SF Giants prospects position preview chat: Outfielders

Around the Foghorn contributor, Wrenzie Regodon and co-site expert Marc Delucchi are beginning the season with some discussions about the SF Giants minor-league depth at each position. They’ve discussed the organizations catching, middle infield, and corner infield already and now are looking at the team’s outfield prospects.

SF Giants prospects position preview chat: Outfield Part 1

Marc Delucchi: So this is the deepest part of the organization to you, right?

Wrenzie Regodon: *chuckles* It sure is the deepest part of the organization. There are 4 players inside the top 10 of my most recent top 30 ranking, and as I went deeper down the outfield rabbit hole, I still found potential big leaguers throughout the rest of my top 30. Even outside of that, there were a lot of outfielders that deserve plenty of love.

MD: I do my rankings more through positional needs, so since I divide the players between the 3 outfield positions, I still view catcher as the strongest overall. But it’s right there. Obviously, Heliot Ramos, Luis Matos, and Hunter Bishop are three of those top prospects you’re talking about. How do you differentiate them?

WR: I do not really divide outfielders anymore since we see players we once did not consider center fielders begin playing up the middle more often.

As for Ramos, Bishop, and Matos, they sure are the top 3 outfield prospects in the organization at the moment. Matos has the best hit tool out of the three, Bishop has the best athleticism but biggest risk, and Heliot is kind of in the middle. I do not know if you’ll agree with me but Matos’ hit tool is a potential plus. There are only a few prospects that I can think of that have Matos’ trunk rotation when swinging. Couple that with his innate bat-to-ball ability and he can be a pretty special hitter.

Bishop as well all know has loud three-true-outcomes traits in his offensive profile but he has the range and athletic ability to play center field. However, we have not really seen him very much in his top form.

To be honest, I was so close to putting Matos ahead of Heliot when I did my rankings because of Ramos’ oblique issue last year. However, his strong spring reminded me of how good he can be. The maturity in all the facets of his game is incredible considering he is the same age as a college junior.

SF Giants prospects position preview chat: Outfield Part 3

M: Yeah, entering last season, Matos was outside that top three and Canario was in it. The injury sent Canario down a tier in my book, but he’s looked legit when healthy. A couple of guys you didn’t mention who deserve some attention are Sandro Fabian and Jairo Pomares.

Pomares has been overshadowed by Matos and Marco Luciano from their IFA class, but he’s always looked like a quick mover with solid all-around tools and was very good in his pro debut. Fabian looked like the best OF prospect in the system a few years ago before a pair of injuries took him out of the field for a bit. I think he could also rebound nicely.

W: Pomares is actually ranked higher than both McCray and Hilson on my list. I agree with you that he’s a potential quick-mover with his hitting ability. He can make hard contact consistently and I believe there’s more power in Pomares’ swing than most. He’s just a very muscular guy. Yes, the defense is an issue for him. However, a bat that good can outweigh the bad.

I think Fabian is a solid bounce-back candidate as well, though his prospect luster is way lower than it was a couple of years ago. I think nothing’s really changed from Fabian, really. He’s still that solid hitter with good power and a strong defensive profile in the corner outfield. I would be delighted if he comes back to the Sandro that we knew of, a potential big-league outfielder.

M: Armani Smith is another prospect that really excites me. His profile is not too dissimilar from Bishop, with legit power and athleticism that didn’t consistently show up in games until their junior year of college. He showed big-time pop in his pro debut, and I’m curious if he can control his strikeouts.

The issue I see, and this is just nitpicking since this group is so deep, is that almost all of these prospects are bat over glove players. Outside of Hilson, who I see with a Kevin Kiermeier/Keon Broxton-type ceiling, are there players that you see as future elite defenders in the outfield? Obviously, fans will happily take the bats, but it does seem like other positions have more players with premium defensive upside.

W: Smith is another guy that I really like. He’s a big man with a swing that you typically see in a size much smaller than him, and he can hit balls up to 114 MPH based on last year’s instructs. I’m excited to follow his progress in 2021 as well.

It’s really a bat-over-glove bonanza in the lower portions of the depth chart, with guys like Franklin Labour, Victor Bericoto, Diego Rincones, etc. in the mix. However, I do see some potentially slick fielders like Bryce Johnson, who has the range and the instincts to become like a Juan Perez-type of player, Ismael Munguia who also has the range and is a pest in the batter’s box, and Tyler Forner, the UDFA signing last year who is also a rangy outfielder and a leadoff-type hitter.

However, the reality is that the Giants do prioritize offensive value when looking at hitters. I dig the Broxton comp on Hilson, though.

M: Definitely, that’s a good rundown. I have some different views on some of those prospects, but people can look back on some of my prospect’s week stuff for most of that. How do you like looking at relievers next week?

W: I got no problems with relievers next week. That’s probably where I would consider a big chunk of the pitching depth at the moment.

M: Awesome. Great talking as always. Talk to you soon.

W: No problem Marc! Take care as always!

Stay tuned to Around the Foghorn for plenty more SF Giants prospects coverage. Next week, Wrenzie and Marc will be back with another discussion, this time diving into the Giants relievers.