San Francisco Giants Farm System Hit Hard by Recent Prospect Graduations

The San Francisco Giants have one of the lowest-ranked farm systems in baseball.

Sep 30, 2023; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants center fielder Mike Yastrzemski (5) and San Francisco Giants center fielder Tyler Fitzgerald (49) and San Francisco Giants left fielder Heliot Ramos (12) celebrate after the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oracle Park. / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

When Buster Posey accepted the president of baseball operations job with the San Francisco Giants, he knew there would be a lot of work that had to get done with the roster.

There is a sizable gap that exists between them and the other contenders in the National League West.

The Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series in October and widened the distance between them and the Giants with their insanely busy offseason. The San Diego Padres finished 13 games ahead but had some losses this winter. San Francisco was beaten out by the Arizona Diamondbacks for ace Corbin Burnes, and they added Josh Naylor in a trade to replace Christian Walker, potentially widening a gap after finishing nine games better in 2024.

While the Major League roster has serious work that needs to be done, the biggest challenge Posey faces could be their minor league system.

He is inheriting a very bleak situation in that regard, with first baseman Bryce Eldridge looking like the only impact prospect the organization currently has.

That is a major reason why the Giants currently rank among the worst farm systems in baseball according to Kiley McDaniel of ESPN.

They have come in at No. 29, with a value of $109 million. Only one team, the Houston Astros with $104 million, are ranked lower.

It is a major drop for San Francisco, which was No. 15 with a farm system worth $207 million last year.

The biggest reason the team has fallen so far is because of the number of young players who have graduated from prospect status and become part of the team’s plans at the Major League level the last two years.

Some of them, such as middle infielder Tyler Fitzgerald, outfielder Helio Ramos and relief pitcher Ryan Walker, have cemented themselves as foundational pieces to build around.

Catcher Patrick Bailey has been solid, while left-handed pitcher Kyle Harrison and right-handed pitcher Hayden Birdsong, both starters, have shown some promise.

Former star prospect Marco Luciano hasn’t had much of a chance yet at the Major League level, but his highly-touted skills haven’t translated yet.

While things are currently far from ideal, there is hope this system will start moving up the ranks in the near future.

As long as Eldridge is eligible, he is going to remain one of the top prospects in the game. International free agent signing Josuar Gonzalez has incredible upside and could take over as the top prospect when the slugging first baseman moves on.

Left-handed pitcher Carson Whisenhunt and outfielder James Tibbs III may not have star upside, but project to be solid MLB players once they get the call-up as well.

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