SF Giants: Farhan Zaidi expects top prospect Kyle Harrison to reach majors in 2023
The SF Giants top pitching prospect Kyle Harrison is considered of the best pitching prospects in minor league baseball. In a Zoom press conference with reporters on Friday, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi was asked about their expectations for Harrison. Zaidi revealed that the front office is confident that Harrison will make his MLB debut next season.
SF Giants prospect Kyle Harrison talks with other players at the 2022 MLB Futures Game.
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
"We expect him to be in our rotation at some point next year," Zaidi said. "Could even be relatively early in the season. As we talked about, probably around the All-Star break or immediately after, we wouldn't have even ruled out furthering his progression and getting him to Triple-A to end the season."
The Giants drafted Harrison in the third round of the 2020 MLB draft out of De La Salle High School in Concord, California, and signed him away from a commitment to UCLA. A San Jose native, Harrison immediately began turning heads in pro baseball with improved velocity and an impressive ability to miss bats.
In 2021, Harrison spent the entire season at Single-A San Jose. Despite being just 19 years old for the bulk of the year, Harrison was one of the best pitchers in the California League. He racked up 157 strikeouts in 98.2 innings and posted a 3.19 ERA.
The young southpaw emerged as a consensus top-25 prospect in the minor leagues this season and strengthened his case as the top prospect in the Giants farm system. Harrison dominated High-A and Double-A competition this season, recording 186 strikeouts with a 2.71 ERA in 113 innings pitched. Still only 21, the Giants limited Harrison's workload this season, but he showed no signs of slowing down late in the season. In fact, Zaidi reiterated that the player development staff considered promoting Harrison to Triple-A late in the season.
"We wanted him to get the experience of pitching in the playoffs in Double-A, and we fully expect him to start next year in Triple-A. Once he establishes proficiency at that level, which given his minor-league track record could happen pretty quickly, we would expect him to be an option for us."
With that said, Zaidi clarified that the front office is not planning to go into next season with Harrison competing for a spot in the rotation. Instead, the plan is to give him time to develop in Triple-A and only call upon him when both he is ready and either injuries or poor performance force the team to improve their big-league roster.
"Our plan is to go into the season with five big-league rotation options," Zaidi added. "We may not have an opening in the rotation to start the season, but we know what a battle of attrition this is. So hopefully, the first time we need someone, Kyle is ready to step in."
The SF Giants will face several big decisions this offseason, particularly in the starting rotation. However, regardless of how free agency shakes out, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has to feel better about the rotation's prospects knowing that Kyle Harrison could be ready to make an impact early next season.
