The Giants have made nine playoff appearances and won three World Series and four pennants in the last three decades. They've done a lot of things well during that time but haven't had much success producing sluggers.
San Francisco hasn't signed and developed a hitter who provided 30 home runs in a season since Matt Williams, the third overall pick in the June 1986 Draft who accomplished the feat in 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1994. Will Clark, the No. 2 overall choice a year before Williams, did so in 1987.
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Clark and Williams are the Giants' only two homegrown 30-homer guys in the last 52 seasons. The franchise hasn't had anyone reach that level, even imports, since Barry Bonds 21 years ago.
That may be about to change in the very near future, and San Francisco is giving its fans a preview of the player built to end that drought. The Giants have stormed back into the National League Wild Card race by winning 14 of their last 20 games, pulling within 1 1/2 games of the Mets for a postseason berth, so they're calling up first baseman Bryce Eldridge for the final two weeks. The 16th overall pick in 2023 out of Madison HS (Vienna, Va.), he'll become the youngest position player to appear in the Majors this year at age 20.
San Francisco first basemen have posted the worst batting average (.206), slugging percentage (.326) and OPS (.615) in the Majors this season and also are tied for the fewest homers (12). Eldridge figures to take over at least the left-handed part of the club's platoon at the position after Dom Smith, who had held that role, went on the injured list after straining his right hamstring while stretching to catch a ball on Friday. Eldridge also could siphon at-bats away from Wilmer Flores, the righty-hitting part of that platoon.
Ranked No. 13 on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 list, Eldridge has as much power potential as any prospect in baseball. He has plenty of strength and leverage in his 6-foot-7, 240-pound frame and generates impressive bat speed from the left side of the plate. Despite his age, he has the highest average exit velocity (95.7 mph) in Triple-A this year and his maximum of 114.6 mph matches the big league best of Athletics rookie sensation Nick Kurtz (who's 19 months older).
Though he missed the beginning of the season with a left wrist injury sustained in Spring Training and lost a month in the middle of the year to a hamstring strain, Eldridge still slashed .260/.333/.510 with 25 home runs in 102 games. That includes a .249/.322/.514 with 18 homers in 66 games in Triple-A, where he was the youngest regular at that level.
Eldridge does have some rough edges to smooth out in his offensive game, however. He can get overly aggressive at times and doesn't make consistent contact against non-fastballs, leading to a 31 percent strikeout rate in Triple-A and 29 percent overall this year. He may need time to make adjustments against big league pitchers but still has 40-homer upside, especially if he learns to pull pitches in the air on a more regular basis.
While Eldridge has below-average speed, he's a good athlete for his size. He was a two-way star as an amateur, displaying a 92-96 mph fastball and low-80s slider and winning USA Baseball's Dick Case Award as its top player in 2022. He homered three times in eight games and worked three scoreless innings while winning a gold medal at the 18-and-under World Cup in Mexico that fall.
To preserve his arm, Eldridge didn't play much in the field before turning pro and still needs more reps at first base. Though he has atypical arm strength for the position, he has committed 27 errors in 182 games there. He should become a more reliable defender with more experience, but it really won't matter if he delivers as much power as expected.