Giants Baseball Insider

MLB Draft: SF Giants select Auburn SS Cole Foster in the third round

The SF Giants drafted shortstop Cole Foster out of Auburn with the 85th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft.

Marc Delucchi

MLB Draft: SF Giants select Auburn SS Cole Foster in the third round
MLB Draft: SF Giants select Auburn SS Cole Foster in the third round /
In this story:

The SF Giants selected shortstop Cole Foster out of Auburn with their third-round (85th overall) pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. Foster is the first collegiate hitter drafted by San Francisco this year, joining a Giants draft class that already features 1B/RHP Bryce Eldridge, SS Walker Martin, and LHP Joe Whitman. The slot value for the 85th selection is $820,900.

Foster is coming off a breakout junior season at Auburn, hitting .336/.429/.570 with 13 home runs in 55 games. A switch-hitter, Foster does not have any tools that jump off the page but also has no clear weaknesses either. Defensively, Foster has played primarily shortstop and second base, although most evaluators are skeptical that he will be able to stick at short.

Foster does have intriguing power potential from both sides of the plate but has struggled to tap into it consistently because of a hit tool that lags behind the rest of his game. If Foster can refine his approach and more consistently square up opposing pitching, he could hit for enough power to be a viable everyday player, even if he's limited to second base.

Foster has a long track record for evaluators to look at. He was considered the second-best shortstop in Texas coming out of high school, behind top St. Louis Cardinals prospect Masyn Winn. After going undrafted and primarily serving as a bench bat in his first year on campus, Foster became Auburn's starting second baseman in 2022. He hit .267/.395/.488 with nine home runs in 53 games.

The Giants will have some time before their next selection, which will be the 117th overall pick (fourth round). We'll see who else joins the SF Giants 2023 MLB Draft class.

Published
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).

Home/San Francisco Giants News