2024 MLB Draft: Dakota Jordan highlights Day 2 for SF Giants

The San Francisco Giants did not draft as many players as the average team on the first day of the MLB Draft. After selecting James Tibbs III in their first round, the Giants had to give up their second round after losing their selection when they signed Matt Chapman.

And the same thing happened on the second day also. The Giants got a late start to the action, as they were punished with a third-round pick when they signed Blake Snell.

But they made up for lost time by the day’s exciting leisure. The second day of the three-day draft was highlighted by the team’s fourth-round selection, outfielder Dakota Jordan of Mississippi State.

Despite sitting at No. 116, the Giants were able to grab a player who some thought might fall off the board in the first round. And it’s not hard to see why: Even taking into account studs like Jack Caglianone, Jordan may have the highest power potential in the MLB draft. Don’t believe me? Play the tape!

Oh God. Oh. My. Goodness.

However, Jordan’s power goes beyond just YouTube highlights. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel (who ranked Jordan as the No. 27 prospect in the draft) called it “legit 80-grade raw power”, to which Keith Law of The Athletic agreed (as well as Jordan for bat speed. giving it an 80-grade), while adding that, “For pure equipment, Jordan rivals anyone in the class.” But it’s not just power: Jordan, who played a lot of center field, “would occasionally run sub-4.2 at 220 pounds, which made a certain analyst’s eyes pop out of his head,” according to FanGraphs.

So why did Jordan fall so far in the draft? Partly because there is a huge swing-and-miss hole in his game that will need to be addressed for his offensive contact to play. And partly because, as a draft-eligible sophomore, Joe can go back to school, potentially address his contact issues, and re-enter the draft in a better position next year. Yes, he takes a lot of advantage. Presumably the Giants figured this out before they drafted him — as the broadcast constantly reminded viewers, only one player on Day 2 of the 2023 draft didn’t end up signing.

The Giants drafted only college players, selecting San Diego outfielder Jacob Christian in the fifth round, Santa Clara third baseman (and lifelong Giants fan) Robert Hipwell in the sixth round, and Alabama left tackle Chris Smith in the seventh round. . Pitcher Greg Farone was selected in their eighth round, Southern Mississippi right-hander Nico Mazza in their ninth round, Illinois-Chicago shortstop Zane Zielinski in their ninth round, and Murray State right-handed pitcher Cade Vernon in their 10th round. There’s a lot of talent among those picks, but there are also a lot of opportunities to go with players in the underslot to make Jordan’s signing more convenient.

A few things came to light in the first two days of the draft. First, it’s notable that the Giants used their first three selections on outfielders. Over the past few years we have seen teams use the draft to even out the depth of their systems. He entered the 2021 draft among particularly low pitchers, and used the next two years to improve. 2023 saw Farhan Zaidi and Co. dominate the middle infielders and now we’re seeing the outfield depth replenished.

It is also noteworthy that the first three players selected by the Giants are power-forward bats. This is to be expected from the outfielders, but it is another sign of filling out the minor league depth, as the Giants are sorely lacking power in their system behind Bryce Aldridge and Marco Luciano.

Ultimately, Jordan’s drafting strikes me as noteworthy. A player with all-world power and huge red flags in the contact and plate discipline departments is the opposite of what we’ve become accustomed to from this organization. It’s hard to agree that the franchise making this decision is the same one that, less than a year ago, opted to add Wade Meckler to the 40-man roster when they sent Heliot Ramos twiddling their thumbs in AAA . Perhaps he sees something he thinks he can fix from Jordan’s swing, perhaps his thought process is evolving, or perhaps Ramos’ success has inspired some changes. Either way, if you asked me to guess which organization would draft an 80-grade power hitter with a 29% strikeout rate, the Giants would be pretty low on my list. However, I am very excited about it.

The draft concludes on Tuesday with rounds 11-20. The Giants have made a habit of drafting excellently late in games, so perhaps some impact players will be added to the system tomorrow.

To stay up to date with all draftees, and see videos and stats of all players, check out our Draft Tracker.