The Giants have won 11 of their last 14 games as one of the hottest teams in baseball, but where does San Francisco rank when it comes to the team’s core talent?

Not in the top 10 according to ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, who places the team right in the middle of the pack at 15th (third in NL West behind the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres).

While the team’s season success is not an apparent metric, McDaniel says he “judges teams based on which players they have under contract through the next two full seasons.”

The Giants saw an impressive jump up in the ratings from their 2024 rank (22), largely in part because of what Buster Posey has done in his short time with the team.

“I like what president of baseball operations Buster Posey has done in remaking this big league team,” McDaniel said. “He’s investing in star players (re-signing [Matt] Chapman, signing [Willy] Adames, trading for [Rafael] Devers), and at the deadline, he moved nonessential players or those on expiring deals to beef up the farm system.”

The Giants were just one of two teams in the top-half of the list to be without an “elite” player — “5ish WAR talent, or perennial All-Stars with MVP chances” per McDaniel.

Devers, who was listed as a “solid” tiered player, has batted just .253 since joining the Giants but really has turned it on since the start of August, slashing .289/.389/.602 with 12 home runs in 34 games played.

Another “solid” tier player, Adames, who had a woefully slow start, also has picked up the pace in the second half of the season. Over his last 15 days, he has slashed a respectable .289/.375/.622.

Other notable players in that tier: ace Logan Webb, Chapman and Patrick Bailey.

The list mentioned Giants top prospect Bryce Eldridge, who has continued to tear pitching up in Triple-A Sacramento, as well as Jung Hoo Lee and recently acquired outfielder Drew Gilbert, among others.

At 72-71, the Giants have significantly underperformed on the year, but with the roster they currently have, a hot streak earlier in the year could have made all the difference and made 2025 a completely different season.

McDaniel also states he believes the Giants could be a contender as early as next season. Only time will tell.

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