The Giants have made nine playoff appearances and won three World Series and four pennants in the last three decades. They've done a lot of things well during that time but haven't had much success producing sluggers.
San Francisco hasn't signed and developed a hitter who provided 30 home runs in a season since Matt Williams, the third overall pick in the June 1986 Draft who accomplished the feat in 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1994. Will Clark, the No. 2 overall choice a year before Williams, did so in 1987.
COMPLETE GIANTS PROSPECT COVERAGE
Clark and Williams are the Giants' only two homegrown 30-homer guys in the last 52 seasons. The franchise hasn't had anyone reach that level, even imports, since Barry Bonds 21 years ago.
That may be about to change in the very near future with first baseman Bryce Eldridge. The 16th overall pick in 2023 out of Madison HS (Vienna, Va.) became the youngest position player (age 20) to appear in the Majors last year when San Francisco called him up last September. They're reportedly promoting him again, which will make him the second-youngest (age 21) this season behind only Konnor Griffin.
Giants first basemen have hit the fewest homers (one) and posted the fourth-lowest OPS (.609) in the big leagues, and the club as a whole ranks last in homers (19) and runs per game (3.12). Eldridge figures to start either at first base or DH, depending on where San Francisco wants to utilize the disappointing Rafael Devers.
Ranked No. 20 on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 Prospects list, Eldridge has as much power potential as any prospect in baseball. He has plenty of strength and leverage in his 6-foot-7, 240-pound frame and generates impressive bat speed from the left side of the plate.
Despite his youth, Eldridge posted the highest average exit velocity in Triple-A (95.7 mph) in 2025 and ranks 10th (93.1) this spring. That latter figure is just 0.1 mph less than Aaron Judge's average EV this season.
Though he missed the beginning of last season with a left wrist injury sustained in Spring Training and lost a month in the middle of the year to a hamstring strain, Eldridge still slashed .260/.333/.510 with 25 home runs in 102 games. He was off to a strong start in Triple-A in 2026, batting .333/.445/.518 with five homers in 30 contests.
Eldridge does have some rough edges to smooth out in his offensive game, however. He can get overly aggressive at times and doesn't make consistent contact against non-fastballs, leading to a career 27 percent strikeout rate in the Minors and 30 percent this year. He went 3-for-28 (.107) with 13 strikeouts in his first stint with San Francisco last September and may need time to make adjustments against big league pitchers, but he still has 40-homer upside, especially if he learns to pull pitches in the air on a more regular basis.
While Eldridge has below-average speed, he's a good athlete for his size. He was a two-way star as an amateur, displaying a 92-96 mph fastball and low-80s slider and winning USA Baseball's Dick Case Award as its top player in 2022. He homered three times in eight games and worked three scoreless innings while winning a gold medal at the 18-and-under World Cup in Mexico that fall.
To preserve his arm, Eldridge didn't play much in the field before turning pro and still needs more reps at first base. Though he has atypical arm strength for the position, he has committed 28 errors in 221 games there. He should become a more reliable defender with more experience and has looked better this spring, but it really won't matter if he delivers as much power as expected.