Sunday, October 8, 2017

Giants Depth Charts: Second Base

Joe Panik has a stranglehold on the starting 2B job.  He is entering his arbitration years, but the Giants still have time before they have to offer him a longterm contract.  Look for them to negotiate a 2-5 year deal to avoid arbitration if they can get Panik to accept team-friendly terms in exchange for security.  Depth at the MLB level is provided by Kelby Tomlinson and Miguel Gomez who is technically still a prospect with an intriguing bat and a questionable glove.

AAA:  Ali Castillo and Juan Ciriaco are strictly organizational players and are likely minor league FA's.

AA:  Myles Schroder is the only 2B listed on the roster with Rando Moreno, TJ Bennett and Brandon Bednar having some experience at the position.  All 4 are organizational players.

High A:  Jalen Miller did not put up great numbers but held his own at age 20, about 3 years under the league average.  Miller is a kid who could break out sometime in the next 2 seasons.

Low A:  Kelvin Beltre was the starting 2B for the full season and got a full season's worth of desperately needed AB's.  He needs to continue to stay healthy.  Tyler Brown's playing time has been severely limited, apparently by injuries.

Short Season:  Orlando Garcia is from Kelby Tomlinson's alma mater.  He shows intriguing power at the plate.  Kevin Rivera regressed possibly due to injury.

Rookie AZL:  DSL graduate Robert Antunez and 2017 draftee Kyle McPherson failed to make in impact although McPherson caught fire in the playoff final series against the Cubs.

DSL:  Aynesber Sivira played several positions but is listed as a 2B. He started strong but faded in the last month.  He did steal 23 bases.  Andrew Carabello, Wascar DeLeon and Martin Doria also logged playing time at 2B without showing much, at least in the stat page.

A relatively thin position in the minors but not a lot of need at the MLB level.

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for the season coverage and insights, Doc. These position run downs are a bit depressing. Other than Chris Shaw, no real prospects of note so far. Seems like the Giants hang on to a lot of players that do little more than fill in organizational gaps. Are the Giants doing something wrong with the farm system? They have produced some major league players recently, but almost every minor league team finished in last place. What's your take, Doc?

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    1. 2 things: 1. Over the past 2-3 years, the organizational balance has shifted dramatically from pitching and Infield to outfield. 2. Over the past 2 years, the system has gotten dramatically younger. They now have a cohort of prospects who recently graduated or are at AAA such as Arroyo, Ryder Jones, Austin Slater, Chris Shaw and Steven Duggar. Then there is a yawning chasm between them and another cohort that is 20 yrs old and younger starting with Jalen Miller and Kelvin Beltre on down to Sandro Fabian and the new draftees and DSL graduates from this year's AZL squad.

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  2. Are Slater or Arroyo possibilities at 2nd base too?

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