After going with hitters in Day One of the MLB Draft, the San Francisco Giants started Day Two with… more hitters. A lot more hitters.
Through the sixth round, the Giants so far have taken only hitters, in one of the most lopsided drafts in history. In terms of position players versus hitters, only once have the Giants drafted their first six rounds as all the same type: 1995, when they drafted all pitchers for the first six rounds, including Joe Nathan and Russ Ortiz. Correction The Giants did draft 10 straight hitters to start the draft in 1969
The Giants also went very high school oriented, with three high schoolers against just one college player. As in most recent drafts, they drafted fairly high out of Puerto Rico’s baseball academies in the sixth round. Most of the players are up the middle defensively, with the exception of a first baseman. And they got a teammate of their second round pick, Logan Wyatt from Louisville.
Onto the picks!
3rd Round, #87: Grant McCray, CF, Lakewood Ranch High School (FL)
Ht: 6-1 Wt: 172 B-T: L-R
McCray is a raw toolsy high school player who wasn’t even ranked by MLB’s Pipeline, and was #221 by Baseball America. MLB.com did list him as one of five guys they love outside the Top 200. A multi-sport athlete, McCray played football and ran track, and his speed (6.57 on his 60 yard dash, according to Perfect Game) plays him up as a baseball player. He has a line drive swing, but has a lot of work to do on his swing to protect him against breaking pitches. He was also a pitcher in high school, with an 89 mph fastball.
His father was Rodney McCray, who you have absolutely seen in video:
Rodney was also a Dodgers minor league instructor for a while, though I can’t confirm if it was under Zaidi.
Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com indicated this is a high-risk, high-reward sort of guy, who may take a couple of seasons in extended spring training to work out his swing and access his tools. There’s also a lot of projection in his body. It may take a while to see what he turns into, if he signs. He’s committed to Florida State.
4th Round, #116: Tyler Fitzgerald, SS, Louisville
Ht: 6-3 WT: 205 B-T: R-R
The Giants went back to the Louisville well for the fourth round, picking a right-handed hitter for the first time. Fitzgerald is an all-around player as opposed to one with standout tools, but is very well polished. He’s a clean fielder, although with average range, but is reliable with his hands and arm. His speed was a top tool when he was drafted in the 30th round in 2016 out of high school, but it has come down to being just average. Despite his size, he doesn’t hit for much power, although that could come a little if he develops. He will hit to all fields with line drives, however.
This year for Louisville, he’s batting .322 with 14 doubles, three triples, and seven home runs (3rd on the team, behind Wyatt’s nine). He has 27 walks against 43 strikeouts in 239 at-bats. He’s also 16-for-21 on stolen base attempts. He hit .298 with a .370 on-base percentage in the important Cape Cod League with wood bats last summer.
There’s a bit of scouting disarray on this one, going by the three major rankings. Baseball America ranked him 267, and rated his tools lower than MLB did. MLB Pipeline put him at 157. But Fangraphs ranked him 75 overall, and said he has everyday tools that he hasn’t lived up to yet. He also comes from Major League bloodlines, his father Mike Fitzgerald was drafted in the first round twice when baseball drafts were far more complicated with multiple drafts in a year, but signed when he was a 6th round pick by the Mets. The catcher hit a home run in first major league at-bat in 1983, and played through 1992 with the Mets, Expos, and Angels.
The MLB.com guys spoke about him and think he has the ability to develop into a super utility guy if he can’t find a way to turn into a starter, be it at shortstop, second or third.
And of course, he is a college teammate with the Giants’ second round pick Logan Wyatt. If you’d like to see them talking to the press together for this year’s College World Series, here you go.
5th Round, #146: Garrett Frechette, 1B, Orange Lutheran HS (CA)
Ht: 6-3 Wt: 195 B-T: L-L
The biggest tool for Garrett Frechette is a smooth left-handed stroke that he shortened up this year to display a good hit tool. At 6’3” and 195 pounds, he has a body that could project a lot more strength, which he’s teased in batting practice. However, his spring was very limited, thanks to health issues. Frechette had a hamstring and a hamate bone injury in the fall, and then got mono in the spring.
He’s ranked 196 by MLB Pipeline, and 214 by Baseball America. The latter has some concerns with him being a batting practice player. They describe he’s been unable to repeat his swing in games, and has collected just three extra-base hits in 24 games played this year, although the mono situation sapped his strength.
Frechette plays first base, but has the athleticism to play to left field if a team tries to move him. He is committed to San Diego State.
6th Round, #176: Dilan Rosario, SS, Leadership Christian Academy HS (PR)
Ht: 6-2 Wt: 178 B-T: R-R
Like Heliot Ramos in 2017, Dilan Rosario comes out of Puerto Rico younger than most of the class, not turning 18 for two more weeks on June 16th. Rosario does not have the same current skills, but he has a lot of tools.
Rosario is the best shortstop out of Puerto Rico this season, and should stick there easily. He has the range, footwork, and instincts to stick there with good hands and a plus arm. That should not be a problem for Rosario. He has good hand-eye coordination, but his current weakness is…weakness. Although he makes contact, he isn’t making strong impact on the ball. He is very wiry, so there is a lot of strength that he can add going forward to work on this. That said, there is power that could be unlocked, as he won a high school home run derby competition last fall that took top players from players all over the island (although not top Puerto Rican prospect Matthew Lugo). He hit 14 across two rounds to win.
Rosario, full name of Dilan Rosario-Otero, is committed to USC. His signability is unknown.