Patrick Bailey already is plenty familiar with Giants top prospect Joey Bart.
The two now are San Francisco's top catching prospects after the Giants selected Bailey with the No. 13 pick in the 2020 MLB Draft on Wednesday night. Just two years ago, the Giants took Bart with the No. 2 pick in the draft, the same year he and Bailey were two of the best catchers in the ACC.
As Bailey was breaking North Carolina State records as a freshman in 2018, Bart was solidifying himself as a top draft pick every game at Georgia Tech. And Bailey definitely remembers when the two squared off in late March that season.
With our All Access Daily newsletter, stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams!
SIGN UP HERE "We played a home series my freshman year against Georgia Tech and I remember playing against Joey," Bailey said Thursday morning on KNBR's "Murph & Mac" show. "I think he tore us up that weekend."
Bailey wasn't calling pitches yet as a freshman, so he had to give a quick jab to NC State's pitching coach.
"Whatever he was calling wasn't working," Bailey said.
In reality, Bailey had a better performance that weekend than Bart when his Wolfpack beat Georgia Tech in two out of three games. Bailey went 4-for-10 with one RBI, one run scored and struck out once. Bart, on the other hand, went 3-for-13 with a double, two RBI, three runs scored, two strikeouts and two walks.
San Francisco Giants
Find the latest San Francisco Giants news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
[RELATED: Comparing Giants top draft pick Bailey to Bart in college]
That same year, Bart went on to hit .359 with 16 home runs. He won the Johnny Bench Award as the best catcher in college baseball, and wound up being picked second overall by the Giants.
Bailey and Bart soon could have a catcher competition, however, the plan certainly is to hopefully have them in the same lineup one day. But back in 2018, Bailey got the best of Bart for one weekend on the diamond.
[GIANTS INSIDER PODCAST: Listen to the latest episode]