The San Francisco Giants have done an outstanding job rebuilding their farm system. San Francisco had one of the worst farm systems in baseball a few years ago. Now the Giants have one of the best. This season, the top three to watch are Marco Luciano, Luis Matos, and Heliot Ramos.
Marco Luciano/SS/ETA: 2023
Luciano is the number one ranked prospect in the San Francisco Giants farm system. He hit .258 with 19 home runs and 71 RBIs. Luciano has quick hands and excellent power at the plate. He did strike out 122 times between Low-A and High-A baseball. When moved up to High-A, Luciano struck out 1/3 of the time. Luciano is a shortstop but eventually will be too big for the position. He is athletic enough and sure-handed but will be too big in a couple of years. Luciano could move to third base or right field. The number one Giants prospect could be a 35 home run player once he makes it to the big leagues.
Luis Matos/CF/ETA: 2023
Matos shot up the prospect rankings over the last year and is now the San Francisco Giants’ number two prospect. Last year, Matos hit .315, 15 home runs, and drove in 86 runs. He also stole 20 bases. Matos is an outstanding hitter at the plate that rarely strikes outs. In addition, he has plus bat speed, above-average power, and above-average speed. Matos has an average arm that is more than fine in center field. As his reads and routes continue to improve on defense, Matos should be a solid defender in the outfield.
Heliot Ramos/OF/ETA: 2022
This year, Ramos is the Giants’ number five ranked prospect and could see time on the San Francisco Giants major league roster. Last year, Ramos hit .254 with 14 home runs and drove in 56 runs. Ramos struggled a bit last year on off-speed pitches. The problem could be inconsistent timing or a struggle with pitch recognition. Ramos has good bat speed and body control that allows him to get solid swings on challenging pitches.
Ramos plays center field primarily but could wind up at a corner outfield spot where his plus arm and still solid speed should translate to comfortably above-average defense. Ramos slates to be a .280 hitter that can hit 20-25 home runs when he reaches the majors.
San Francisco Giants Prospect Outlook
Ramos is the third prospect to watch because he is on track to play in the majors sometime this season. The Giants’ number three prospect is pitcher Kyle Harrison. He is a left-handed pitcher with a fastball in the mid-90s; Harrison also throws an above-average change-up in the mid-80s. In addition, he features a slider in the mid-80s.
Patrick Bailey is the number four prospect, and he is a switch-hitting catcher. Bailey is a natural hitter with good hands at the plate. Bailey is solid behind the plate as well and has an above-average arm.
Another one of the Giants’ top prospects, Joey Bart, should be making his Major League debut this season as a catcher. With Buster Posey retiring, Bart will get his shot behind the plate.
The Giants will have a lot of young talent for years to come; it will be interesting to see how they all develop.
