The Giants went down from a familiar route with their first-round pick in the 2019 MLB Draft.
San Francisco selected Palo Alto native Hunter Bishop with the No. 10 overall pick. Bishop is a left-handed, power-hitting outfielder who played at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo before playing collegiately at Arizona State. He also has a baseball pedigree, as his older brother Braden made his MLB debut this season with the Seattle Mariners.
Sound familiar? It should, considering his background sounds a lot like Barry Bonds'.
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Bonds, the son of former Giants outfielder Bobby Bonds, also was a left-handed, power-hitting outfielder who played at Junipero Serra High School before attending Arizona State. This is almost certainly nothing more than a fun coincidence for Giants fans, especially considering that Bonds was a Pittsburgh Pirates draft pick (No. 6 overall in 1985) and didn't return to the Bay Area until he was a free agent.
Making the majors is much different than being arguably the greatest player to ever swing a bat, but Bonds and Bishop's similarities don't end with their backgrounds. The two also had remarkably similar junior seasons at Arizona State.
[RELATED: Check out every 2019 MLB Draft first-round pick here]
In 1985, Bonds hit 23 home runs and slashed .368/.447/.713. Thirty-four years later, Bishop hit 22 home runs and slashed .344/.478/.758.
San Francisco Giants
It's worth reiterating that these similarities do not mean Bishop will have a career that rivals Bonds', or that he will even make the majors with the Giants. But, Bishop's potential is encouraging for an organization lacking power hitters.