Phillies sign former SF Giants second-round pick to milb contract
Former SF Giants prospect Jacob Gonzalez has a new home. The infielder has inked a minor league deal with the Philadelphia Phillies on Dec. 11, according to the MiLB transaction log. Gonzalez has spent the past two seasons in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization.
SF Giants 3B Jacob Gonzalez fields during a spring training game. (2020)
Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports
Gonzalez, 25, was a second-rounder –– the 58th selection in the country –– by the Giants in 2017, the organization’s next pick following the choice of outfielder Heliot Ramos in the first round. He received a $950,000 signing bonus from San Francisco out of high school and forwent an existing agreement to play college baseball at TCU.
Unlike his father, Arizona Diamondbacks legend Luis Gonzalez, Jacob’s luck in professional baseball hasn’t yet resulted in much success. In four seasons with the Giants organization, Gonzalez struggled offensively and was unable to fully display the hit tool that landed him a high draft selection.
In two consecutive seasons for Single-A Augusta in 2018 and 2019, Gonzalez only managed to put up an OPS of .627 and .679 in those years. Originally thought of as a power threat at the amateur level, he blasted just 18 homers across 1,011 plate appearances.
The cancellation of the minor league season due to COVID-19 robbed Gonzalez of playing in 2020. Most of his 2021 campaign was spent reinventing himself in rookie ball. After encouraging adjustments led him to slash .304/.360/.497, the Pittsburgh Pirates were impressed enough to select him in the minor league version of the Rule 5 draft, ending his tumultuous tenure in the Giants organization.
Gonzalez posted an .836 OPS between Single-A and High-A in the Pirates organization, easily his most productive season at full-season ball. He finally reached Double-A in 2023 with Pittsburgh, but only hit .237/.293/.351 in 338 plate appearances, which is not quite enough at the plate to fit the profile of a viable corner infield option.
Nevertheless, Jacob Gonzalez will The Phillies assigned Gonzalez to Double-A Reading where he’ll likely serve as an organizational depth piece.
