{"id":392811,"date":"2026-07-10T01:36:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T01:36:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/392811\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T01:36:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T01:36:13","slug":"one-position-the-sf-giants-have-failed-to-develop-and-why-the-draft-matters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/392811\/","title":{"rendered":"One Position the SF Giants Have Failed to Develop \u2014 and Why the Draft Matters"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"70\">While the MLB Draft functions much differently than other professional sports, it does not change the significance it has on the development of the team. Simply put, the draft is important.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"73\">The San Francisco Giants are just days away from having two first-round draft selections in their hands, and what they do with those will be interesting. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"76\">Over the years, San Francisco has developed plenty of quality players through their farm system.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-3\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"79\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/mlb\/giants\/onsi\/why-giants-arent-expected-trade-logan-webb-deadline\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Logan Webb <\/a>is the ace of the team. Patrick Bailey developed into one of the league\u2019s better catchers. The Giants have also produced infielders and pitchers who have either reached MLB status or are close to it.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7c\">The one position that this team struggles to develop? Outfielders.  More specifically, corner outfielders who have power at the plate.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7f\">That weakness is one reason the MLB Draft matters so much this year.<\/p>\n<p>Heliot Ramos Is the Exception<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01kx4qb44s0c833y015z.jpg\" alt=\"San Francisco Giants right fielder Heliot Ramos \" title=\"San Francisco Giants right fielder Heliot Ramos \" width=\"360\" height=\"360\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"7s\"\/><\/p>\n<p>San Francisco Giants right fielder Heliot Ramos  | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7w\">Now, here is a story of where the Giants got it right.  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/mlb\/giants\/onsi\/heliot-ramos-little-league-home-run-part-of-huge-night-in-giants-victory\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Heliot Ramos <\/a>was drafted in the first round of the 2017 draft. After spending several years developing, Ramos finally became an everyday player for San Francisco in 2024. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-9\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7z\">The problem is that Ramos has been more of the exception than the rule, and there still isn\u2019t a strong pipeline backing him up. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/mlb\/giants\/onsi\/multi-talented-outfielder-one-of-giants-most-exciting-prospects\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dakota Jordan<\/a> is the top-ranked outfielder in the Giants pipeline, and he isn\u2019t expected in the majors until 2028. His speed and ability will likely land him in center.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-10\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"82\">Bo Davidson is just behind him and is a legitimate prospect, but he is looking like he will end up in center field.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-11\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"85\">As an organization, the Giants have spent years filling outfield spots through free agency, trades and international signings rather than through the farm system. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-12\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"88\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/mlb\/giants\/onsi\/giants-outfielder-jung-hoo-lee-keeps-historic-run-alive\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Jung Hoo Lee <\/a>was signed out of Korea. Mike Yastrzemski came from the Orioles. Michael Conforto, Mitch Haniger and Jorge Soler were all brought in from outside.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-13\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8b\">Certainly it doesn\u2019t mean that using those avenues is wrong, it just proves how difficult it has been for San Francisco to develop their own talent.<\/p>\n<p>Draft Misses Adding Up<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-15\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8h\">This also isn\u2019t to say that the Giants haven\u2019t tried to solve this problem.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-16\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8k\">Hunter Bishop was selected 10th overall in the 2019 draft and the team had high hopes of him becoming a middle hitter with outfield skills.  To date, injuries and inconsistency have slowed his development and he just hasn\u2019t lived up to the expectations.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-17\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8n\">Another example is Bryan Reynolds who was drafted in 2016 in the second round. Ultimately, Reynolds turned into an All-Star but that didn\u2019t happen until he was traded to Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-18\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8q\">That is the recurring issue. <\/p>\n<p>Why This Draft Matters<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/01kx4qeesqfj0shx83ps.jpg\" alt=\"San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello \" title=\"San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello \" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"93\"\/><\/p>\n<p>San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello  | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-21\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"97\">The Giants have five picks on day one of the draft: 4, 29, 55, 90, 118. This gives the team a chance to address the longstanding problem and fill the weakness.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-22\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9a\">Of course, it\u2019s not like they are immediately hurting, so they don\u2019t have to force an outfielder as their pick if there is a better player on the board somewhere else. <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-23\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9d\">Should the chance come along, though, to pick up a high-upside college bat or prep outfielder, they shouldn\u2019t hesitate.<\/p>\n<p>Needing a Pipeline<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-25\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9j\">Without question, San Francisco can continue filling the voids with veterans signed to fill in short-term holes. That will solve a season problem, what it won\u2019t do is solve the larger issue.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-26\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9m\">A pipeline of talent is essential in this sport as injuries often rule the field. The draft matters to fill that pipeline and, hopefully, produce another everyday talent.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.minutemediacdn.com\/platform\/google_discover_icon.svg\" class=\"shrink-0\"\/>Add us as a preferred source on Google<a aria-label=\"Follow si.com on Google News\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=si.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" class=\"flex h-[30px] w-[30px] shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-primary font-group-large text-sm font-medium text-white transition-colors hover:bg-secondary focus:bg-secondary md:w-auto md:gap-2.5 md:px-4 md:py-[5px]\">Follow<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"While the MLB Draft functions much differently than other professional sports, it does not change the significance it&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":392812,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[101,103,102,104,106,105],"class_list":["post-392811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-francisco","tag-san-francisco","tag-san-francisco-headlines","tag-san-francisco-news","tag-sf","tag-sf-headlines","tag-sf-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/392811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=392811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/392811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/392812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=392811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=392811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=392811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}