The SF Giants round out Day One of 2026 MLB draft but with pitching, but with one legacy exception

The SF Giants leaned heavily on pitching to finish out the first day of the MLB draft. Of course, there was one legacy exception to this. They drafted outfielder Peyton Bonds in the third round out of Rutgers University.

You can probably guess by now that Bonds is the nephew of Barry Bonds and a relative to the late Bobby Bonds. Once the signing becomes official, Peyton Bonds will become the fourth Bonds to play for the Giants organization. The other one? That would be Bobby Bonds Jr., who played in the Giants organization in the late 1990's.

Peyton Bonds was selected with the No. 90 pick. That pick carries a slot value of $887,000. Bonds had a strong second year at Rutgers University. He slashed .352/.436/.535 with six home runs, 29 RBI, and 31 runs in 166 plate appearances. He also had a 12.7 percent strikeout rate, which is consistent with how the Giants targeted players in last year's draft.

SF Giants lean on pitching, but bring a Bonds back into the organization

The right-handed bat was the only position play drafted by the Giants on the first day of the draft. They went with pitchers with four of their first five picks. Jackson Flora and Carson Bolemon led the way in the first round.

This is just a guess, but Flora will likely sign for an underslot deal. The Giants will then reallocate the savings to a pair of prep arms in Bolemon and their second-round pick, Kaden Waechter.

Waechter pitched out of Jesuit High School in Tampa, Florida. He was ranked as the No. 57 prospect in this year's draft class according to MLB Pipeline. They lauded the right-handed pitcher for a unique profile for a pitcher

"[Kaden] Waechter offers an exciting combination of MLB family ties, projection in a 6-foot-3 frame, athleticism and feel for pitching... Ceiling and pitchability don’t often come in one package, and that’s why scouts will be watching this Florida State recruit very carefully in the spring."

MLB Pipeline

Waechter has a commitment to Florida State University, so he will have that as leverage in negotiations. That said, signability within the first 10 rounds is rarely an issue once a player is drafted. This pick comes with a slot value of $1,763,000.

The Giants finished the day selecting pitcher Carlos Martinez out of Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. The Giants have a strong scouting presence in the Northeast, and they continued that trend with the Bonds and Martinez picks.

Martinez was unranked in this year's draft class. He pitched to a 3.30 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 11.3 K/9, and a 3.56 SO/W rate across 76.1 frames this season. The 21-year-old pitcher is a fourth-year senior, so there is a good chance that he signs for an underslot deal. This pick carries a slot value of $658,100.

Before today, the Giants' farm system was light on pitching depth. However, they focused the first day of the draft to bolster that area.

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