The San Francisco Giants have had a lot of success drafting players from the state of Florida in the first round of the MLB draft. And 16 years after drafting Buster Posey, the organization is trying to replicate that success: With the 13th overall selection in the 2024 MLB Draft, the Giants selected outfielder James Tibbs III from FSU.
Tibbs is viewed as one of the most MLB-ready players in the draft, especially as far as position players are concerned. The left-handed hitter, who will turn 22 in October, has excellent bat control and command of the strike zone, and had a .300 batting average all three years of college. He saw his power increase during his tenure at Florida State – after hitting a combined 27 home runs in his first two seasons, Tibbs hit 28 dingers in his junior season alone, one of the highest marks in college baseball. .
ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel ranked Tibbs as the No. 11 prospect in the draft, saying, “For some scouts, Tibbs is the most polished college hitter not named after (No. 1 pick Travis) Bazana and (No. 4 pick) There is a coin flip with (Nick) Kurtz for multiple teams on this turn of your board.”
The Athletic’s Keith Law ranked Tibbs at No. 14 on his big board, saying, “He makes great swing decisions and his contact quality is strong. He’s nearing his max EV this spring after topping out at 105 last summer.” Accelerating to over 110 mph.” Wood.”
He was also ranked No. 14 in FanGraphs’ rankings of draft prospects, with the site highlighting that, “Tibbs has one of the higher floors in the 2024 draft as a lefty bat with steady contact and a power mix. Lightning fast hands allow him to snatch inside-half pitches to his pull side and generate opposing contact on pitches that travel deep into the zone. There are times when Tibbs’ swing looks like a dead ringer for Steven Kwan, especially against pitches down and away; His hands and the way he lands is very similar, although it certainly doesn’t fit Tibbs’ overall feel of hitting. The one standout data point here is the consistency of Tibbs’ hard contact,” before concluding, “There’s really no headline tool here, just a consistent, well-rounded profile that resembles that of a quick-footed corner platoon outfielder.” It is visible.”
While analysts are unanimous in their praise of Tibbs for his control on the field, the quality of his contact, and his high floor, they are also unanimous in their fear of his ability to hit left-handed pitches. The Georgia native struggled to hit southpaws in college (relatively speaking), so he ended up as a platoon outfielder, which is a statement that probably makes a lot of Giants fans cringe ( Although he would be the stronger side of the platoon, as a lefty).
But it’s also very possible that the organization is considering some changes to Tibbs’ swing and approach to prepare him for success against left-handed pitchers. But that probably means putting the cart before the horse.
Tibbs is certainly a prospect who fits the Giants profile. He is a high-character player who was an Academic All-American and ACC Scholar Athlete of the Year. He has great plate discipline, and in his final collegiate season he walked 57 times while striking out only 38 times. He has built a swing for contact. And, as appears to be a prerequisite for gaining the Giants’ interest, he had a strong performance last year in the Cape Cod League, hitting .303/.390/.472.
But to top it all off was his performance this year at Florida State, where Tibbs hit a staggering .363/.488/.777 in a strong conference. He hit a home run once every 11.4 plate appearances and recorded an impressive 95 RBI in just 320 plate appearances. You don’t need a masters in baseball scouting to know that those numbers are pretty good.
One strange thing in the minor leagues this year is that the short-season rookie ball schedule was moved up a month, meaning the Arizona Complex League season will end in less than two weeks. As a result, a large group of players taken in the 2024 draft will have to wait until 2025 to make their debut. But seeing as Tibbs is a fairly polished player, it wouldn’t be surprising at all for him to see normal post-draft playing time after spending the end of the season with Low-A San Jose.
Tibbs will be the Giants’ last draft pick for some time, as the team gave up its second- and third-round picks when signing Matt Chapman and Blake Snell in free agency this offseason. Thankfully, he seems worth getting excited about.
Welcome to the Giants, James!
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