Giants draft cousin of USMNT legend who was once a Yankees draft pick

The San Francisco Giants just added a cool cross-sport connection to their 2025 MLB Draft class.

With the No. 116 pick, in the fourth round, they chose Stetson shortstop Lorenzo Meola.

If Meola rings a bell, that's because this is the cousin of former United States goalkeeper Tony Meola. Tony was once a draft pick of the Yankees in 1987 out of high school but stuck with soccer and ended up making 100 appearances for the USMNT.

Now, it's the former Hatters star Meola joining the Giants organization.

Here's how MLB.com describes him:

A starter at Stetson right out of the gate when the New Jersey high school product arrived at the Florida school's campus, Meola -- who is a cousin of famed USA soccer goalkeeper Tony Meola -- has done nothing but perform over three years for the Hatters. The infielder won ASUN Tournament MVP honors as a sophomore, then was named the conference's Defensive Player of the Year and earned first-team All-Conference honors this spring. Meola keeps everything simple on both sides of the ball. While he tried to do a little too much early this spring, leading to more swing-and-miss than usual, he typically makes a lot of contact from the right side of the plate and really turned things up a notch in conference play this year.

He's never going to be a huge power guy, but he can impact the ball, showing some ability to backspin it out of the park to the middle of the field, with 12-15 homer potential at the next level. An above-average runner, Meola's standout skills come on the dirt. He has outstanding footwork and hands and covers a ton of ground, giving him plus grades on his defense. Combine that with a strong and accurate arm, and he definitely has the goods to play shortstop for a long time. He might be a bottom-of-the-lineup glove-first type of big leaguer eventually, but he could be more than that if the bat develops and he's the kind of player winning teams always seem to have on their roster.

MORE: Why Nationals chose Eli Willits over Ethan Holliday at No. 1 overall pick

The Giants match up with that last line. They often seem to have those winning-type players, and Meola fits that bill.

Coming from a smaller conference, he might have a slight adjustment period to pro ball.

Eventually, though, Meola has a great chance to rise toward the majors with the Giants.

MORE MLB DRAFT:

• Rockies finally have hope, and his name is Ethan Holliday
• Mariners win MLB Draft by getting LSU's Kade Anderson at No. 3 pick
• Mark McGwire's son is available in the 2025 MLB Draft
• Dodgers draft the latest Leiter pursuing MLB pitching dreams
• Meet Jack Bauer, the MLB Draft prospect who throws 103 and wears No. 24
• Yankees draft NL MVP's son in 3rd-round steal