2021 Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List: The Final Rankings

Almost four months ago we set out to start another Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List — an annual ranking of the top 44 prospects in the San Francisco Giants organization, as selected by the McCovey Chronicles community.

We knew who the first three names would be, and in what order, but after that it was a free for all. And it was a lot of fun.

Fittingly, the list ended on Wednesday with a tie, and we’re not going to do a run-off for the last spot, so congrats to Dedniel Nuñez and Armani Smith for their shared spot as the No. 44 prospect in the system. Sadly Adrian Sugastey finished a vote shy of making it a three-way tie to end things.

All right, let’s take a look at the final list of the top 45 prospects in the Giants system. I’ve placed last year’s ranking in parenthesis next to each prospect’s name — prospects with “N/A” next to their name were not in the Giants system last year, and prospects with “UN” next to their name were in the system but did not make last year’s CPL. Some thoughts and trends follow below the list.

The final list

1. Marco Luciano (2)
2. Joey Bart (1)
3. Heliot Ramos (3)
4. Hunter Bishop (4)
5. Luis Matos (9)
6. Seth Corry (7)
7. Alexander Canario (6)
8. Patrick Bailey (N/A)
9. Kyle Harrison (N/A)
10. Will Wilson (11)
11. Sean Hjelle (10)
12. Luis Toribio (13)
13. Tristan Beck (17)
14. Jairo Pomares (14)
15. Gregory Santos (15)
16. Camilo Doval (26)
17. Nick Swiney (N/A)
18. Kai-Wei Teng (18)
19. Logan Wyatt (20)
20. Jaylin Davis (12)
21. Casey Schmitt (N/A)
22. Blake Rivera (25)
23. Trevor McDonald (24)
24. Melvin Adon (16)
25. Kervin Castro (UN)
26. Grant McCray (27)
27. Garrett Frechette (33)
28. Aeverson Arteaga (41)
29. Ricardo Genoves (23)
30. Jake Wong (20)
31. Sandro Fabian (22)
32. Sean Roby (UN)
33. Luis Alexander Basabe (N/A)
34. Jimmy Glowenke (N/A)
35. Connor Cannon (UN)
36. R.J. Dabovich (N/A)
37. Diego Rincones (UN)
38. Sam Long (N/A)
39. Matt Frisbee (35)
40. Tyler Fitzgerald (34)
41. Rayner Santana (36)
42. Jason Vosler (N/A)
43. Caleb Kilian (UN)
44. Tie: Dedniel Nuñez (N/A) and Armani Smith (UN)

Note: Clicking on the above names will link to the CPL where they were voted onto the list.

Well that’s a very pretty list. Let’s dig into it a little bit.

Who’s gone?

There are 16 names on the 2021 CPL that weren’t on the 2020 CPL, which means there are 15 names (since there was a tie for No. 44) that were on the 2020 CPL but not the 2021 CPL.

So who are they?

Three players graduated from the ranks of prospectdom: Logan Webb (No. 5), Mauricio Dubón (No. 8), and Tyler Rogers (No. 28). All three played prominent roles on last year’s team, and all three figure to play prominent roles this season as well.

Three more players are no longer in the system: Chris Shaw (No. 29, designated for assignment), Dany Jiménez (No. 31, designated for assignment and returned to his former team), and Jalen Miller (No. 39, selected in the Rule 5 draft).

And the other nine remain in the organization, but were unable to find themselves on this year’s CPL. Better luck next year to Conner Menez (No. 19), Prelander Berroa (No. 30), Franklin Labour (No. 32), P.J. Hilson (No. 37), Tyler Cyr (No. 38), Patrick Ruotolo (No. 40), Dilan Rosario (No. 42), Jose Marte (No. 43), and Esmerlin Vinicio (No. 44).

Who are the biggest risers and fallers?

Some of the biggest risers on the list are players who were omitted a year ago. After receiving strong reviews at Instructionals, Kervin Castro went from unranked to No. 25, and Sean Roby entered at No. 32. Connor Cannon also had a nice rise from unranked to No. 35. These rises are probably normal in a standard year, but in a year that didn’t have a Minor League season, they feel extra impressive — or perhaps utterly meaningless. You choose.

Of the prospects who were also on last year’s CPL, Aeverson Arteaga (rose 13 spots) and Camilo Doval (10) made the biggest leaps.

The largest fallers — other than the ones who fell off the list — were Jake Wong (dropped 10 spots), Sandro Fabian (9), and Melvin Adon and Jaylin Davis (8).

Consistency!

With no Minor League season, it would make sense that a few players stick in their same spot. And indeed, five players finished in the exact same spot as last year: Heliot Ramos (No. 3), Hunter Bishop (No. 4), Jairo Pomares (No. 14), Gregory Santos (No. 15), and Kai-Wei Teng (No. 18). Another 10 players finished within one place of where they were on the 2021 CPL.

The acquisition breakdown

Of the 45 players on the list, 22 were drafted by the Giants, while 16 were international signings by the organization. Another six were acquired via trade, when two signed in free agency, and one was selected in the Rule 5 Draft.

And that’s our list, folks. Thank you to everyone who voted, nominated, stumped for, debated, and educated.

Until next year.