SF Giants 2024 first-round draft pick off to hot start in Eugene

The SF Giants selected James Tibbs III with the 13th overall pick of last year's MLB Draft. The Florida State product is off to a red-hot start in High-A ball in Eugene. We will have to see if the young prospect can build upon his impressive start.

It is a very small sample size, but in 3 games and 14 plate appearances Tibbs has four hits including a double and a home run. He has cooled off a little bit after reaching base in seven of his first eight plate appearances, but his home run was an impressive swing of the bat that cleared the fence in straightaway center field.

SF Giants prospect James Tibbs looking good so far

Last season across multiple minor league levels, Tibbs slashed .241/.293/.343 with two home runs and six RBI in 26 games. He played alongside top prospect Bryce Eldridge in High-A ball for the Eugene Emerald last season. Perhaps one day those two guys will be a major presence in the San Francisco Giants lineup.

Tibbs is ranked as the fourth-best prospect in San Francisco's farm system and he narrowly missed being ranked a top-100 MLB prospect. Tiibbs was also part of the team's Spring Breakout roster earlier this year. He bats and throws left-handed and with Eldridge appearing to be the future first baseman for the Giants, that may relegate Tibbs to outfield duties if he wants to break through at the big league level.

It seems there has been a bit of an adjustment for him after his impressive senior year at Florida State where he slashed .363/.488/.777 with 28 home runs and 95 RBI. His numbers with the Giants were not phenomenal last year in an admittedly small sample size but maybe that was due to him having to get used to life as a big league ballplayer.

Now that he is in his second year with the organization he may be due to really show his potential and perhaps even end the year playing in Richmond or Sacramento depending on how things go.

The Giants have had some good luck in the past with first-round draft picks out of Florida State. Buster Posey was a Seminole in college and went on to be one of the best players in franchise history before becoming the team's current president of baseball operations.

That is not to say Tibbs will come anywhere close to that sort of career, but his good start in Eugene is a positive sign as he tries to progress through the minor leagues.