The 2023 MLB Draft is here, and the Giants have an opportunity to strengthen their exciting farm system with another potential future cornerstone player.
San Francisco has the No. 16 pick in the first round of the draft after finishing the 2022 season with a record of 81-81.
After selecting two-way player Reggie Crawford and left-handed pitcher Carson Whisenhunt in the first and second rounds of last year's draft, and 25 pitchers overall in the last two drafts combined, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi anticipates a more balanced approach to this year's draft.
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"I think we're probably going to take a balanced approach ... I don't think we're going into this draft with a set notion of really hammering one side or another," Zaidi told reporters on Friday.
"I think it's a really good draft, a really deep draft. We're picking right in the middle of the first round and usually when you're picking [at] 16, you think it's a 15-player draft, that's just how it goes. We have well more than 16 players we would be really excited about adding. I think it's a really good draft at the top."
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The first and second rounds of the draft begin on Sunday, July 9 at 4 p.m. PST on ESPN and MLB Network, with rounds 3-10 on Monday and rounds 11-20 on Tuesday. Here are the players draft experts are mocking to the Giants at pick No. 16.
San Francisco Giants
Jonathan Mayo, MLB.com
Giants -- Enrique Bradfield, OF, Vanderbilt
"With Lowder and Dollander gone, there isn’t a college arm the Giants will look at, so if they want pitching, it could be prep lefty Thomas White," Mayo wrote. "But they’re more likely to go for a college hitter like Bradfield, Troy or Shaw instead. They’ll continue to look at the top high school hitters, with Miller perhaps at the top of that list."
Kiley McDaniel, ESPN
Giants -- Walker Martin, SS, Eaton (Colo.) HS
"Martin has been a hot name here for weeks, and being taken here is probably his high-water mark while also being different from what the Giants normally do," McDaniel wrote. "I've been hearing mostly college bats here otherwise and would expect San Francisco to go in that direction if Martin isn't the pick, with local boy Tommy Troy a leading option."
Keith Law, The Athletic
Giants -- Noble Meyer, RHP, Jesuit High (Portland, Ore.)
"I have heard several times that the Giants have something in place with Colorado prep infielder Walker Martin, but that might be for their second pick at No. 52, as they have extra cash to play with thanks to a compensation pick for losing Carlos Rodón. They might be Meyer’s floor, and I’ve heard them with Bradfield, Troy and Eldridge, as well."
Carlos Collazo, Baseball America
Giants -- Enrique Bradfield, OF, Vanderbilt
"It sounds like Bradfield could go anywhere from the back of the top 10 throughout the middle of the first round," Collazo wrote. "He’s more difficult to place than some hitters who don’t have the same impact questions, but Bradfield’s speed and defensive tools are also far and away the best of the draft class. San Francisco sounds like one of the teams who could be in on him.
"Walker Martin is frequently mentioned here as well, and Nolan Schanuel could also be a fit. I’m curious if the Giants would take a pitcher here—in this scenario Noble Meyer, Hurston Waldrep and Thomas White are all available—but I am mostly hearing bats. Tommy Troy, Matt Shaw and Aidan Miller might be a fit here."
Eric Longenhagen, FanGraphs
Giants -- Bryce Eldridge, 1B/RHP, Madison HS (VA)
"Eldridge wants to try to play both ways and the Giants have recently proven willing to experiment with this with Reggie Crawford," Longenhagen wrote. "There are scouts who think they’re also attached to Colorado high school shortstop Walker Martin, though that might be rich at this pick."
Joel Reuter, Bleacher Report
Giants -- 1B/RHP Bryce Eldridge, Madison High School (VA)
"Eldridge is the best two-way player in this draft with a powerful 6'7", 223-pound frame that delivers mid-90s fastballs and a plus slider on the mound and some of the best raw power in the 2023 class in the batter's box.
He has expressed interest in remaining a two-way player, though most prefer him as a hitter. The Giants are a frequent hypothetical landing spot due in part to their selection of UConn two-way player Reggie Crawford at No. 30 overall last year."