LOS ANGELES - The Giants have a pretty strong track record when picking in the top five of the MLB Draft. In 1985, they took Will Clark with the second overall selection, and Clark remains the highest-drafted player in franchise history. A year later, Matt Williams was taken third overall. Jason Grilli at No. 4 in 1997 is rather forgettable, but taking Buster Posey with the fifth pick in 2008 led to three titles.
With a week of baseball remaining, the Giants are a lock to pick in the top four of next year's draft. A few days ago, they looked like a pretty strong bet to pick first overall, but the standings - the bottom of them, at least - have tightened in recent days. Here's a look at the contenders, so to speak …
White Sox (63-92): No team went into tank mode this year quite like Chicago, with trades of just about every big piece on the roster. But a funny thing has happened … they've actually played decent baseball down the stretch. The White Sox are 11-12 in September after a blowout of the Royals on Sunday. They finish up with four against the Angels and three against the Indians, so they should get pretty close to 100 losses.
Phillies (62-94): They have looked all along like the team to beat, but they hurt their top-pick chances by taking three of four from the Dodgers last week. They host the Nationals and Mets this week.
Tigers (62-94): All of a sudden, they're the biggest road block for the Giants. The Tigers have lost seven straight and they're 4-20 in September. They finish up with three against the Royals and three against the Twins, and all six games are on the road.
Giants (61-95): Can we stop for a moment and appreciate this. We've been talking about it for five months, but still, it's pretty amazing that a $200 million team is headed into the final week with a very good shot at having the worst record in Major League Baseball. What an awful season this has been. Having said that, the Giants have not shown any signs of actually tanking, and manager Bruce Bochy said this weekend that he won't shut any players down. So, it's on to Phoenix, where the Giants have lost six of seven this season but the Diamondbacks might chill out a bit after clinching a postseason spot. They'll face Zack Godley, Robbie Ray and Zack Greinke. The season ends with three at home against the Padres. The Giants have struggled against the Padres for the last year and a half, but they'll have Matt Cain going in an emotional start and Madison Bumgarner will also get a game.
