SF Giants set to land exciting consolation prize after they miss on Roki Sasaki

UPDATE: A previous version of this article was written before the news broke that the Giants would not be landing Roki Sasaki. It has been updated to reflect this news.

The SF Giants were linked to the top international free agent, pitcher Roki Sasaki. However, even after they have missed out on Sasaki it seems likely that they will sign the second-best ranked international free agent available in Josuar De Jesus Gonzalez.

De Jesus Gonzalez is a shortstop from the Dominican Republic. He is only 17 years old and has a lot of raw potential. According to @giantsprospects on X, he would be the highest-profile international free agent signing since they signed Marco Luciano.

SF Giants poised to land Josuar De Jesus Gonzalez

The Giants have obviously been connected to De Jesus Gonzalez for a long time. It has been talked about for at least a year that the Giants seem to have the inside track on landing the promising Dominican player.

Andrew Baggary of The Athletic recently wrote that the Giants, "are believed to have agreements in place with three of the top 30 or so international players, including Dominican shortstop Josuar De Jesus Gonzalez, who is a consensus top-5 talent in this year’s class."

It is easy to get excited about a switch-hitting shortstop who has drawn comparisons to Francisco Lindor. However, Giants fans may also be cautious in any optimism they have given the struggles Marco Luciano, a former big get for the Giants in international free agency, has had in his young big league career.

One could argue that Luciano's struggles were brought about by him being rushed to the big leagues too soon and expected to be the team's shortstop when it was clear he was not ready for that. He is now transitioning to the outfield where he may find more success, but it was clear he was not handled in the best way. Perhaps with this new regime they will be more patient and not rush De Jesus Gonzalez to the big leagues if he is not ready.

Even if the Giants do miss out on Sasaki, they can take some solace in the fact that they are likely to get De Jesus Gonzalez. Prospects do not always work out, but with the current state of the team's farm system any exciting addition would help. If the Giants do indeed sign De Jesus Gonzalez, their farm system will definitely look a bit stronger and more exciting.