Buster Posey discusses the Future of the Giants' Top Prospect

The San Francisco President of Baseball Operations gives his take on the development of 20-year-old Bryce Eldridge thus far

Dec 12, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey speaks during the introductory press conference for shortstop Willy Adames (not pictured) at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Robert Edwards-Imagn Images | Robert Edwards-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants have an emerging slugger in their Minor League system who already has many Bay Area backers buzzing. Bryce Eldridge, the club's first-round pick (16th overall) in the 2023 MLB Draft, has been rising rapidly through the team's farm system and is currently thriving with Triple-A Sacramento.

Ironically, the 20-year-old's immediate success has the Giants in a bit of a quandary. Do they elevate him to the roster on Sept 1 to give him a look at Major League pitching? Or is it better served to wait until next Spring to evaluate his readiness?

At this point, President of Baseball Operations Buster Posey seems to have his eyes set on 2026 and beyond. Despite a blockbuster trade that landed Rafael Devers from the Red Sox, San Francisco still looks like a team that has already thrown in the towel.

At 58-57, they have been mediocre at best - currently in third place in the NL West, eight games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers (66-49) and five games out of the last wild card slot. So, having a player like Bryce Eldridge on the horizon represents hope for a promising future.

Is the Future NOW for Giants Prospect Bryce Eldridge?

Jul 26, 2023; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants general manager Pete Putila, first-round draft pick Bryce Eldridge, and president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi pose for a photo before the game against the Oakland Athletics at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Posey addressed the topic of Eldridge's accomplishments in the minors and how he feels about the phenom's development. Speaking with SFGate, the Giants executive weighed the pros and cons of bringing up the heavy hitter, especially considering the power surge that Eldridge has had in his short stint in Triple A.

“Homers are great, we all like homers, no doubt,” Posey stated recently. “He’s been on a tear. What’s been really fun to watch with Bryce is the way he’s hitting homers. He’s hitting a ton of homers to left-center, and that plays really anywhere. That plays at our ballpark, any ballpark. He’s continuing to make strides, and we’re going to keep watching him and see where we are as we continue to move forward. Nothing’s etched in stone.”

Posey stressed that, despite Eldrige's success, it's been a rather small sample size so far. He feels the young slugger needs more plate time to be properly vetted for Major League duty.

“Bryce, I’ve probably said it 50 times at this point this year, he’s still just 20 years old and hasn’t had a ton of reps,” Posey said. “We want to make sure that, when he does get that call, he’s going to be in the best position he can to get off to a great start that he can in the big leagues.”

While that response sounds as if Posey wants to slow the Eldridge train down a bit, he remained non-committal when pressed for an answer. In one simple reply, he illustrated just how difficult a decision it's been regarding the rookie.

“I think there’s a chance, but there’s a chance he doesn’t as well,” Posey. “So that doesn’t really give you an answer.”