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ESPN analyst believes SF Giants are a sleeper in the National League

ESPN analyst Jessica Mendoza revealed on First Take that she believes the SF Giants are the biggest dark horse contender in the National League.

Marc Delucchi

ESPN analyst believes SF Giants are a sleeper in the National League
ESPN analyst believes SF Giants are a sleeper in the National League /
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Most MLB experts are paying little attention to the SF Giants heading into the 2023 MLB season. Coming off an 81-81 campaign and an offseason where they missed out on all the top free agents in the class, the Giants are expected to be a middling team by most. However, ESPN analyst Jessica Mendoza told Christopher Russo on ESPN's First Take that she believes the Giants are her sleeper pick in the National League.

SF Giants catcher Blake Sabol celebrates after hitting a home run in the fourth inning during a spring training game against the Chicago Cubs at Sloan Park. (2023)
SF Giants catcher Blake Sabol rounds the bases after blasting a homer. (2023) / Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports

"I'm going Giants, and the reason is Farhan Zaidi and what he does over there to be able to build and find guys," Mendoza said. "We saw this two years ago when everyone came into the year like 'Giants: One of the worst teams in baseball.' They ended up taking the division from the Dodgers by one game... No one's looking in San Francisco, and I do believe, maybe not today, but when you look at the end of July and the moves that they're making, as long as they're within shooting distance of that wild card, the Giants are that sleeper team for me."

Mendoza is a two-time Olympian, having won a bronze and gold medal as a softball player with Team USA in 2004 and 2008. A record-setting outfielder at Stanford, Mendoza starred in the National Pro Fastpitch league from 2005-2012, winning ther NPF Player of the Year Award in 2011. She was inducted into the National Softball Hall of Fame in 2019.

Since retiring as a player, Mendoza has worked as a broadcaster with ESPN in several roles, including as an analyst on Baseball Tonight and as a member of the network's Sunday Night Baseball crew, and is an analyst for Los Angeles Dodgers games on Spectrum Sports LA. Beyond broadcasting, Mendoza also worked as a senior advisor for the New York Mets from 2019-2020. Needless to say, her background suggests she's very familiar with the Giants and their competition in the National League.

You can watch Jessica Mendoza's full comments on the SF Giants below:

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Marc Delucchi
MARC DELUCCHI

Marc Delucchi (he/they/she) serves as the Managing Editor at Giants Baseball Insider, leading their SF Giants coverage. As a freelance journalist, he has previously covered the San Francisco Giants at Around the Foghorn and McCovey Chronicles. He also currently contributes to Niners Nation, Golden State of Mind, and Baseball Prospectus. He has previously been featured in several other publications, including SFGate, ProFootballRumors, Niners Wire, GrandStand Central, Call to the Pen, and Just Baseball. Over his journalistic career, Marc has conducted investigations into how one prep baseball player lost a college opportunity during the pandemic (Baseball Prospectus) and the rampant mistreatment of players at the University of Hawaii football program under former head coach Todd Graham (SFGate). He has also broken dozens of news stories around professional baseball, primarily around the SF Giants organization, including the draft signing of Kyle Harrison, injuries and promotions to top prospects like Heliot Ramos, and trade details in the Kris Bryant deal. Marc received a Bachelor's degree from Kenyon College with a major in economics and a minor in Spanish. During his time in college, he conducted a summer research project attempting to predict the future minor-league performance of NCAA hitters, worked as a data analyst for the school's Women's basketball team, and worked as a play-by-play announcer/color commentator for the basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. He also worked as an amateur baseball scout with the Collegiate Baseball Scouting Network (later renamed Evolution Metrix), scouting high school and college players for three draft cycles. For tips and inquiries, feel free to reach out to Marc directly on Twitter or via email (delucchimarc@gmail.com).

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