The San Francisco Giants dropped a few spots in ESPN’s newest farm system rankings, which were based on the MLB Draft, the trade deadline and system graduates.

The Giants’ drop, to some degree, is based on a good thing — quality players graduated from their system.

Those graduates, based on Major League service time, including outfielder Tyler Fitzgerald, pitcher Kyle Harrison and pitcher Keaton Winn. Fitzgerald is having a huge second half of the season, while Harrison is a mainstay in the rotation. Winn is on the 60-day injured list.

Based on those graduations and other factors, the Giants dropped from No. 15 in the preseason to No. 20. That’s based on the system’s surplus value. In the preseason that value was $207 million and it is now $172 million.

So what is surplus value? FanGraphs calculated it based on several factors.

First, the site used historical data to determine what each prospect would do in the Majors if called up. Then, the system used that projection to determine what each player would make during their six controllable years as MLB players. Then, the site added up that value to reach the surplus value for each organization.

The departures of Fitzgerald, Harrison and Winn certainly had an impact. But another pitcher — Hayden Birdsong — is back with the Giants and if he pitches out the season he may graduate from the rankings, too.

San Francisco blunted the loss of some of that surplus value with some of the trades it made at the deadline. For instance, the Giants turned veteran pitcher Alex Cobb into left-handed pitching prospect Jacob Bresnahan, who immediately became the Giants’ No. 23 prospect per Baseball America.

Another new Top 30 prospect for San Francisco is third baseman Sabin Ceballos, who is No. 25. He came to the Giants as part of the deal that sent outfielder Jorge Soler and pitcher Luke Jackson to the Atlanta Braves.

The rise of other prospects in the system could help boost future value, too. Last year’s first-round pick, first baseman Bryce Eldredge, played in the MLB Futures Game last month at All-Star weekend. He is considered the Giants’ No. 1 prospect. He’s already been promoted once this season and he could earn another promotion to Double-A this season.

ESPN also took note of two draft picks that the Giants approached differently when it came to signing them. San Francisco went under-slot with first-round pick James Tibbs III and called him one of the draft’s “riskiest” picks, while going over slot for Dakota Jordan, a player ESPN wrote had “the best tools in the draft.”

The exodus from major cities in states run by Democrats continues.

A growing number of Americans are migrating from predominantly blue cities like San Francisco and New York, according to a Bank of America analyst note that is based on aggregated and anonymous internal customer data.

In the three-month period from April to June, there were “large population declines” in many Northeastern and Western cities, continuing a long-term trend that began during the pandemic. 

New York and Boston saw the largest net population outflows in the Northeast, while San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and Portland, Oregon, saw the largest drops in the West. 

WALL STREET’S FEAR GAUGE SPIKES TO HIGHEST LEVEL SINCE 2020 AS GLOBAL TURMOIL DEEPENS

New York and California have some of the highest tax burdens in the country. San Francisco has also been plagued by a spike in property-related crime, according to the California Department of Justice’s Criminal Justice Statistics Center.

Among the top 23 major metropolitan areas in the country, Columbus, Ohio, saw the biggest influx of people during the second quarter of 2024. That was followed by Austin, Texas; Las Vegas; San Antonio, Texas; and Jacksonville, Florida.

Texas, Florida and Nevada do not have a state income tax.

RECESSION FEARS, MARKET SELL-OFF RAISE ODDS OF A BIGGER FED RATE CUT

Still, the findings from Bank of America also show that fewer households are moving between cities, likely due to the increased “hidden” costs of homeownership. Homeowners’ insurance and property taxes are among the “hidden” costs that have spiked in recent years, particularly in the Sun Belt. 

Gen Z and lower-income households were more likely to relocate in the second quarter, likely due to financial necessity rather than choice, the report said. 

A view of downtown Austin, Texas. (iStock / iStock)

“In our view, the current level of inter-city moves is being held back by the ‘hidden’ costs of homeownership, alongside more overt costs such as higher mortgage rates,” the report said. “At the same time, Gen Z and those on lower incomes, particularly renters, are continuing to move.”

Affordability and cost-of-living are most likely the top reasons behind younger Americans and lower-income households moving. 

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“It’s also important to note that it’s easier for younger and lower-income households to change addresses because a greater proportion of these consumers are renters rather than homeowners,” the report said. The homeownership rate is just 35% for Americans ages 25 to 30, compared to a 66% rate across all ages.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — San Francisco transit leaders are tabling a vote that could change just about any road in the city.

The SFMTA Board of Directors will wait to decide whether to ban right turns at red lights anywhere in San Francisco.

SFMTA talked until late Tuesday about plans to implement new restrictions at hundreds of intersections across Downtown neighborhoods.

SF transportation agency wants to expand ‘No Turn On Red’ restrictions in city

The signs will go up in an area that has seen the most accidents involving pedestrians.

One big sticking point – whether to make this a citywide ban.

There have been plenty of close calls on San Francisco city streets involving cars and pedestrians.

“I literally treat cars like they don’t see me because that’s for my own safety,” said Carl Compton of San Francisco.

SFMTA will soon ban drivers from making right turns during red lights at 200 intersections across Downtown neighborhoods including South of Market, Union Square, Chinatown, North Beach and the Financial District.

San Francisco’s traffic engineer approved all these locations for “no turn on red” signs.

“No turn on red” signs went up in the Tenderloin in 2021.

The SFMTA says that helped cut down on the number of people being hit by cars.

MORE: Why do we have right-on-red, and is it time to get rid of it?

The city has already given the green light for Downtown and SoMa to move forward with the new restrictions.

Now the SFMTA is expected to expand the policy to more neighborhoods.

The expansion is part of San Francisco Mayor London Breed’s plans to curb traffic deaths and serious injuries on city streets.

Advocates for pedestrians say the policy prevents drivers from driving into crosswalks.

Jodie Medeiros is with Walk San Francisco.

“Pedestrian number one capsulitis in all of our traffic violence. More than 50% of our annual fatalities are people crossing, walking in the crosswalk,” said Medeiros.

People who walk and bike in the city are mixed about the new policy.

MORE: To catch a speeder: 33 new speed cameras to be installed in SF

“It doesn’t work. I’m sorry. It doesn’t work,” said Carl Compton of San Francisco. “To put up a policy to make up for bad drivers seems like bad policy.”

“I think it’s a good idea. I think it’s more like an educational thing. People need to know it’s for their own good,” said Alvin Wong of San Francisco.

Many critics question how the new policy will be enforced given the number of.

“It is something we will be asked to be sure that it is enforced. And again, start with education before penalty,” said Medeiros.

We asked SFPD, the mayor’s office, and SFMTA if the city has the capacity to enforce this policy but haven’t gotten a response.

Traffic safety experts believe this “no turn on red policy” will keep people who walk or bike safe.

To be clear, this is not a citywide ban, as some advocates have hoped for. Seattle, Boston, and Washington, D.C. are also considering similar “no turn on red” policies.