my mind's eye, I swear I saw a changeup that had the makings of a plus pitch.  Delivering that more often would seem to be the best path to a full SP pitch mix.  

At this point, Landen Roupp looks like the presumptive 5'th starter in the rotation but it's highly likely the Giants will need more than 5 SP's over the course of the season and McDonald should be an early option when more are needed.

DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #10 Carson Seymour

10.  Carson Seymour RHP.  DOB:  12/16/1998.  6' 6", 255 lbs.  40-man roster, 2 Options.

2025(AAA):  4-8, 3.86, 77 IP, 10.52 K/9, 4.56 BB/9, 2.45 GB/FB.

2025(MLB):  1-3, 4.75, 36 IP, 6.50 K/9, 3.25 BB/9, 1.54 GB/FB.

Seymour may have been on the active roster more than 45 days but he has less than 50 IP.  Nobody is talking about him and I'm not sure why because he did not pitch badly last season either in AAA or MLB.  He features a 5 pitch mix anchored by both a 4-seam and 2-seam FB.  He also throws a slider, curveball and change up.  Where he ran into trouble was hanging breaking pitches which resulted in too many HR's.  He finished strong giving up 1 ER over his last 5 IP.  He's a guy who can pitch in a swing man role  and go multiple innings in relief and thrives by putting the ball on the ground.

DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #11 Blade Tidwell

 11.  Blade Tidwell RHP.  DOB:  6/8/2001.  6' 4", 207 lbs.  40-man roster, 2 Options.

2025(AAA- Mets):  6-4, 4.10, 79 IP, 9.91 K/9, 3.65 BB/9.  

2025(AAA-Giants):  0-0, 1.50, 18 IP, 12.00 K/9, 2.50 BB/9.

2025(MLB- Mets):  1-1, 9.00, 15 IP, 6.00 K/9, 6.00 BB/9.

Tidwell is a former 2'nd round draft pick for the Mets out of Tennessee and acquired by the Giants in the Tyler Rogers trade.  It does seem like it might be more than coincidence the Giants have acquired several ex-Tennessee players leading up to Tony Vitello's hiring.  He's a big, hard-throwing RHP with two pitches:  4-seam FB that averaged almost 96 MPH and a slider.  He throws in a 2-seam FB which he throws under 20% of the time.  He pitched great in 3 appearances after the trade but then went on the IL with shoulder discomfort for a month.  He reportedly did not have structural damage.  He made one 2-inning start on 9/17 near the end of the season.  He is expected to be ready for spring training.  He has been used mainly as a SP in the minors but his pitch mix looks more relieverish unless he can add a changeup or split.

DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #12 Carson Whisenhunt

12.  Carson Whisenhunt LHP.  DOB:  10/20/2000.  6' 3", 214 lbs.  40-man roster, 3 Options.

2025(AAA):  9-5, 4.43, 107.2 IP, 7.94 K/9, 2.93 BB/9, 1.40 GB/FB.

2025(MLB):  2-1, 5.01, 23.1 IP, 6.17 K/9, 4.63 BB/9, 1.07 GB/FB.

The Whiz is basically a 2-pitch pitcher.  He has a sinking fastball that averaged 92.6 MPH and a changeup that has been rated as a 70 on the scouting scale.  He threw a slider just 14% of the time in his small MLB sample.  During his MLB stint I saw some really good pitches but he battled inconsistency.  It's hard to set up the changeup if you don't command the fastball and he needs to throw the slider more, especially to lefty batters.  I would think he starts out 2026 in AAA Sacramento to work on those items.  

Regarding the changeup, the best changeup I ever saw was Noah Lowry's.  I might have seen one or two of Whisenhunt's changeups that compare favorably to Lowry's but again, most of them didn't and he needs to find more consistency.