Giants Baseball Insider

SF Giants expected to sign power-hitting prospect in upcoming IFA class

The SF Giants have been tied to Rayner Arias, one of the best prospects in the 2022-23 international class. Read what one scout told GBI about the young hitter.

Marc Delucchi

SF Giants expected to sign power-hitting prospect in upcoming IFA class
SF Giants expected to sign power-hitting prospect in upcoming IFA class /
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The SF Giants are hoping to sustain their prolific success on the international free-agent market over the past few years. With the 2022-23 International Free-Agent (IFA) cycle less than four months from getting underway, it appears the Giants are set to sign one of the best power-hitting prospects in the class.

According to Ben Badler of Baseball America, the Giants are expected to sign outfielder Rayner Arias out of the Dominican Republic for the 12th-largest signing bonus in the upcoming IFA class. Arias is considered by some to be one of the best power-hitting prospects in the group of this year's prospects.

One scout with a National League team (not the Giants), who spoke with Giants Baseball Insider on a condition of anonymity, had suggested Arias was close to a deal with San Francisco during the summer. The scout was high on Arias' offensive upside. They said Arias has already shown some hitting ability alongside legitimate power potential. They compared Arias' physical projection to Nelson Cruz, which likely limits him to first base or the corner outfield in the future, but also suggests he has a strong frame that should be able to drive the ball consistently.

Badler described a similar skillset. He noted that Arias is the son of a longtime scout named Pablo Arias and seems to have benefitted from that experience around the game. "It's evident in his game skills and overall feel for the game, especially at the plate," Badler wrote. "Scouts highest on Arias believe he is one of the most advanced hitters in the country. He drives the ball well already, with the size and strength projection to potentially grow into plus power as well."

As is common with international prospects, there is little other information available publically about Arias. However, he did win a televised home run competition when he was just 13 years old back in 2019, where he launched some monster bombs. Check out the video below (note: the audio and video do not line up). It's easy to dream that Rayner Arias will replicate some of these moonshots for the SF Giants at Oracle Park several years from now.

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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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