SAN FRANCISCO — Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin dug for a very particular comparison to his former centerfielder. Bryan Reynolds, the Giants’ first draft pick, aligns closely with another outfielder roaming AT&T Park. One with a unique flare, from his unorthodox practice swings to his catapult throwing motion.
Reynolds, Corbin said, reminds him of Hunter Pence.
“I see a little bit (of similarity) in their sizes,” Corbin said. “A little in the way they throw, run, gallop. Their instincts, too.
“Hunter has got a little different way he plays the game … Bryan is Bryan.”
The Giants, and presumably their fans, would be thrilled if Reynolds developed into anything close to the bumbling icon Pence has become. Reynolds was the Giants’ first pick in the draft, coming in at 59th overall because the team lost their first-round pick after signing Jeff Samardzija. The Vanderbilt product foreshadowed the Giants’ remaining eight picks, as all were used on college products. The remaining 29 rounds of the draft take place on Saturday, so check below for a complete list of drafted players.
But the Giants started with Reynolds, and scouting director John Barr doesn’t like comparisons when viewing players. Both Pence and Reynolds might stand 6-foot-4, but Barr believes there’s no telling how the switch-hitting centerfielder will slot into the Giants’ system.
He just knows he has a versatile player on his hands, one he’s confident can play any outfield position, including his native centerfield.
“I know you have to be a special athlete to play centerfield in the big leagues,” Corbin said, “but Bryan Reynolds is a special athlete. “
At the plate, Corbin profiled his former player as a “dynamic” hitter from either batter’s box, with slightly different mechanics from either side of the plate. He hit .330 in 62 games with the Commodores this year, leading the team with a .461 on-base percentage and slugging .603.
Reynolds was almost unanimously projected to get taken in the first round, and both the Giants and Vanderbilt were equally surprised to see the first 58 picks go elsewhere. Corbin was “shocked” Reynolds didn’t get picked sooner, and Bochy spoke of a Giants draft room that was equally surprised.
They don’t know if they have another Pence on their hands, but what they do have is an outfielder who seems he can do it all, one the Giants could probably use right now with the team’s injury struggles. But Reynolds might be worth waiting for.
“He’ll play in the big leagues,” Corbin said. “Not only will he play in the big leagues, he’ll accelerate in the big leagues. It’s just that type of kid.
“That type of kid you see every so often that you know from an intangibles standpoint and how he goes about things, that he’s going to play.”
The most interesting name on the Giants’ board is Matt Krook, a left-handed pitcher out of Oregon. Originally from San Mateo, Krook attended St. Ignatius College Preparatory in San Francisco.
The Giants had interest in drafting him out of high school in 2013, but elected instead to go with Christian Arroyo. Krook landed in Miami with the 35th overall pick, but never signed. He threw only 45 innings with the Ducks before needing Tommy John surgery his freshman year, and finished this season with 49 walks in 53.2 innings.
But he’s the exact project Barr wants Dick Tidrow and the Giants’ minor-league staff to take on. Krook’s a power pitcher, standing 6-foot-4 with a good repertoire, including a fastball touching 95.
“We saw him throw a few times,” Barr said. “He’s someone that we think has a high upside and think it’d be great to work with him.”
Here’s a breakdown of the other top Giants picks, with information compiled by the team and player bios:
3rd Round (#95): RF Heath Quinn, Samford University
With the 95th pick in the draft, the Giants selected outfielder Heath Quinn from Samford University…the 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior finished his 2016 season with a .343 batting average, 21 home runs and a school record 77 RBI…Quinn was named a semifinalist for the 2016 Golden Spikes Award, in addition to receiving First-Team All-Southern Conference honors and being named to Baseball America’s Second-Team…the Birmingham, Alabama native was named the Louisville Slugger Player of the Week on Feb. 22 after batting .625 (10-for-16) with nine RBI, nine runs scored, two doubles, one triple and three home runs…Quinn homered in each of the first three games of the series against Butler, hitting safely in 10 of his first 11 at-bats and also hit for the cycle in Samford’s 16-1 victory on February 20…the Bulldogs’ right fielder has compiled 44 home runs, 48 doubles, 168 runs, 181 RBI and an impressive .334 batting average in his three year career at Samford…he was selected to start in the 2015 All-Star Game of the Cape Cod League representing the Falmouth Commodores after leading the team in hitting at the All-Star break with a .306 batting average, six doubles, one triple and eight RBI…Quinn was also named the Cape Cod League’s Coca-Cola Player of the Week on June 30.
4th Round (#125): LHP Matt Krook, University of Oregon
In the fourth round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft, the Giants selected left-handed pitcher Matt Krook out of the University of Oregon…in 2016, he was one of 50 players named to the Golden Spikes Award watch list…he was also named a Louisville Slugger preseason third-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball and a preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association…he went 4-3 with a 5.03 ERA (49er, 53.2ip), while recording 68 strikeouts…Krook began his career at Oregon with an impressive injury-shortened freshman season, as he posted a 2-1 record with a 1.79 ERA, while striking out 60 in 45.1 innings pitched…he was named a Louisville Slugger first-team Freshman All-American at the conclusion of the season…the 6-foot-3, 217-pounder missed the 2015 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery…played summer ball for the Wareham Gatemen in the Cape Cod League following the 2015 season…made six starts, striking out 15 over 11.1 innings pitched…Krook was selected in the first round (35th overall) of the 2013 draft by the Miami Marlins…the San Francisco native played for St. Ignatius Prep.
5th Round (#155): SS Ryan Howard, Missouri
In the fifth round of the 2016 draft, San Francisco selected shortstop Ryan Howard out of Missouri…the St. Charles, Missouri native hit .295 (64-for-217) 27 RBI and 19 extra-base hits, including 13 doubles, five homers and one triple in 56 games for the Tigers in 2016…was named Preseason First Team All-SEC at shortstop and tabbed as Baseball America’s top infield arm in the SEC…the 6-foot-2, 180-pound junior hit a team-best .381 with 13 runs and nine RBI over his final 16 games of the 2016 season…Howard played with USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team as the team’s starting shortstop in 2015 and hit .310 with four doubles, one homer, with six runs scored and three RBI in 17 games…in 2015, he led the Tigers with a .308 average while recording a team-high 69 hits…he also finished the year with lowest strikeout-rate on the team (10.7%) and committed just seven errors on 243 chances as the team’s starting shortstop…Howard was also drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 31st round of the 2015 MLB Draft.
6th Round (#185): LF Gio Brusa, University of the Pacific
With 185th overall pick, the Giants selected outfielder Gio Brusa out of the University of the Pacific…the 6-foot-3, 220-pound senior ended his college career with a tremendous season at the plate, batting .337 while collecting 68 hits and 14 home runs…Brusa was named a Louisville Slugger preseason second-team All-American, a Perfect Game preseason third-team All-American and Baseball American preseason first-team All-American prior to his junior season…he had a breakout summer in 2014 while playing for the Brewster Whitecaps in the Cape Cod League…he was awarded All-Star status as he hit .322 with 20 RBI and six home runs…he was named the fourth overall prospect in the league…Brusa was selected in the 23rd round (701st overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2015…the Lodi native was also taken by the Atlanta Braves in the 37th round out of St. Mary’s High School in 2012.
7th Round (#215): LHP Garrett Williams, Oklahoma State
With the 215th overall selection the San Francisco Giants selected Garrett Williams from Oklahoma State…the 6-foot-1, 205 pound junior appeared in 12 games in 2016, posting a 2-0 record with a 6.23 ERA (9er, 13.0ip)…Williams struck out 19 batters, while allowing 10 walks over his 13 innings pitched…in 2015, he made 18 appearances (two starts), recording 25 strikeouts in 18.1 innings (4.91 ERA)…over his three-year career at Oklahoma State, Williams posted an 11.59 strikeout per 9.0 innings ratio…the Lubbock, Texas native was a gold medalist on the 2012 USA Baseball 18-and-under team that won IBAF 18U World Championships in Seoul, South Korea…was listed by Baseball America as the 15th-best high school prospect in the country for the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft and was drafted in the 33rd round by the San Diego Padres in 2013.
8th Round (#245): RHP Stephen Woods, University at Albany
In the eighth round, the Giants selected right-handed pitcher Stephen Woods from the University at Albany…the 6-foot-2, 200-pound right-hander posted a 5.57 ERA over 63.2 innings pitched in 2016…he struck out 88 batters while walking 41…he was named a second-team All-America East member his sophomore season after leading the conference with an opposing batting average against of .187 during conference play…ranked second in the conference in strikeouts with 55…Woods was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the sixth round out of high school in 2013.
9th Round (#275): LHP Caleb Baragar, Indiana University
With 275th overall pick in the draft, the Giants selected left-handed pitcher Caleb Baragar out of Indiana University…in his senior season, the 6-foot-3, 204-pound southpaw threw 86.2 innings while only allowing 24 earned runs (2.49 ERA)…he had an impressive .205 batting average against…made 15 appearances as a junior, including 12 starts, which was tied for a team lead…transferred to Indiana from Jackson Community College, where he made the first team All-NJCAA Region XII and first team All-MCCAA teams…he earned National Junior College Athletic Association Pitcher of the Week honors.
10th Round (#305): LHP Alex Bostic, Clemson University
In the final round of the second day of the 2016 draft, the Giants selected left-handed pitcher Alex Bostic out of Clemson University…the 6-foot-2, 210-pound junior had the best season of his college career in 2016, posting a 5.13 ERA over 33.1 innings with 44 strikeouts…he made 15 relief appearances in 2015 and allowed only three of 14 inherited baserunners to score.