Kyle Harrison LHP. DOB: 8/12/2001. 6'2", 200 lbs. Drafted 2020 Round 3
2022(A+): 0-1, 1.55, 29 IP, 18.31 K/9, 3.10 BB/9.
2022(AA): 4-2, 3.11, 84 IP, 13.61 K/9, 4.18 BB/9.
We might have to go all the way back to Tim Lincecum to find a Giants pitching prospect as much anticipated as Kyle Harrison. Yes, fans were excited about Madison Bumgarner too but I am not sure quite as much as with Harrison who is starting to be looked upon as The Franchise, the guy who is going to usher in the next era of greatness. Local HS pitcher who was committed to UCLA, usually a tough sign. The Giants deftly scraped together bonus pool money to give Harrsion an above-slot bonus. So far he has not disappointed, dominating every minor league level he's pitched in.
He releases a mid-90's FB from a low arm slot and gets down further with a drop and drive approach which makes the FB appear to rise more than from an overhand delivery. He backs that up with a put-away slider. I read an early spring training report that had Logan Webb encouraging him to master a changeup to round out his already dominating arsenal.
Harrison will almost certainly start the season in AAA Sacramento. If he continues to dominate there, things could get mighty interesting on midseason promotion and trade fronts as the Giants will need to find a way to make room for him. Once he comes up, he very likely won't go back down.
Hope Harrison dominates in AAA the 1st 2 months of the season then gets called up. That would mean the veterans are healthy and pitching well, so no need to rush him. It would be easier to manage his workload also in the minors.
ReplyDeleteas always, thank you for the annual top 50 rundown. After reading your thoughts, I have more confidence in this group than I have in a long time
ReplyDeleteThank you for the kind words. I agree this year's list appears to be significantly stronger than it has been for several years.
DeleteThanks for your great work on the top 50 series, really enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteI'm a little concerned with his numbers at Richmond. Whereas a 3.11 era at AAA Sacramento would be admirable, 3.11 in a pitchers haven like Richmond isn't as impressive. We'll see how it shakes out this year. If he opens in AAA and gets shelled, then this concern will be justified. Hope they don't accelerate his development too quickly. Hope, also, that his mental maturity is ready for higher levels.
ReplyDeleteLet's break that down a bit. If you look up his game logs, Harrison gave up 6 ER in 3.2 IP in his first start for AA Richmond. Then he gave up 4 ER in 2 IP in his first start in Sept. That's a total of 10 ER in just 2 of his 18 AA starts. If you take those two games out, his ERA for the other 16 starts is 2.16. He gave up just 1 ER in 9 IP over his final two starts with 13 K and 1 BB. The PCL will be a challenge but I'm not worried at all by his AA record.
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