There are no swivel chairs, four-foot fluorescent lights, or faux palm trees – but Nate Keavy is in his office.

Fresh off a California League championship with Class-A San Jose, Keavy is the Giants’ lone coaching representative in the Arizona Fall League — and from the third-base coach’s box, he’s had a prime view of the offensive force that is the Scottsdale Scorpions.

Through 23 games in the desert, the Scottsdale Scorpions — a roster built from Giants, Tigers, Astros, Mets, and Nationals prospects — own a league-best 16–7 record. In a circuit that is skewed toward scoring, they’ve still managed to stand out, averaging nearly eight runs per game with a mighty +53 run differential.

Keavy already saw this kind of firepower in San Jose, where the Giants’ Class-A affiliate led the Cal League in scoring (6.1 runs per game) and run differential (+251) on the way to a title sweep over Inland Empire in the best-of-three championship series.

“It was a super special year,” Keavy said. “Any time you win a championship, it starts with the players. We had a handful of guys who were there the entire year who were able to keep the camaraderie going. It was a really special group to be a part of.”

San Jose’s lineup helped shape the Scorpions’ roster. Of the three Giants hitters sent to the Fall League — Parks Harber, Maui Ahuna, and Walker Martin — two were central to San Jose’s title run. Martin spent the entire season there, while Ahuna arrived in May, seized an everyday role, and was promoted to Eugene by late July.

Walker Martin’s Learning Curve

The Giants’ 2023 second-rounder from Eaton High School (Colo.) arrived in 2025 with a singular developmental target — slash his strikeout rate.

A 41% strikeout rate in 2024 — sixth-highest in the Minors among hitters with at least 300 plate appearances — showed just how sharp the learning curve was for Martin.

This year, the swing-and-miss didn’t disappear, but it no longer defined him. The Giants’ No. 27 prospect cut his strikeout rate to 28.4% and began to unlock the rest of his game, finishing fifth in the league in RBI (70), hitting 12 home runs, and posting an impressive 14.3% walk rate — the sixth-highest mark in the circuit.

“Any time you get more games under your belt at a higher level, you’re going to get better,” Keavy said. “The game started to slow down for him more this year. That internal belief became stronger, and the proof was in the improvement he made.”

With a full season already logged, Martin’s assignment is less about catching up and more about carrying momentum forward. After hitting .218 in the first half, he closed the year at .249 over his final 56 games — the kind of steady climb the Giants want to see translate in Arizona.

So far, the results haven’t carried over to the Fall League. Martin is batting .182 with a strikeout rate above 40% through 11 games, a reflection of the typically more polished pitching he’s now seeing – which is the experience the Giants sent him Arizona to get.

“Early in the Fall League, when you haven’t faced pitching in a couple weeks, and you’re facing some of these arms – man, gearing up for 97 (mph) with a nasty slider … There’s no ‘hitter’s count’,” Keavy noted. “It’s closer to the big leagues that way. To get up to speed with that – you’ve gotta have patience. He’s put a couple of good games together recently.”

Maui Ahuna’s Next Step

The highest compliment paid to Ahuna’s smooth infield actions comes in the form of a comparison: more than a few inside the organization see shades of Brandon Crawford in him — another former fourth-round pick by the Giants.

His ability on the diamond is clear; his ability to stay on the diamond has not been in the early stages of his career.

Ahuna didn’t see the field until May, still working back from the Tommy John surgery that sidelined him the year before. He rejoined Keavy in San Jose, earned a promotion to High-A, and was gaining momentum before a bone bruise in his right hip ended his season in August.

Whenever he was healthy enough to play, Ahuna flashed the same tools that made him stand out in college — first at Kansas, then at Tennessee under Vitello.

Ahuna logged an .823 OPS in 63 games — 30 of his 63 hits went for extra bases — and his defensive ease at shortstop stood out just as much.

“Some guys are just born to play shortstop,” Keavy said. “That’s what it looks like when he goes out there and plays.”

For the first time in his pro career, Ahuna is healthy heading into an offseason, and the Fall League has given him the runway he hopes will lead to an uninterrupted 2026.

After a hot start — a .333 average and an OPS north of .700 through his first three games — Ahuna has cooled off, hitting .120 with 13 strikeouts over his last six. But the Fall League isn’t just about the box score for him. Ahuna has nearly split his defensive reps between shortstop and second base, using the extra innings to rebuild timing in the part of his game that remains his greatest strength.

“It’s great to see him healthy,” Keavy remarked. “He had a really good year in San Jose, then went to Eugene and carried it over. It was a step in the right direction – just being on the field more. Coming the Fall League, you get more opportunities to be on the field. That’s what it’s about.”

Parks Harber’s Fall League Surge

Harber wasn’t the headliner in the four-player return for All-Star closer Camilo Doval at the deadline. He wasn’t the runner-up, either.

That distinction belonged to catcher Jesus Rodríguez — now the Giants’ No. 15 prospect — who could back up Patrick Bailey as soon as next season after spending September on the club’s taxi squad, and right-hander Tristan Vrieling.

By this point, Harber is used to living off the front page. He went undrafted despite a prolific college career at Georgia and North Carolina, and he still doesn’t draw the same hype as the Giants’ headline prospects.

Hype fades, but the sound off Harber’s barrel doesn’t. So far, Harber has been wielding one of the loudest bats in the Fall League.

After hitting over .300 across three teams in two organizations — including a .333 mark with seven home runs at High-A Eugene — Harber has carried the momentum into Arizona, posting a scorching .429/.556/.776 slash line through 14 Fall League games.

“He can hit,” Keavy said, before repeating himself for emphasis. “He can hit.”

Yes, he can. Since October 24, Harber has logged an extra-base hit in seven straight games — the longest streak the Fall League has seen since Jo Adell in 2019.

The Fall League is loaded with nine Top 100 prospects. Yet it’s Harber — unranked even in the Giants’ own Top 30 — who’s third in average, third in OPS, first in doubles, and tied for first in extra-base hits.

What stands out to Keavy isn’t just the production — it’s the presence. The way Harber moves in the cage, interacts in the dugout, and competes on the field. And that’s notable, because Keavy never coached him during the season; Harber was already a level up when he entered the organization.

“Getting to know him too – that was a big part, because I was never around him,” Keavy said. “Getting to know the personality, getting to know the player, how he works. I’m a fan. I’m a big fan.”

The rankings may catch up later. The bat is already here.

Tony Vitello’s Arrival

Keavy was preparing for a Scorpions game when he learned the Giants were about to send a shockwave through Major League Baseball by hiring Tennessee coach Tony Vitello.

His reaction wasn’t hesitation — it was belief.

“He’s a winner. He’s a leader. He’s young. He’s energetic,” Keavy said. “Those are all pillars of what can make a good manager at the big-league level.”

Tony Vitello didn’t just win at Tennessee — he built players. His rise in the college game was fueled as much by development as by results, which is why there’s an assumption inside and outside the organization that he’ll take a more active role in shaping the Giants’ player-development pipeline than most big-league managers do.

Keavy understands that possibility, even if the specifics haven’t been defined yet.

“That’s a good question,” Keavy said. “It’s hard for me to answer without knowing how that process will work, but you’d like to get to know him — learn from him, talk to him, see how he operates.”

Keavy hasn’t met Vitello yet, but he already sees the logic. The Giants didn’t just hire a coach; they hired a culture driver.

“I think its’ a cool new chapter that’s about to begin in San Francisco with the team they have on the field, and him leading the charge,” he continued. “I can’t wait to watch.”

The AFL has long been a proving ground for future stars — 21 players in this year’s World Series once wore Fall League uniforms. If the Giants are going to return to the postseason under Vitello, the next wave might already be here in Scottsdale, with Keavy helping shape it from the third-base coach’s box.