NEW ANGLE ON DRAFT

GIANTS: 'No pitcher left behind' strategy has been dumped

John Shea - San Francisco Chronicle

Even if the second coming of Juan Marichal were available at No. 5 in Thursday's draft, you would think the Giants still wouldn't draft a pitcher.

Under former draft chief Dick Tidrow, the Giants used first-round picks on pitchers eight times in nine years. For a while, the strategy worked. The pitching depth enabled general manager Brian Sabean to trade prospects for big-league hitters and keep the team in contention.

Eventually, the approach stopped working, and now the Giants, destined for their fourth straight losing season, are in desperate need of hitters throughout the organization. Outgoing managing general partner Peter Magowan is on record as saying the team hopes to use the top pick on a position player.

Enter John Barr, the Giants' new point man for the draft, part of Sabean's front-office reshuffling. Barr, 50, oversaw previous drafts with the Orioles and Mets and contributed to Dodger drafts as an East Coast supervisor, once spotting a little-known third baseman and recommending him as a catcher. Russell Martin, a 17th-round pick, has evolved into a big-league All-Star.

Now the Giants' future - the Barry Bonds aftermath - is in Barr's hands.

Asked point blank if he'll draft a hitter (specifically a corner infielder with pop) with the fifth pick, Barr said, "I don't want to say that. If four hitters go before us and those were the four hitters we were considering, and we say, 'Gee, this left-handed pitcher is pretty good' - you could always use a left-handed pitcher. I don't want to back myself in a corner and say we'll definitely draft a hitter. But we are making sure we're seeing every (hitter) that fits that description."

The Rays, who will pick first, haven't announced who they'll take. The Pirates pick second, the Royals third and Orioles fourth. For the Giants, No. 5 is their highest pick since they had the No. 4 in 1997 and took pitcher Jason Grilli, who was dealt two years later in a package for Livan Hernandez.

If the best hitting prospect in the system is 17-year-old corner infielder Angel Villalona, his presence won't affect how the Giants use their first pick, Barr said. A college hitter would be much further advanced than Villalona, who signed at 16 and remains in low-A Augusta.

Tidrow, whose role changed with Barr's arrival - he spends more time assisting Sabean at the big-league level and with player development - still has a hand in the draft, but it's Barr's baby. Over the winter, Sabean also hired Ron Schueler, 60, and Ed Creech, 56, both of whom have extensive draft experience, as senior advisers.

"I try to be structured and detailed before we make any decision," said Barr, who met recently with his supervisors, scouts and front-office staff to re-examine the top candidates' talents and medical and psychological backgrounds. He's receiving updates on college tournaments and high school all-star games.

Premier college corner infielders include Vanderbilt third baseman Pedro Alvarez (a Scott Boras client, meaning possibly a $7 million-plus signing bonus, coming off a hand injury), South Carolina first baseman Justin Smoak (switch-hitter, solid defender, a fit for the Giants, according to multiple mock drafts), Arizona State first baseman Brett Wallace (out of Justin-Siena High School in Napa) and Miami first baseman Yonder Alonso (known to have power and patience). From the high school ranks, first baseman Eric Hosmer of Plantation, Fla., is a possibility.

Other top position players include Florida State catcher Buster Posey (leads the nation in batting, on-base and slugging percentages) and Georgia shortstop Gordon Beckham, not to be confused with highly touted prep shortstop Tim Beckham from the same state who could be one of the top two picks.

Comment: Picture is Buster Posey-Catcher, Florida State. Posey may be the best catcher to come out of the draft in many years. Many mock drafts have the Giants drafting him in the first round if Tampa Bay does not draft him.