SF Giants midseason top 30 prospects: New No. 1, power hitter falls from top spot

SF Giants midseason top 30 prospects: New No. 1, power hitter falls from top spot

26. Jack Choate P
FB 45/50 | CH 60/60 | SL 45/50 | CMD 40/40
PV 30 | FV 40

Choate was a standout pitcher in both San Jose and Eugene starting rotations last season. He returned to the Emeralds rotation this season to continue building on the success that he enjoyed last season. So far, he has an outstanding 2024 campaign stats-wise but development-wise, he has not taken as big of a jump as the numbers would indicate.

Like Whisenhunt, Choate draws plenty of success from his changeup, a low-80s offering with plenty of diving action as it essentially falls off the table. It can get swings and misses on its own and he can throw it at any pitch against any hitter. He's used the pitch to great success this season. His low-90s fastball has some sink and tailing action that he can sneak by hitters at times due to the threat of the changeup and his low 3/4 arm slot creating a flatter-than-usual path. He also has a big slider that can get loopy more often than not but draws swings and misses when it is on. He has a cleaner tempo in his delivery this year compared to last season but even though his walk rate is lower than last year, he will still struggle to hit his spots. A velocity gain and refinement to his slider quality should elevate him to the upper echelon of Giants prospects if it happens.

27. Joe Whitman P
FB 50/50 | SL 60/60 | CH 40/45 | CMD 30/40
PV 30 | FV 40

Whitman has experienced plenty of ups and downs in the first half of his first professional season. He struggled to contain his wildness in the first month of action but managed to improve in that department once the weather started to warm up. There were still bouts of inconsistencies in May and June but he was solid for the most part which prompted the Giants to promote him in Eugene before the first half ended.

The slider is Whitman's signature pitch, a high-spin pitch thrown in the low 80s with sharp depth and sweep. In a vacuum, it is a plus pitch that should get enough whiffs on its own. However, its effectiveness was brought down a bit by everything else that surrounds the slide piece. His fastball sits in the low 90s with slight sinking action that is more of a pitch geared for inducing contact rather than a whiff-inducing pitch to pair up with his slider. His changeup is a couple of ticks harder than his slider that has nearly identical movement to his fastball albeit with less velocity and a bit more depth. It has not yet shown the potential to become a real third pitch for him. There are days when Whitman does not have the feel for his pitches, even including his slider, and he has paid the price more often than not. He has to stay on top of his control to become effective or be relegated to a slider-centric reliever in a couple of years.

28. Carson Seymour P
FB 55/55 | SL 55/55 | CMD 40/40
PV 40 | FV 40

Seymour was the workhorse for the Flying Squirrels last season and looks to repeat that same feat in Sacramento. However, things have not gone exactly to plan so far as he struggled with his control for much of the first half of this season, resulting in a rather middling performance so far.

After much confusion as to what Seymour actually throws, he is officially only throwing two pitches at the moment: a mid-90s sinker and a high-80s slider. His sinker has plenty of depth while also having a solid amount of run while his slider has exceptional velocity and quite a solid movement profile as well. The only hindrance to him getting big-league consideration is the lack of fine control that he displays in his starts. He is often looking for the chase when he is more of a pitch-to-contact guy aside from the general strike-throwing issues. He has a path to becoming a big-league reliever as he has big-league stuff, the question is whether the control is big-league ready.

29. Nick Sinacola P
FB 45/45 | SL 55/55 | CH 55/55 | CMD 45/50
PV 40 | FV 40

Sinacola has been one of the more reliable pitchers in the Giants' farm system over the past couple of seasons. He had his second taste of the Northwest League this season, pitching both in the rotation and in the pen and posting much better results compared to last season. His performance prompted the Giants to promote Sinacola to Double-A where he's continued to find success as a starter in the Flying Squirrels rotation.

The right-hander is never known for his pure stuff. His fastball has been topping out only in the 90-91 mph range and is often in the high 80s with a downhill plane. However, he can generate plenty of swings and misses when he is on thanks to his offspeed pitches. His low-80s slider with late bite has been his long-standing putaway pitch ever since he was in college. He has now complemented the slider with a mid-80s splitter that has plenty of late tumble and is now a true swing-and-miss pitch. When Sinacola's on, he can really carve you up with his ability to throw strikes and make you chase with his offspeed pitches. If he can gain a couple more ticks in velocity, which is still possible, he can cement himself as a legitimate prospect.

30. Lisbel Diaz OF
Hit 20/45 | Raw Power 55/60 | Game Power 30/50 | Speed 45/40 | Arm 55/55 | Field 40/45
PV 20 | FV 40

Diaz did burst into the Giants prospect scene. He signed with the Giants out of Cuba in July last year and played just a month of action. He put up respectable numbers but such a small sample size and the relative lack of exposure in the Dominican Summer League made Diaz an unknown commodity heading into 2024. He is known now as he continued to pile up impressive stats backed up with plenty of footage in the ACL. He earned a promotion to full-season ball even though he is a year younger than 2023 second-rounder Walker Martin.

The most impressive tool that Diaz has is his well-rounded offensive profile. His frame is already quite built but still with room to add more muscle as he is quite broad. His batting stance is simple, with a slightly crouched set-up and not a lot of moving parts. His load is a simple one but the most interesting part of his swing is the way he loads his bat. He does not move the tilt of his bat when he loads. In short, his hands only move when he swings. It might not be the most efficient way to transfer the energy generated to his bat but his quiet hands allow him to generate plenty of contact. He was handling breaking balls well down in the ACL but he is currently struggling to hit it in the Cal League. He is already a fringy runner now who projects to lose a step as he gets older and tucks in more weight but he has the arm strength to play in right field and not be a liability. This might be a very high ranking but with the relative lack of exciting hitting prospects in the Giants farm system right now, Diaz presents some of the most compelling hit-power combinations in the minors.