Meet the Giants' newest pitching phenom, Zach Wheeler

It will be a few years before we know where Wheeler ranks. AP Photo

The 2009 MLB draft was considered by the experts to be pitching heavy. The Giants decided to go with what was in front of them and took the 6'3" high school right hander. Don't fret about the Giants adding to their strength, pitching, because the aforementioned "experts" consider Wheeler a top talent.

Obviously he Giants would have preferred to take an Evan Longoria type, but the scouts across baseball insist that player wasn't available in this draft. Given that, the Giants took the best talent available, Wheeler.

Here is his complete scouting report. He's a young tall, right handed power pitcher out of East Spaulding High School in Georgia.  His fastball is around 90-93 with plenty of "life."

Once signed, Wheeler will join the likes of Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson in the Giants farm system. He will also join a long list of first round pitchers selected by Brian Sabean.

Since 1997, Sabean's first draft with the Giants, Sabean has selected 15 players in the first round. 11 have been pitchers.

1997 Jason Grilli, RHP

1998 Tony Torcato, OF

1999 Kurt Ainsworth, RHP

2000 Boof Bonser, RHP

2001 Brad Hennessey, RHP

2001 Noah Lowry, LHP

2002 Matt Cain, RHP

2003 David Aardsma, RHP

2004 no pick

2005 no pick

2006 Tim Lincecum, RHP

2006 Emmanuel Burriss, SS

2007 Madison Bumgarner, LHP

2007 Tim Alderson, RHP

2007 Wendell Fairley, OF

2008 Buster Posey, C

2009 Zach Wheeler, RHP

The Giants next pick will come in the second round, the 55th overall selection of the draft.

It seems that since the Giants took a two year hiatus from the first round picks in '04 and '05 (mostly due to financial worries), Sabean et al have been refocused, and the quality of picks reflects this. Lincecum and Burriss are keys on this year's team. Buster Posey is revered as one of the top prospects in all of baseball, and the hype around Bumgarner and Alderson is similar to what surrounded Lincecum in 2006 and 2007.

Still the glaring hole left absent by position players is hard to ignore. Wendell Fairley is not playing well, though the Giants still consider him one of the purest athletes in their system. Yet this season in A-ball Fairley is just batting .220 with 2 homers and only a .318 OBP.

We won't know where to file Wheeler's draft card for a few years, at least. But we do know that Brian Sabean has selected yet another highly touted pitcher in the first round. What's interesting about this pick is it's uncertain if Sabean himself will be around to take the credit, or the blame, for Wheeler.