Here’s the Giants' new Top 30 Prospects list

August 17th, 2022

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants’ farm system appeared to be on the rise following a banner year for the organization in 2021, though the optimism hasn’t been quite as pronounced this season.

Despite breakout campaigns from left-hander Kyle Harrison and outfielders Grant McCray and Vaun Brown, the Giants have seen many of their top prospects endure setbacks this year, with shortstop Marco Luciano and infielder Will Wilson missing significant time with injuries and outfielder Luis Matos and catcher Patrick Bailey delivering disappointing seasons at the plate.

“You always have a mix,” president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said earlier this month. “We have some guys having great seasons. We have some guys who have been hurt. We have some guys who have had down years. It’s common in every system.”

With an aging roster, the Giants will need their farm system to produce more impact players in the near future to ensure that they can keep up with the talent-rich Dodgers and the Padres in the National League West.

Here’s a look at the state of the system:

Giants’ top five prospects:
1. Marco Luciano, SS (MLB No. 17)
2. Kyle Harrison , LHP (MLB No. 22)
3. Luis Matos, OF
4. Grant McCray, OF
5. Aeverson Arteaga, SS
Complete Top 30 list »

Biggest jump/fall
Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the preseason list:

Jump: Grant McCray, OF (Preseason: 24| Midseason: 4) -- A third-round Draft pick in 2019, McCray’s career was delayed by the pandemic and an injury that limited him to 45 games last year, but he’s finally taking off in his third Minor League season. The 21-year-old entered Sunday batting .291/.383/.519 with 18 home runs and 34 stolen bases over 97 games with Single-A San Jose in 2022.

Fall: Hunter Bishop, OF (Preseason: 8 | Midseason: 23) -- The Giants took Bishop with the 10th overall pick in 2019, but his development has stalled due to injuries. The 24-year-old appeared to be finally putting it together after a dreadful start at High-A Eugene this year, but he endured another setback when he went down with an oblique injury in July.

Top 30s:
ALW:
HOU | LAA | OAK | SEA | TEX
ALC: CLE | CWS | DET | KC | MIN
ALE: BAL | BOS | NYY | TB | TOR
NLW: ARI | COL | LAD | SD | SF
NLC: CHC | CIN | MIL | PIT | STL
NLE: ATL | MIA | NYM | PHI | WSH

New to the list
Here are the players added to the Top 30:

No. 7, Carson Whisenhunt, LHP (2022 Draft pick)
No. 8, Reggie Crawford, LHP/1B (2022 Draft pick)
No. 10, Vaun Brown, OF
No. 11, Mason Black, RHP
No. 21, Tristan Peters, OF (Acquired from the Brewers in exchange for Trevor Rosenthal)

Impact callup: Kyle Harrison, LHP
The rotation is an area of strength for the Giants, but Harrison is one of the most unhittable pitchers in the Minors this season , posting a 2.40 ERA, a .186 opponents' batting average and 143 strikeouts in 86 1/3 innings between High-A and Double-A at age 21. The 2020 third-round Draft pick from a De La Salle High School in California carves batters up with a riding, mid-90s fastball and sharp 82-85 mph slider.

Best tools
Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools -- 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.

Hit: 55 -- Luis Matos (Marco Luciano, Tristan Peters)
Power: 65 -- Marco Luciano
Run: 70 -- Vaun Brown
Arm: 65 -- Adrian Sugastey
Field: 65 -- Casey Schmitt
Fastball: 70 -- Cole Waites (Reggie Crawford, Gregory Santos)
Curveball: 65 -- R.J. Dabovich
Slider: 70 -- Gregory Santos
Changeup: 65 -- Carson Whisenhunt
Control: 55 -- Ryan Murphy