Junius Worth
David Kerr
Charlie Nehl
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Andrew Martin
Jonathan C. Mitchell
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Daniel Marino
Michael Schwartze
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Spencer Schneier
William J. Tasker
If you like catching then the San Francisco Giants system is right up your alley. They also have a few toolsy outfielders to keep an eye on and some upside arms but for the most part this is a system with more organizational depth than high-profile talent.
Below are my top 16 prospects with 2012 opening day age, position, and comments on each player. Below the top 16 is a small list of additional notable names. Enjoy.
| Player | Comments | |
| 1 | Gary Brown (23-OF) | Brown is extremely athletic and has easy 50+ stolen base speed and will be an asset with the glove in CF. He has good gap power and hits line drives but does not project to hit for a lot of power. 15 HR is possible but I doubt he ever gets to 20. His hit tool and discipline are good enough that he could hit .300 and be an All-Star but more walks would be nice. |
| 2 | Joe Panik (21-MIF) | An above-average hit tool and the ability to stay in the middle of the infield are what the Giants like about Panik. He makes a lot of contact and has a good line-drive stroke and has excellent plate discipline. He may not hit more than 10-12 HRs but he will hit doubles and steal 15+ bases. If his arm was better and he had a little more quickness he could stick at SS but there are doubts. |
| 3 | Tommy Joseph (20-C) | Still a work in progress behind the plate but he has a strong arm. He also has above-average power but poor plate discipline. If he can stay at catcher he has a future as a big league regular with 20+ HR potential behind the plate. |
| 4 | Heath Hembree (23-RHP) | Nothing more than a pen arm but a very good one who could work high-leverage situations. He has a mid-90s fastball and a plus slider that is death to right handed hitters. His control is slightly below-average but he can get away with that in the pen. Could be in the Majors this year. |
| 5 | Kyle Crick (19-RHP) | He has the highest ceiling of any arm in the system with a mid-90s fastball that can touch the upper 90s and a frame fit for a starter. His secondary offerings have potential but are far from ready and he is still very raw. |
| 6 | Andrew Susac (22-C) | He has a higher ceiling than Joseph thanks to better defense and much better plate discipline but we have no pro data and the hamate injury takes a lot of power from a hitter. |
| 7 | Ehire Adrianza (22-SS) | A true SS who is plus on the defensive side of the ball but may not have enough bat to play regularly at the Major League level. He does draw walks and steals bases but he has no power and a below-average hit tool. |
| 8 | Francisco Peguero (23-OF) | Has the speed to play CF and steal 30+ bases but profiles better in RF. He survives by marking hard contact and having a high BABIP but never walks (76 unintentional walks in 2106 PAs) and has below average power. I have my doubts he can be more than a 4th OFer at this point but he has does have the upside of a regular if he can stay in CF and improve his discipline. |
| 9 | Clayton Blackburn (19-RHP) | He has excellent control and command of a low-90s fastball that can touch mid-90s and his curveball and change-up, which both have potential to be above-average pitches. |
| 10 | Eric Surkamp (24-LHP) | Nothing more than a 5th starter here but the probability is almost 100%. He has a high-80s fastball, change-up, curveball, and cutter/slider and can locate all of them so he keeps hitters guessing. His fastball will have to be on the corners for it to effective because hitters will eat it up if it’s anywhere near the middle of the plate. |
| 11 | Hector Sanchez (22-C) | Yet another catching prospect in a catching rich organization. Sanchez has nearly plus skills behind the plate but poor discipline at the plate and strikes out a lot with average-at-best power. I see a backup but a good one who will have a long career. |
| 12 | Josh Osich (23-LHP) | Injury concerns dropped him in the draft but he has a mid-90s fastball and above-average slider with plus potential. He will have to prove he can be durable enough to handle a SP workload but even if he cannot he has the chance to be a high-leverage reliever. |
| 13 | Michael Kickham (23-LHP) | Durable frame to go with a low-90s fastball and two average offerings that have a chance to be slightly above-average. He looks the part of a potential #4 starter and if he can maintain his groundball approach he could reach that potential. |
| 14 | Joan Gregorio (20-RHP) | A towering right handed pitcher with room to add muscle and velocity. He already sits 89-92 and gets groundballs with his downhill plane. His secondary pitches need more refinement but there is mid-rotation potential here. |
| 15 | Ricky Oropesa (22-1B) | Huge raw power but major contact issues and his lack of range will likely keep him at 1B although he has a plus arm so a tryout in RF wouldn’t hurt. |
| 16 | Jarrett Parker (23-OF) | Very good athlete and has enough arm to play in RF. He draws walks, hits for at least average power, and steals bases but strikes out a heckuva lot. |
A few more names to watch: Seth Rosin (RHP), Charlie Culberson (MIF), Conor Gillaspie (3B)
-Jonathan C. Mitchell can be found writing about the Tampa Bay Rays at DRaysBay and the Florida Marlins at ESPN’s SweetSpot site Marlins Daily. You can follow him on twitter at @FigureFilbert. Be sure to follow MLBdirt at @MLBdirt
Filed under: On the Farm - Prospects Tagged: | Prospects, Andrew Susac, San Francisco Giants, Gary Brown, Joe Panik, 2012 Top Prospects, Tommy Joseph, Heath Hembree, Kyle Crick, Francisco Peguero, Eric Surkamp, Ehire Adrianza, Clayton Blackburn, Hector Sanchez, Josh Osich, Charlie Culberson, Ricky Oropesa, Joan Gregorio, Michael Kickham, Jarrett Parker, Seth Rosin, Conor Gillaspie
I’ve read that some think Gary Brown’s swing is long. Personally, I see a valuable asset for the Giants here and one that will become a fan favorite with his speed and hit tool.
I also read the same thing but video I saw showed a more compact swing.
Good list. Personally, I’ve got Tommy Joseph over Panik, especially when you take his position into account.
Funny thing is I had Joseph ahead until about a week ago when I saw some footage of Panik and I really liked his swing. His probability and closeness to the Bigs is why I swapped the two.
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