SF Giants News: Former power-hitting prospect joins the White Sox

The Chicago White Sox bolstered minor league depth on Thursday by adding a former SF Giants power-hitting prospect. According to his agency, Chris Shaw has agreed to a deal with Chicago. Presumably, it is a minor league contract with the opportunity for a camp invite.

SF Giants News: Former power-hitting prospect joins the White Sox

Shaw had been out of affiliated ball for over a year, so it is good to see him get another chance. The Giants originally drafted the left-handed bat in the first round of the 2015 draft out of Boston College.

Originally a first baseman, the Giants stretched him out to the outfield as a way to get his potentially potent bat in the lineup. Given that Shaw bats from the left side, first base was a tough profile in San Francisco with another lefty in Brandon Belt entrenched at the position.

Despite being a college bat, the first round pick moved gradually up the minor league ladder. Like many hitters, Shaw would typically struggle in his first taste at a new level but would make the adjustments and eventually thrive.

By 2018, he reached Triple-A and was making a lot of noise, slashing .259/.308/.505 with 24 home runs, 65 RBI, and 55 runs in 422 plate appearances for the Sacramento River Cats. This included a very high 34.1 percent strikeout rate against a 4.9 percent walk rate.

His play earned him a late-season promotion to the Giants roster where he tallied 10 hits in 54 at-bats. He blasted his first and only home run with San Francisco in a September game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. You could see the potential power in his bat with just one swing.

Shaw seemingly fell out of favor when Farhan Zaidi took over as president of baseball operations in November of 2018. The front office tasked him with improving his plate discipline by beginning the 2019 season in Double-A. He moved back up to Triple-A, but recorded just one hit on 18 at-bats in his final season with the Giants.

The 29-year-old caught on with the Baltimore Orioles organization in 2021, but his season ended prematurely due to injury. Shaw posted an .860 OPS with 17 homers in 519 plate appearances for the Kentucky Wild Health Genomes of the Atlantic League. That stint showed that he still has something left to offer a major league organization.