San Francisco Giants Lose Six Minor League Players in Rule 5 Draft

The San Francisco Giants were one of the MLB's busiest teams the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft, losing six players and drafting two.

Oct 22, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; San Francisco Giants catcher Andy Thomas plays for the Scottsdale Scorpions during an Arizona Fall League baseball game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants were one of the busiest teams in the 2024 Rule 5 draft, with a total of eight players swapping squads..

During the first phase of the draft, the Giants were fairly inactive. It was in the minor league phases that their work was done.

Players would be allowed to stay at their current minor league level for the duration of a season and they cannot go any lower without being offered back to the original team.

The Giants lost a shocking six prospects in the Rule 5 draft. They drafted two of their own, so it's an outcome of four less players in their farm per Brady Klopfer of McCovery Chronicles.

Lost

Right-handed Julio Rodriguez is a 24-year-old pitching prospect selected by the Houston Astros. He had a 3.48 ERA with an impressive 10.6 K/9 last season. He was showing improvements each year and could have potential worked his way to the MLB bullpen at some point.

Southpaw Nick Swiney was another prospect taken by the Astros. Swiney has been good in bursts for his career, but hasn't been able to sustain it. He had a 5.25 ERA in 2024 with a WHIP of 1.472.

Catching prospect Andy Thomas was one of the riskier players that they left unprotected, and it came back to bite them when the San Diego Padres took him in the draft. His ceiling isn't super high, but he looks like he could be a solid backup.

Right-handed pitcher Wil Jensen was taken by the Chicago Cubs. Jensen had an incredible 2023 campaign that saw him post a 2.53 ERA. He was slightly worse last season but still promising. He pitches out of both the rotation and pen, looking more like a reliever at the start of his MLB career.

The Seattle Mariners took outfielder Cesar Quintas. Quintas came onto the scene hot at just 18 years old, meaning he was draft eligible despite only 22. His homerun numbers jumped up this season, finally showing some growth.

Lastly, San Francisco lost infielder Will Wilson to the Cleveland Guardians. Wilson, a former 15th overall pick by the Los Angeles Angels. His production has fallen off a cliff since arriving with the Giants. Perhaps a new home can help him produce more.

Gained

San Francisco added a southpaw of their own in C.J. Widger from the Padres. Widger showed a lot of promise with a 1.91 ERA in 2023, but fell back down this past year. He strikes out a ton of batters, so the Giants could look to mold him some more.

The other players selected by San Francisco was Detroit Tigers pitcher Sadrac Franco. Franco had his peak this past season with a 1.93 ERA over 18.2 innings of work. His K/9 bumped to 12.1. He has a long way to go, but is currently showing a lot of potential.