Who were the best SF Giants position player prospects in the Cactus League?

Who were the best SF Giants position player prospects in the Cactus League?

Wade Meckler

The Giants featured Meckler pretty heavily as one of the early backups early on but will miss out on being on the big league roster toward the final couple of games. One of the biggest issues with Meckler in his short big league stint last season is that he faltered hard against secondary pitches.

While he did well against fastballs and has shown the strike zone knowledge, there are times when breaking balls can still get him. In my opinion, it is a bit inconclusive. What is conclusive, however, is the questions about his defense. His overall defensive skillset (reads, first step, arm strength) is not great and has not improved over the winter. I mean it is hard to practice defense in the offseason but this might be what Meckler is in the long-term.

Ismael Munguia

It should come as no surprise that Munguia won the Barney Nugent Award for the best-performing player in his first spring training. He's been great with the contact ability, the surprising pop, and the infectious passion and energy around the dugout.

There are some issues that I have seen though amidst his great spring. He tends to expand the strike zone which results in swings and misses and weak contact. On defense, there were some issues as well in terms of reads and the routes that he took. There are also some concentration errors. I am not taking his achievements this spring away, but even the biggest fan of his (like myself) should temper expectations.

Chase Pinder

Pinder looked solid in the televised spring games that he played. There is not one standout tool but he puts the barrel to bad pitches with a clean-looking swing, and he bides his time and looks for a good pitch to hit. He has looked solid in defense as well. Overall, he is what you would expect from a seasoned pro player. I am not sure if he is a true big leaguer but if given the chance, could hold his own.

Jakson Reetz

Reetz struggled to get his bat going this spring. There are some tardy-looking swings but they are less than good-looking at-bats. He's done a solid job of controlling the strike zone even though the results were not there. Defensively, there were times when he struggled to control the strike zone with his framing, probably due to the lack of familiarity with the pitchers that he was catching as they played a level or two lower than him last season.