4 top 2023 SF Giants draft picks headline San Jose Giants Opening Day roster.
Opening Day is right around the corner for the San Jose Giants. On Monday, they published the the 2024 roster with four top SF Giants 2023 draft picks headlining the group including Bryce Eldridge, Joe Whitman, Cole Foster, and Maui Ahuna.
4 top 2023 SF Giants draft picks headline San Jose Giants Opening Day roster
For Eldridge, Foster, and Whitman, it will be a return to familiar territory after they all finished last season in San Jose. On the other hand, Ahuna did not make his pro debut due to a back ailment after he was selected in the fourth round out of the University of Tennessee.
That said, Ahuna added some muscle in the offseason and has impressed scouts with his work at shortstop.
Some other notable names include Luke Shliger, Jona Cox, and Guillermo Williamson. Shliger was a sixth-round pick by the Giants last season. He has good contact skills and grinds out at-bats, working walks at an above-average rate.
Cox was drafted by the Oakland A’s last year but was shipped to San Francisco in a surprise trade that sent Ross Stripling to Oakland. Lastly, Williamson had a strong 2023 campaign in the Arizona Complex League. He posted a .926 OPS with nine home runs in 229 plate appearances with the ACL Giants – Black. There is good power in his swing, but quite a bit of swing-and-miss as well.
Bryce Eldridge is the most notable name from the group. He was selected as a two-way player in the first round last year. Though, he will be focusing on hitting going forward. The lefty bat posted a .785 OPS with one home run in 69 plate appearances with San Jose last season. He held his own in full-season ball despite being in his age-18 season. Eldridge made a lot of noise last year and has quickly climbed up the prospect rankings.
Joe Whitman only tallied 9.2 frames after being picked in the second round of last year’s draft. That is not too uncommon as teams are very cautious with a pitcher’s workload during their draft year. The southpaw flashes a mid-90’s fastball with a slider that gets good, two-plane movement, and a changeup that has late, fading action.
Lastly, Cole Foster was a third-round pick by the Giants last season. He posted a .778 OPS across two levels while seeing time primarily at shortstop. The San Jose Giants pitching staff will lean a bit on the younger side, but there are plenty of exciting position players to follow as well.
