Giants agree to deal with 4th-rounder Dabovich

July 8th, 2020

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants brought another member of their 2020 Draft class into the organization on Tuesday, announcing that they’ve finalized a deal with fourth-round pick R.J. Dabovich.

MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis reported that Dabovich agreed to terms for $200,000, less than half the slot value ($507,400) for the No. 114 pick. The Giants have now agreed to terms with six of their seven selections. They have not yet announced a deal with De La Salle High School left-hander Kyle Harrison, the club’s third-round pick.

Dabovich, a right-handed pitcher out of Arizona State, entered his junior season as the Sun Devils’ closer, posting a 0.77 ERA over 11 2/3 innings and converting four saves. A college teammate of 2019 first-round pick Hunter Bishop, Dabovich has a fastball that sits in the 93-94 mph range and can hit 97. The 21-year-old complements his heater with a sharp breaking ball in the low 80s and is working to mix in more of his changeup.

Dabovich has been used in the rotation and out of the bullpen over his career, but the Giants plan to give him the opportunity to begin his professional career as a starter, according to Callis.

“We’ll have a development plan for R.J.,” amateur scouting director Michael Holmes said last month. “We think there’s starter ability with him. I think one thing he needs to do is go out and probably log some innings. Obviously, it was a shortened year, so [he’s] a guy that needs to get on the mound. I think it's always good, even in some of these relievers, to get them innings. We definitely think that he could go out and start. We're going to try to help him and player development reach that.”