Down on the Farm: 4/27/2025

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats quieted the El Paso Chihuahuas 7-2:

Marco Luciano LF- 2 for 5, HR(4).  BA= .230.

Victor Bericoto RF- 2 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .258.

Jake Lamb 1B- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .247.

Sergio Alcantara SS- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .270.

Osleivis Basabe 3B- 2 for 4, HR(3), BB.  BA= .259.

Carson Seymour RHP- 5 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.93.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K.  ERA= 1.17.

Someone posted on BlueSky that the EV on Luciano's HR was 113 MPH.

AA:  Akron Rubber Ducks overwhelmed the Richmond Flying Squirrels 16-7:

Diego Velasquez 2B- 3 for 4, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .301.

Bryce Eldridge 1B- 1 for 4, BB.  BA= .154.  

Sabin Ceballos 3B- 2 for 5.  BA= .200.

Diego Velasquez continues to hit well in the historically toughest environment for Giants hitting prospects.

A+:  Spokane Indians outscored the Eugene Emeralds 9-6:

Bo Davidson CF- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .316.

Jonah Cox LF- 2 for 4.  BA= .262.

Scott Bandura RF- 1 for 4, SB(5).  BA= .306.

Onil Perez C- 2 for 4.  BA= .216.

Guillermo Williamson 1B- 1 for 3, HR(1), BB.  BA= .219.

A:  San Jose Giants outlasted the Fresno Grizzlies 8-6(10 innings):

Dakota Jordan CF- 2 for 4, BB, 3 SB(9).  BA= .282.

Zander Darby 1B- 3 for 4, 2 2B, HR(1), 2 SB(2).  BA= .750.

Jose Ramos SS- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .259.

Zander Darby makes his first appearance of 2025 and what a day!  Tough day for pitchers Down on the Farm.

Game Wrap 4/27/2025: Giants 3 Rangers 2

Heliot Ramos wild run around the bases in the 9'th inning, aided by a comedy of errors by the Rangers, gave the Giants their second walk-off 3-2 win in a row.  Key Lines:

Heliot Ramos LF- 2 for 3, HBP, SB(3).  BA= .246.  This is not the first time Ramos' speed impacted a game.  He probably had the dribbler beaten out for a hit and that is how it scored, but his speed forced a hurried throw which was way offline and down the RF line.  Ramos took second base easily and was going to stop then noticed Matt Williams waving him to third.  That play was going to be close but the ball again went way off line and Ramos slid into home with the walk-off run without a play at the plate.

Christian Koss 2B- 1 for 3.  BA= .217.  Koss gets his first MLB RBI with a line drive single to drive in.....Heliot Ramos!  

Jordan Hicks RHP- 5 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 3 K's, 8/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 6.12.  It looked like more of the same from Hicks when he gave up two doubles and two singles in the first inning, but he settled down and allowed just 3 hits and no walks over the next 4 innings.  With his pitch count at 84, Melvin did not push him into the 6'th inning this time and that decision ultimately paid off. 

Hayden Birdsong RHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.13.  Joc Pederson greeted Birdsong with a leadoff triple in the 6'th inning but The Kid fought back, with a K, ground out, pop out then completing 3 more electric innings of relief.  Birdsong has one more appearance(7) than members of the rotation and 1.2 more IP than any other relievers.  I have commented that Birdsong is an underutilized talent.  The Giants probably want to limit his total innings.  This is a good way to keep him sharp while saving more innings for later in the season if needed.

Camilo Doval RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 2.08.  Talk about electric!  Like Ryan Walker yesterday this was not a Save situation for Doval but a high leverage situation. Doval looked unhittable and even hustled over to cover first base on a grounder to the right side(although barely in time).  Nice rehab job on the fly by Bob Melvin and the coaching staff.  I think Willy Adames had a hand in it too.

The Giants finish their 17 consecutive game marathon with a 10-7 record. Their overall record stands at 18-10 and they remain in first place in the NL West by 0.5 games.

The Giants now get a much-needed day off before traveling to San Diego for a 2-game series against division rival Padres with Logan Webb RHP taking the mound Tuesday against Nick Pivetta RHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/26/2025

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats outlasted the El Paso Chihuahuas 4-2(10 innings):

Brett Auerbach C- 1 for 3, HR(3), BB.  BA= .250.

Trevor McDonald RHP- 4.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.62.

Antonio Jimenez LHP- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 7.36.

Tristan Beck RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 2.40.

Joey Lucchesi LHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's, 3/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 3.97.

Auerbach's 2-run HR in the top of the 10'th inning was the difference in the game.

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels sank the Akron Rubber Ducks 4-19(Game 1 of doubleheader, 7 innings):

Jairo Pomares LF- 2 for 3, HR(4).  BA= .246.

Vaun Brown CF- 1 for 3, SB(3).  BA= .233.

Jack Choate LHP- 3 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.77.

Justin Garcia RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.00.

Tyler Myrick RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.91.

AA:  Akron Rubber Ducks edged out the Richmond Flying Squirrels 2-1(Game 2 of Doubleheader, 9 innings):  

Seth Lonsway LHP- 5.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, 8/3 GO/AO.  ERA= 2.18.

Trent Harris RHP- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 0.00.

Braxton Roxby RHP- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.38.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds topped the Spokane Indians 6-3(10 innings):

Bo Davidson DH- 2 for 6.  BA= .308.

Jonah Cox CF- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .250.

Charlie Szykowny 1B- 3 for 5.  BA= .274.

Quinn McDaniel 2B- 2 for 3, HR(1), 2 BB, SB(8).  BA= .243.

Zane Zielinski SS- 2 for 5, SB(8).  BA= .319.

Thomas Gavello 3B- 1 for 5, HR(2).  BA= .258.

Brayan Palencia RHP- 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.75.

Ian Villers RHP- 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 0.75.

A:  San Jose Giants squeaked past the Fresno Grizzlies 2-1:

Carlos Gutierrez RF- 2 for 4.  BA= .324.

Dakota Jordan CF- 2 for 4, SB(6).  BA= .270.

Jacob Bresnahan LHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 5.63.

Darien Smith RHP- 2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, K.  ERA= 0.00.

Smith was signed as a minor league last August and makes his affiliated pro debut here.  He is 25 yo and 6' 3", 200 lbs.

Game Wrap 4/26/2025: Giants 3 Rangers 2

Robbie Ray had his strongest start of the year, and maybe in several years, and the Giants lineup played "small ball" to squeak out a win.  Key Lines:

Willy Adames SS- 1 for 4, 2 RBI.  BA= .205.  Christian Koss led off the Giants half of the 5'th inning with a line drive single to RF.  Sam Huff C followed with a drive to the wall in Triples Alley.  It looked like Christian Koss was going to score easily but he slipped and fell flat just past 3B and had to scramble back while Huff stayed at 2B with a double.  That put runners at 2B and 3B with no outs.  After Mike Yastrzemski RF popped out, Adames lined a single to CF to drive in both Koss and Huff.  All's well that ends well, as the saying goes.

Christian Koss 2B- 1 for 3, Sac, R.  BA= .200.  Ask and ye shall receive!  You want small ball?  Christian Koss says "I'll give you small ball!"  We already talked about his leadoff single to set up the Giants first two runs.  With the score tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the 9'th inning, Heliot Ramos LF led off with a single up the middle.  LMWJ walked to put runners on second and third with no outs.  Christian Koss stepped up to the plate and laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt that moved both runners up to 2'nd and 3'rd, now with one out.  With a RH pitcher on the mound, Bob Melvin sent Patrick Bailey up to pinch hit for Huff who had previously doubled.  Bruce Bochy, the King of Matchups, countered with a lefty pitcher.  But wait!  Melvin got the last laugh because Bailey is a switch-hitter who turned around and batting righthanded, poked one just over the first baseman driving in Ramos with with walk-off winning run.  As Vin Scully would say, "how about that?!"

Whether it's fighting off 0-2 counts to put the ball in play, pinch-running, making a great defensive play, laying down a perfect bunt or pitching an inning in a blow-out game, Christian Koss has done everything asked of him and helped his team almost every time he has had the opportunity to contribute.

Robbie Ray LHP- 7 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 8 K's, 6/4 GO/AO.  ERA= 3.73.  Ray was terrific with much better command of all of his pitches. He got stronger as the game went along, kept his pitch count down and completed 7 innings.  It looked like he as going to take another hard luck loss until Adames 2-run single in the 5'th.  The two runs he gave up were "soft" runs driven in by Sac Flies.  In his penultimate start last season, Ray gave up 1 run in 6.2 IP with 9 K's and no walks which is arguably a tad more dominant than today, but other than that, this was his best start since 2022.

Tyler Rogers RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 0.63.  It's easy to overlook Rogers in the Game Wraps as he puts in his obligatory scoreless 8'th inning but this was his league-leading 15'th appearance and he's only been scored on in one.

Ryan Walker RHP- 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 5.91.  This was a big test for Walker.  It wasn't a save situation but the game was definitely on the line.  He looked good in a non-save situation last night and said he worked out a mechanical issue.  This one started out with two singles to put runners on first and second with no out.  Kyle Higashioka tried to move the runners over but popped up the bunt and Sam Huff caught it.  That seemed to settle Walker down and he struck out the next two batters to get out of it.

Note that Higashioka failed to execute the exact same sac bunt in the exact same situation that Christian Koss executed in the bottom of the inning.  That was the difference in the game right there.

The Win improves the Giants record to 18-10 and puts them in first place in the NL West.  It also guarantees them a winning record in their marathon 17 games in 17 days including 10 on the road.

Jordan Hicks RHP tries for a series win tomorrow against Jack Leiter RHP in a battle of fireballing RHP's.  

Down on the Farm: 4/25/2025

AAA:  El Paso Chihuahuas outscored the Sacramento River Cats 9-8:

Grant McCray CF- 2 for 5, SF.  BA= .253.

Brett Wisely 2B- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .218.

Sergio Alcantara 3B- 2 for 2, 2B, 3 BB.  BA= .273.

Hunter Bishop DH- 2 for 5, HR(3), 5 RBI.  BA= .241.

Osleivis Basabe SS- 3 for 5.  BA= .260.

Carson Whisenhunt LHP- 3 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 3 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 5.09.

Bishop's HR was a grand slam.  This is the kind of line the Giants envisioned when they drafted him.  They have been few and far between.  Gametime weather was 85 degrees with a 7 MPH wind blowing out to RF.

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels at Akron Rubber Ducks postponed.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds shut down the Spokane Indians 2-0:

Thomas Gavello 3B- 2 for 3, HBP, SB(2).  BA= .269.

Shane Rademacher RHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.47.

Esmerlin Vinicio LHP- 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.61.

Nicolas Herold RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

A promotion for Nicolas Herold!  Shane Rademacher was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2023 and has pitched well so far in his pro career.

A:  San Jose Giants destroyed the Fresno Grizzlies 17-0:

Carlos Gutierrez RF- 3 for 4, 3B, 2 BB, SB(6).  BA= .314.

Lisbel Diaz LF- 4 for 5, HR(2), BB.  BA= .325.

Drew Cavanaugh C- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 BB, SF.  BA= .291.

Walker Martin SS- 2 for 6, HR(1).  BA= .212.

Jean Carlos Sio 2B- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .291.  

Robert Hipwell 1B- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .143.

Elian Rayo 3B- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .212.

Greg Farone LHP- 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.51.

Ryan Slater RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's. ERA= 1.13.

Cade Vernon RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Wow!  Obviously a game to pad the ol' stat line, but this team has some really good players.  Gutierrez and Diaz at the top of the lineup are both young prospects who I think will be looking for a midseason promotion to A+.  Greg Farone might get promoted sooner. He seems like he might be too good for this level.

Game Wrap 4/25/2025: Rangers 2 Giants 0

 When I looked ahead at the projected starting pitchers for this series I said to myself, "oh no!  This might not go well."  Those fears were realized as Nate Eovaldi, a serious pitcher when he's healthy, outpitched Justin Verlander for 6 innings and the Giants lineup could not break through against the Rangers bullpen.  Key Lines:

Justin Verlander RHP- 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 4.99.  A Quality Start for Verlander which is what you hope to get from him at this point in his career.  That's going to be enough to win most games but not tonight.

Randy Rodriguez RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  This was Rodriguez' first appearance since 4/18 in Anaheim and just his second since 4/15 in Philly.  Is he, like Hayden Birdsong RHP, an underutilized talent?

Ryan Walker RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.52.  Non-save situation and a clean inning.  Buster says the Giants still have confidence in him as the Closer.

Nate Eovaldi RHP- 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 2.21.  Justin Verlander pitched well but Eovaldi pitched better.  Eovaldi has pitched over 150 innings just 4 times in his 14 year career, but he's been over 100 IP with a sub-4.00 ERA his last 4 seasons.  He came into this game with a 2.64 ERA on the season so you knew it was going to be tough to score on him which proved to be true.

The Loss dropped the Giants record to 17-10 on the season. They still have a winning record of 8-7 with two games to go in the 17 day stretch of consecutive games including a very challenging 10 game road trip.  

Robbie Ray LHP hopes to get more run support today against Tyler Mahle RHP who comes in sporting a 0.64 ERA.  Mahle already surpassed his IP for each of his last two seasons but appears to be fully healthy so far this season.  The 1:00 PDT game is a Fox broadcast.  Yesterday's game was only available on Apple+ so I had to follow the action on Gameday.

Down on the Farm: 4/24/2025

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats tamed the El Paso Chihuahuas 7-4:

Grant McCray CF- 0 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .245.

Marco Luciano LF- 1 for 4, BB.  BA= .236.

Brett Wisely SS- 2 for 5, HR(4).  BA= .214.

Brett Auerbach 3B- 2 for 4.  BA= .258.

Osleivis Basabe 2B- 2 for 4, 3B, SB(1).  BA= .235.

Kyle Harrison LHP- 6 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 3.86.

Carson Ragsdale RHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.14. 

 The big news here is the Quality Start with 8 K's by Harrison.

AA:  Akron Rubber Ducks blasted the Richmond Flying Squirrels 10-2:

Carter Howell CF- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .209.

Diego Velasquez 2B- 1 for 3, HR(1), Sac.  BA= .274.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Spokane Indians 9-5:

Bo Davidson CF- 3 for 4, HR(3), BB.  BA= .333.

Jonah Cox LF- 1 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .247.

James Tibbs III DH- 2 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .281.

Charlie Szykowny 3B- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .250.

James Tibbs III has a 6-game hit streak in which he is 8 for 25(.320) with 2 doubles and a HR.

A:  San Jose Giants tamed the Fresno Grizzlies 5-1:

Dakota Jordan CF- 2 for 4, 2B, SB(5).  BA= .273.

Lisbel Diaz LF- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .292.

Fernando Gonzalez C- 1 for 3, HR(1), HBP.  BA= .235.

Drake George RHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K's, 6/2 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.13.

Cole Hillier RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.00.

Lisbel Diaz is 7 for 14 with 2 doubles and a triple over his last 3 games.

Game Wrap 4/24/2025: Giants 6 Brewers 5

A 2-run homer by Matt Chapman in the 5'th inning narrowed a deficit to 5-4, the Giants took advantage of more poor fielding by the Brewers to take the lead in the 8'th inning and Camilo Doval held on for the Save.  Key Lines.

Mike Yastrzemski RF- 2 for 4, HR(4), BB, 2 R, 2 RBI.  BA= .282.  YtY was in a min-slump going just 2 for 16 over his previous 5 games but he broke out big time today.  He singled to lead off the Giants half of the first inning and scored on Jung Hoo Lee's double then homered off the metal facing on top of the RF arcade to temporarily tie the score in the third inning.  He also drove in the tying run in the 8'th on a fielder's choice.

Willy Adames SS- 1 for 3, BB, SF, RBI.  BA= .202.  Adames was credited with a Sac Fly and an RBI on a flyball that Christian Yelich dropped in left allowing him to reach base and YtY to advance to 2B.

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 BB, R, RBI.  BA= .333.   Lee is tied for the MLB lead in doubles at 11 with Pete Alonso.  He is tied for 6'th in Hits and is 7'th in Runs.

Matt Chapman 3B- 1 for 5, HR(5), R, 2 RBI.  BA= .227.  Despite his anemic BA, Chapman has a .393 OBP and is second on the team in HR's.

Landen Roupp RHP- 3.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K's, 6/2 GO/AO.  ERA= 4.91.  Roupp was wild and it cost him.  One run scored without the benefit of a hit with Garrett Mitchell drawing a leadoff walk, stole 2B, advanced to 3B on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch.  In all Roupp walked 3 batters and had 2 WP's.  Sam Huff was the catcher and I will say on both WP's a better defensive catcher should have blocked both and possibly prevented the runners from advancing.  A fielding error by LMWJ added an unearned run.

Spencer Bivens RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.25.  Bivens is proving to be a valuable multi-inning reliever.  

Erik Miller LHP- 1.1 IP,  0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 1.00.  Miller has been the Brice Turang killer this series, but is also effective against righthanded batters.

Camilo Doval RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K, Save(5).  ERA= 2.25.  Doval and 1-run leads are always anxiety provoking and this was no exception. He failed to find the strike zone on his first 6 pitches.  Willy Adames called time out, went to the mound and led an infield intervention to calm Doval down and it seemed to work as Doval settled down and got 3 flyball outs around a single by Yelich for the Save.  3 of Doval's 5 Saves came in this series as he saved all 3 Giants wins.

The won the 4-game series 3-1 and improved their overall record to 17-9.  They have a tough series coming up against Bruce Bochy and the Rangers with Justin Verlander RHP starting the first game tomorrow evening against Nate Eovaldi RHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/23/2025

AAA:  El Paso Chihuahuas outscored the Sacramenmot River Cats 7-5:

Grant McCray CF- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .253.

Marco Luciano LF- 2 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .235.

Mason Black RHP- 5 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.18.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 3/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.35.

Marco Luciano is batting .385 over his last 9 games. 

AA:  Akron Rubber Ducks whitewashed the Richmond Flying Squirrels 4-0:

Diego Velasquez 2B- 2 for 4.  BA= .271.

Matt Higgins DH- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .238.

Zach Morgan 1B- 2 for 4.  BA= .333.

John Bertrand LHP- 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K's. ERA= 4.42.

Trent Harris RHP- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

A+:  Spokane Indians buried the Eugene Emeralds 10-5:

Bo Davidson CF- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .289.

James Tibbs III- 2 for 4.  BA= .269.

Charlie Szykowny 1B- 1 for 4, HR(2).  BA= .238.

Luke Shliger C- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .226.

Ian Villers RHP- 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.00.

A:  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the San Jose Giants 9-5:

Carlos Gutierrez RF- 2 for 4, 2 BB, SB(5).  BA= .295.

Drew Cavanaugh C- 2 for 3, 3B, 2 BB.  BA= .292.

Lisbel Diaz LF- 2 for 5, 3B.  BA= .279.

Robert Hipwell 3B- 1 for 4, 3B, BB.  BA= .122.

Niko Mazza RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.77.

Game Wrap 4/23/2025: Giants 4 Brewers 2

The Giants lineup took advantage of several fielding lapses by the Brewers to put up a 4-spot in the 6'th inning the survived another bullpen meltdown by Ryan Walker to come away with a win.  Key Lines:

Willy Adames 1 for 4, R.  BA= .198.  Adames made his hit count as he started the 6'th inning rally with a leadoff single.  He also made a sparkling defensive play at SS contributing to much improved team defensive effort.

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 3 for 4, R.  BA= .333.  Lee followed up Adames single in the 6'th with a line drive single to RF to put runners at first and second with no outs.

Wilmer Flores DH- 2 for 4, R, 2 RBI.  BA= .258.  After Chapman drew a walk to load the bases, Flores hit singled to CF on a groundball deflected off the SS to drive in the first two runs of the game.

Christian Koss 2B- 1 for 3.  BA= .176.  An error by Brice Turang 2B added another run for the Giants sandwiched between K's by Ramos and Bailey which brought up Christian Koss with runners on first and second with 2 outs.  He fell behind in the count 0-2 but fought his way back and managed to put the ball in play with something on it.  He beat the throw to first for a in infield hit but the throw was offline and got away from Rhys Hoskins 1B allowing Wilmer for come all the way around to score the fourth run.  Koss also fought his way back from an 0-2 count to 3-2 in an earlier AB which set up a hard-hit groundball to SS for an out but 2 good AB's on the game.  He also made a sparkling defensive play going to his left and throwing cross-body to get the out at first.

Logan Webb RHP- 6.1 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K's, 8/2 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.98.  Webb threw 41 pitches in the first two innings but did not allow a run. He then settled down to retire the next 11 batters in a row.  He came out for the 7'th inning and allowed a single/walk to open the inning. He got a flyball out and Melvin went to Erik Miller to face the lefty-hitting Brice Turang.  Miller got Turang on a force out then got Jackson Chourio on a comebacker to get out of the 7'th inning.

Ryan Walker RHP- 0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 7.27.  Melvin went to Walker in a non-save situation probably thinking it would be a good spot to get him back on track.  Wrong!  Walker proceeded to replay Sunday's 9'th inning down to the hit batter.  By the time Melvin took him out for Camilo Doval, 2 runs were in and there were runners at 2'nd and 3'rd with just one out.  Yikes!  Not sure what Walker's problem is.  He has crazy movement on both his fastball and slider.  Maybe too much movement to command them?  Tipping pitches?  

Camilo Doval RHP- 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(4).  ERA= 2.45.  Doval stranded the two runners with a K and a groundout.  Looks like Doval has his Closer job back. He worked out his issues in lower leverage situations.  Maybe Walker can do the same?

The Win improved the Giants record to 16-9.

Landen Roupp RHP tries for a 3-1 series win tomorrow afternoon facing Tobias Myers RHP who is making his first 2025 appearance.

Game Wrap 4/22/2025: Brewers 11 Giants 3

Just when it looked like the Giants might be setting themselves up for another late-game comeback, the wheels fell completely off in a disaster 6'th inning in which the Brewers scored 8 runs.  Key Lines:

Heliot Ramos LF- 2 for 4, SF, RBI.  BA= .232.   Ramos reached base twice from the leadoff position but did not score a run, a failure of the batters behind him.

Wilmer Flores DH- 3 for 3, BB, RBI.  BA= .247.  Wilmer has reached base 7 out of 8 PA's the last two games.  

David Villar 1B/3B- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .286.  Villar had a nice game at the plate but made a key mistake on a play at first when he failed to ever get his foot on the bag.  Instead of one out and a runner at 2B there was now no outs and two runners on which was like the hole the iceberg poked in the Titanic.  Poor Willy Adames was charged with an error on the play.  Maybe the throw was a bit high but that did not appear to be the reason Villar had his foot off the bag.  As Mike Krukow put it, "that's a rough error!"   

Jordan Hicks RHP- 5 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 5 K's, 8/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 6.59.  This was not a good start by Hicks by any stretch as he gave up a 3-spot in the third inning, but his pitch count was already getting long in the tooth by the start of the 6'th inning as noted by Kruk and Kuip.  Add in the leadoff infield single and the weird foot off the bag play at 1B which put two runners on everybody but Bob Melvin knew disaster was looming.  A wild pitch plus a throwing error by Patrick Bailey C and a walk later, Melvin finally went to Lou Trivino RHP but by that time I think the whole team was frustrated and the roof caved in.  Trivino got a flyout but then allowed an RBI groundball single, HBP and a grand slam HR by Christial Yelich DH and the route was on.  So yes, I get that Melvin is trying to instill some toughness in his SP's but that didn't seem to be the situation for it.  

Christian Koss 3B/RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 0.00.  How fun!  Koss initially came in to give Matt Chapman a breather at 3B but was pressed into service as a mop up guy in the blowout loss.  Now he can say he pitched a scoreless inning in a major league game!  That must have been quite a thrill.  too bad it was in a blowout loss but that's the only way it was going to happen.

The Giants will try to regroup and shake it off by 6:45 PM tomorrow when Logan Webb RHP tries to get back on the winning track facing Freddy Peralta RHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/22/2025

Minor league games were all finished early so while we wait for the body count from the unfolding disaster in Oracle Park, lets take a look at what happened Down on the Farm.  Key Lines:

AAA:  El Paso Chihuahuas blanked the Sacramento River Cats 3-0:

Logan Porter C- 2 for 4.  BA= .239.

Sergio Alcantara SS- 0 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .250.

Carson Seymour RHP- 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 5 BB, 4 K's, 6/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.57.

Tristan Beck RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.38.  

Beck might be positioning himself for an early call up which seems more likely after tonight's debacle.

AA:  Akron Rubber Ducks downed the Richmond Flying Squirrels 5-1:

Bryce Eldridge 1B- 1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .333.

Joe Whitman LHP- 4 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 6.17.

Braxton Roxby RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 2.70.

Big news here is Eldridge making his 2025 regular season debut after a wrist injury in spring training.  He did not disappoint and hit a home run in his first AB.

A+:  Spokane Indians crushed the Eugene Emeralds 17-5:

Zane Zielinski SS- 3 for 3, BB, SB(6).  BA= .333.

Jack Payton DH- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .194.

A:  San Jose Giants tamed the Fresno Grizzlies 9-0:

Carlos Gutierrez RF- 2 for 5, SB(4).  BA= .281.

Jakob Christian 1B- 2 for 5, 2B.   BA= .300.

Lisbel Diaz LF- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .270.

Jean Carlos Sio 2B- 3 for 4, SB(3).  BA= .262.

Fernando Gonzalez C- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .222.

Jose Ramos SS- 2 for 4, 2 SB(6).  BA= .250.

Hunter Dryden RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 0.75.

Ubert Mejias RHP- 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.91.  

Hard to make much out of these lines from a lopsided game.  I will say I really liked what I saw of Carlos Gutierrez in two in-person observations.  Looks athletic, plays with intensity, nice looking swing and squares up the ball.  Hunter Dryden has impressive velocity for a smallish pitcher.

Game Wrap 4/21/2025: Addendum

When I wrote the Game Wrap last night I forgot I wanted to mention that Mike Krukow was in fire on the TV broadcast.  

Example 1:  The camera focuses on a row of dudes dressed in shiny orange jumpsuits with orange hats associated with various trades.  Sort of an orange Village People vibe.  Krukow:  "That's a Friday night attitude on a Monday night!"  I literally LOL'd for about 30 seconds.  I'm still laughing inside.

Example 2:  Kruk and Kuip discussing a towering pop up that had a hang time of 7 seconds.  Then Dave Kingman and his huge moonshots came up. Krukow said he played with Kingman with the Cubs:  "He sometimes had 3 balls in the air at once!"  Ha ha!  Still smiling at that one too.

Just wanted to share that and marvel once again at the joy of having Kruk and Kuip still doing the TV broadcasts.

Game Wrap 4/21/2025: Giants 5 Brewers 2

The Giants lineup scored one run in five different innings while three Giants pitchers limited the Brewers to a 2-run home run in a bounceback win from a devastating defeat yesterday.  Key Lines:

Mike Yastrzemski RF- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .286.  YtY reached base 3 times out of the leadoff spot.  He didn't figure in the scoring but contributed to one rally and ran himself out of another in a failed SB attempt. 

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 1 for 4, 3B, RBI.  BA= .329.  Lee broke an 0 for 8 slump with a triple that split the gap to CF to increase the Giants lead to 

Lamonte Wade Jr 1B- 1 for 3, BB, R.  BA= .103.  Reaching base twice is a good way to start digging yourself out of a brutal slump.

Wilmer Flores DH- 2 for 3, HR(7), BB, R, RBI.   BA= .220.  Speaking of slumps....Wilmer had been in one going 0 for his last 13 and 2 for his last 28.  His solo HR in in the 6'th inning gave the Giants lead.

Patrick Bailey C- 1 for 3, SF, 2 RBI.  BA= .169.  Bailey has also been mired in an early season slump.  He drove in the Giants first run with a single and then got credit for a Sac Fly despite hitting a shallow flyball to CF when LMWJ broke for home and the throw went offline, was cut off and Wilmer out at 2B after the run crossed home plate.  It appeared the Brewers were caught by surprise at LMWJ's bold baserunning.

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 2 for 3, R.  BA= .318.  Fitzgerald's speed is what got him both hits as he beat out two infield singles.  That speed manufactured a run in the 5'th inning as his speed beat the throw in what looked like a fairly easy groundout.  He advanced to 2B on YtY's walk.  Then Willy Adames hit a grounder to 3B on what looked like a GIDP which would leave Fitz at 3B with 2-outs except the the relay throw was offline, Adames was safe at first and the ball got far enough away for Fitz to score from 3B.  

Robbie Ray LHP- 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 K's, 5/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 4.07.  Ray threw 92 pitches in 5 innings but limited the damage to a 2-run HR in the second inning.  

Hayden Birdsong RHP- 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K's, 3/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.38.  3 more electric innings from Birdsong to get the game to the 9'th inning as the Giants build their lead.  It's a good problem to have but Birdsong remains an underutilized talent.

Camilo Doval RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(3).  ERA= 2.61. After yesterday's game you had to have some trepidation about the 9'th inning despite the 3-run lead.  Doval handled it with aplomb in a clean inning for the Save.

The Win improves the Giants record to 15-8.  

Jordan Hicks RHP tries to keep the winning going tomorrow evening facing former Giant Jose Quintana LHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/20/2025

AAA:  Salt Lake City Bees stung the Sacramento River Cats 5-2:

Brett Wisely 2B- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .211.

Victor Bericoto 1B- 2 for 4.  BA= .500.

Trevor McDonald RHP- 4.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K's, 6/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 4.58.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's, 3/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.59.

Victor Bericoto gets the well-deserved promotion from AA to replace David Villar.

AA:  Chesapeake Baysox edged out the Richmond Flying Squirrels 3-2:

Adrian Sugastey DH- 2 for 4.  BA= .297.

Matt Higgins LF- 2 for 2, 2B.  BA- .229.

Seth Lonsway LHP- 5 IP,  4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 4 K's, 8/2 GO/AO.  ERA= 3.00.

Higgins reached twice on catcher interference for his other two PA's.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Vancouver Canadians 8-3:

James Tibbs III- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .256.

Scott Bandura CF- 2 for 5, SB(4).  BA= .326.

Luke Shliger C- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .179.

Quinn McDaniel DH- 1 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .235.

Cale Lansville RHP- 4 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 10.61.

Austin Strickland RHP- 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 1.04.

A:  Rancho Cucamonga Quakes outscored the San Jose Giants 11-10:

Carlos Gutierrez RF- 3 for 4, BB.  BA- .269.

Jakob Christian LF- 4 for 5, 2B, HR(4), SB(3).  BA= .291.

Drew Cavanaugh DH- 2 for 5, HR(4).  BA= .293.

I've been impressed by Gutierrez in a couple of live looks.  He's got a nice swing and barrels up the ball.

Game Wrap 4/20/2025: Angels 5 Giants 4

Everything went right for the Giants today except Ryan Walker's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad 9'th inning which kind of ruined it for everybody else too.  Key Lines:

Heliot Ramos LF- 2 for 3, 2B, 2 BB, R.  BA= .231.  I guess the fact that Ramos was the leadoff batter and he only had 1 run scored to show for getting on base 4 times is proof Walker's bad inning was not the only thing that wasn't right with this game.  But Ramos had a nice game which I think is a good sign for the Giants.

Willy Adames SS- 2 for 5, 2 RBI.  BA= .202.  Adames has to start building his season from somewhere and a couple of RBI singles is a good place to start.

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 1 for 2, 2 BB, SB(5), R.  BA= .302.  Fitz continues to play solid baseball since his hitting lesson with Barry Bonds.

David Villar 1B- 1 for 4, R.  BA= .250.  Villar is back!   He was added back to the 40 man roster and recalled from AAA Sacramento after Casey Schmitt IF was placed on the IL with an oblique strain.  Jerar Encarnacion was moved from the 10-day IL to the 60-Day IL to make room on the 40-man roster for Villar.  In addition to the line drive single, Villar hit a ball hard up the middle that was caught by the pitcher to rob him of another hit.

Sam Huff C- 2 for 3, HR(1), BB, R, 2 RBI.  BA= .190.  This is the kind of game the Giants hoped for when they claimed Huff off waivers from the Rangers in the offseason and made him the backup catcher out of spring training.  

Justin Verlander RHP- 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 5.47.  Verlander did not allow a baserunner through 3 innings.  He got out of a bases-loaded jam in the 4'th inning and gave up a leadoff solo HR to Zach Neto in the 5'th.  All said, a much cleaner start than any of his first four, but he continues to labor when he has to pitch out of the stretch.

Ryan Walker RHP- 0.1 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 5.40.  To my eye, Walker has not been as sharp as last season all through the spring but up to this point he converted 15 consecutive Save Opportunities dating back to last season so I suppose he was due.  After scoreless frames from Camilo Doval RHP and Tyler Rogers RHP, Walker started the bottom of the 9'th by walking Mike Trout who he seemed to be pitching too carefully to.  I understand it's not great to start your inning by giving up a leadoff HR to Trout but that would probably have been better than walking him which started a whole cascade of negative events.  Two soft singles loaded the bases then a HBP drove in Trout for the first run.  You could definitely sense what came next as Jo Adell doubled down the LF line driving in all 3 runners for the walk-off win.  

A Word To The Wise:  Do not go to a day baseball game in SoCal even on a seemingly mild spring day unless you are sure your seats are out of the sun.  Ugh!

The Giants conclude a very long 10-game road trip with a 5-5 record.  Their overall record stands at 14-8.  Hopefully they get back home this evening in time to restful night before getting back after in tomorrow evening against the Brewers with Robbie Ray LHP facing Quinn Priester RHP.  

Down on the Farm: 4/19/2025

 AAA:  Sacramento River Cats smothered the Salt Lake City Bees 5-0:

Grant McCray CF- 1 for 4, HR(1), BB.  BA= .256.

Sergio Alcantara SS- 2 for 4.  BA= .259.

Marco Luciano LF- 2 for 4.  BA= .231.

Logan Porter C- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= .214.

Hunter Bishop RF- 1 for 4, HR(2).  BA= .250.

Brett Auerbach 3 for 4, 2 2B.  BA= .268.

Carson Whisenhunt LHP- 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 2.70.

Antonio Jimenez LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 9.00.

Kai-Wei Teng RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 5.19.

Let's take a moment to focus on Carson Whisenhunt. This is his second 6-inning shutout out of 4 Starts and his second start with 9 K's.  Overall his has 23 K's against just 2 BB's in 20 IP.  Someone recently asked whether I would promote Whisenhunt or Kyle Harrison LHP first and I said Harrison was the easy call there.  That call is a little less easy now with Carson Seymour RHP also making a strong case to be first in line.  And of course they are all in line behind Hayden Birdsong.  Deep depth!

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels edged out the Chesapeake Baysox 1-0:

Diego Velasquez 2B- 2 for 3.  BA= .255.

Aeverson Arteaga SS- 2 for 3, SB(2).  BA= .255.

Jack Choate LHP- 4.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 3.97.

Evan Gates RHP- 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 4.15.

Trent Harris RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(1).  ERA= 0.00.

I have a feeling Jack Choate ends up as a lefty reliever but the starting experience in the minors is excellent preparation for the 3-batter minimum rule.  

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Vancouver Canadians 5-2:

James Tibbs III RF- 1 for 4, HR(2), BB.  BA= .250.

Jonah Cox CF- 1 for 4, 2 SB(11).  BA= .276.

Shane Rademacher RHP- 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.64.

It was a good day for SP's in the Giants organization.

A:  Rancho Cucamonga Quakes blanked the San Jose Giants 4-0:

Jacob Bresnahan LHP- 3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 8.18.

Ryan Slater RHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.50.

Cole Hillier RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.57.

I attended this game with some friends.  Was hoping to see Gerelmi Maldonado RHP pitch but I guess he will go today?  Bresnahan is a "stylish" lefhander who threw mostly offspeed. The top velocity I saw on the stadium gun was 90 MPH.  I saw a couple of 92 MPH when Slater was on the mound.  The lineup didn't make much of an impression as they had just 4 scattered hits.

Game Wrap 4/19/2025: Giants 3 Angels 2

Landen Roupp pitched 7 terrific innings and Matt Chapman anchored the lineup in producing just enough runs to overcome 2 solo home runs by Mike Trout and give the Giants another win on the road.  Key Lines:

Mike Yastrzemski RF- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .279.  YtY doubled with one out in the third inning and scored on Willy Adames single which proved to be the winning run of the game.

Willy Adames SS- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .190.  Adames drew a walk in the first inning and scored on Chapman's HR to stake Landen Roupp to an early lead.

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 3, HR(4), BB, SB(3).  BA= .250.  After an 0 for 22 slump from April 6-13, Chapman is 9 for 21 over his last 6 games.  All along he has drawn walks to make him an on-base machine with a season OBP of .405.

Landen Roupp RHP- 7 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 4.09.  Easily Roupp's best start of his MLB career.  No shame in giving up HR's to Trout and the rest of the start was impeccable.  

Tyler Rogers RHP and Ryan Walker RHP pitched a scoreless inning each with Walker collecting his 5'th Save.

The Win improves the Giants overall record to 14-7 and their record on a very tough road trip to 5-4 with one more game to go.

Justin Verlander RHP tries to avoid the big inning and give the Giants a winning record for the road trip tomorrow afternoon facing Yusei Kikuchi LHP.

The Giants made their first roster moves of the season placing Casey Schmitt IF on the 10-day IL with an oblique strain.  David Villar was selected back onto the 40-man roster and added to the 26-man active roster.  Jerar Encarnacion OF/1B was moved from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL, I am sure retroactive.

Down on the Farm: 4/18/2025

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats outscored the Salt Lake City Bees 11-8:

Grant McCray CF- 2 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .257.

Marco Luciano LF- 3 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .216.

Hunter Bishop RF- 2 for 3, BB.   BA= .250.

Osleivis Basabe 2B- 1 for 3, HR(2), BB.  BA= .218.

Kyle Harrison LHP- 4 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 5.40.

Tristan Beck RHP- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.64.

Marco Luciano is 11 for 33 over his last 8 games.  A mixed bag for Harrison with an excellent K/BB.  Tristan Beck seems ready to help out in the pen when needed.

 

AA: Richmond Flying Squirrels bombed the Chesapeake Baysox 10-0:

Jairo Pomares DH- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .277.

Victor Bericoto RF- 2 for 4, HR(3), BB.  BA= .319.

Adrian Sugastey C- 2 for 5.  BA= .290.

Aeverson Arteaga SS- 3 for 3, SF.  BA= .227.

Manuel Mercedes RHP- 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, 8/3 GO/AO.  ERA= 4.76.

Nick Sinacola RHP- 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K.  ERA= 1.69.

Victor Bericoto is limited defensively but he sure seems like a hitter.  Pomares is from the same international class as Marco Luciano and Luis Matos.  He missed most of 2023 with an injury.  Hit 12 HR but with just a .238 BA last season.  He's trying to build on that this season.  He's still just 24 yo so too early to write him off.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Vancouver Canadians 5-3:

Jonah Cox CF- 3 for 4, 2B, Sac.  BA= .278.

Quinn McDaniel 2B- 2 for 4, BB, 2 SB(5).  BA= .250.

Cesar Perdomo LHP- 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 6.55.

A:  San Jose Giants blanked the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 2-0:

Dakota Jordan CF- 0 for 1, 2 BB, HBP, SB(3).  BA= .333.

Robert Hipwell DH- 1 for 4, 3B.  BA= .135.

Greg Farone LHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 0.71.

Cade Vernon RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Ben Peterson RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.76.

Farone has 23 K's in 12.2 IP over 3 starts.  Hoping to catch a Gerelmi start tonight with my wife and some friends.  

Game Wrap 4/18/2025: Angels 2 Giants 0

Logan Webb and the Giants defense had one rough inning and the lineup seemed like they might be jet-lagged against former Giant Tyler Anderson LHP.  Key Lines:

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .361.  Lee was the only member of the lineup who seemed to be awake.  It also appeared the ball was not carrying well at the Big A, something the Angels broadcast team mentioned.  Between jet lag, pitcher-friendly conditions and Tyler Anderson's timing disruption, it was not a good night for Giants hitters.

Logan Webb RHP- 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 12 K's.  ERA= 2.40.  Webb pitched spectacularly except for a stretch in the second inning that began after he struck out the first two batters.  Nolan Schanuel doubled on a drive that was crushed to CF then Zach Neto, playing his first game of the season after a lengthy rehab, smoked one past Willy Adames SS that also went for a double.  Adames has been eaten up by several of those so far.  They are tough plays but I guess we are spoiled by watching Brandon Crawford routinely pick those during the prime of his career.  Then to rub salt in the wound, Kyren Paris hit a grounder into no-man's land that Matt Chapman went a long way for and then bobbled and it somehow kept going out onto the OF grass scoring another run.  Jo Adell followed with a line drive down the RF line on a late swing and barely beat the throw to 2B for a double. Fortunately that hit only put runners at 2'nd and third and Willy Adames handled the next play to finally end the inning.  Logan Webb was visibly frustrated after at least two of those plays but in fairness to the fielders 3 of the hits were rockets and the error was on a ball that was in no-man's land.  I remember in spring training Chapman and Adames had an agreement that anything hit to Adames right and in front of him was Chapman's ball.  Gotta say in Brandon Crawford's prime he would have made the play and absolutely blown up anyone who got in his way, but he wasn't playing next to Chapman either.

The Giants record on the road trip evens at 4-4.  Long road trips wear teams down and it feels like this one is no exception.  It seems a little unreasonable that they had to play a late afternoon start time in Philly yesterday then play a game today on the west coast, but I guess that's why MLB players make the big bucks.

Tomorrow evening becomes a big game with Landon Roupp RHP facing long time Giants nemesis Kyle Hendricks RHP.(Hendricks has a career 2.33 ERA against the Giants vs 3.69 overall).

Down on the Farm: 4/17/2025

AAA:  Salt Lake City Bees stung the Sacramento River Cats 5-1:

David Villar 3B- 2 for 4.  BA= .377.

Logan Porter C- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .179.

Mason Black RHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 10 K's.  ERA= 3.00.

Joey Lucchesi LHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.32.

Joel Peguero RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.75.

Caden Dana RHP(Bees)- 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 1.13.

Mason Black pitched well but Caden Dana, MLB Pipeline's #2 Angels prospect pitched better.  He was drafted in round 11 in 2022, their only high school draftee that year.  He is a fast riser who is expected to make his MLB debut later this season.  His scouting report shows a 94-96 MPH fastball, a plus slider and an improving changeup.  

AA:  Chesapeake Baysox edged out the Richmond Flying Squirrels 4-3:

Victor Bericoto 1B/RF- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .302.

Zach Morgan DH- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .316.

Jairo Pomares LF- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .256.

John Michael Bertrand LHP- 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K.  BA= 4.73.

Michael Stryfeller RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.86.

Seven different Squirrels had one hit each with Bericoto's and Morgan's hits being doubles. Michael Stryfeller came to the Giants organization along with Andy Thomas C for Matthew Boyd LHP and Andy Thomas C in 2022.  He missed all of last season with injury.

A+:  Vancouver Canadians crushed the Eugene Emeralds 13-5:

Scott Bandura RF- 1 for 4, BB, SB(3).  BA= .333.

Jonah Cox LF- 2 for 4, BB, SB(9).  BA= .240.

Quinn McDaniel CF- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .225.

Guillermo Williamson 1B- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .238.

Josh Bostick RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 4.76.

Ian Villers RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.59.

A:  San Jose Giants rocked the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 13-6:

Dakota Jordan CF- 3 for 6, 2B, 3B.  BA= .341.

Jakob Christian 1B- 2 for 3, HR(3), BB, HBP, SF, 2 SB(2).  BA= .238.

Drew Cavanaugh DH- 1 for 2, 4 BB, SB(1).  BA= .313.

Lisbel Diaz RF- 1 for 4, 2 BB, SB(4).  BA= .260.

Jean Carlos Sio SS- 3 for 6.  BA= .276.

Drake George RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.64.

Nicolas Herold RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Evan Gray RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 1.35.

Dakota Jordan might have the best tools in the organization.  Physically he is a slightly bigger version of Heliot Ramos.  Built like a running back.  A ball is a conservative placement but it's encouraging he is hitting for a high average so far.  Jakob Christian did not play the game I attended on Tuesday.  He is tall but well-proportioned athlete.  I hope to see him in action Saturday evening.  Note that Nicolas Herold struck out the side...twice.

Game Wrap 4/17/2025: Phillies 6 Giants 4

Jordan Hicks pitched 6 shutout innings but it was the 5-spot he gave up in the first inning that the Giants lineup was not able to overcome.  Key Lines:

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 4, HR(3) R, 3 RBI.  BA= .239.  Heliot Ramos hit a 2-out single in the first inning and scored on Chapman's single.  Then in the 6'th inning Ramos reached on an error and scored ahead of Chapman's home run which narrowed the score to 5-3.

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 1 for 4, HR(2), R, RBI.  BA= .309.  Fitz continues his hot hitting with a solo HR in the 9'th to close the gap to 6-4 but it was too little, too late.

Jordan Hicks RHP- 7 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 BB, 5 K's, 9/2 GO/AO.  ERA= 6.04.  There was some bad BABIP luck involved in the the disaster first inning as there were 3 groundball singles including an infield single and the triple to drive in the final run was landed right in Luis Matos' glove in CF and popped out.  Not the easiest catch but on most days, if the ball lands in the middle of the fielder's glove it's going to be caught.  I can't say for sure if Jung Hoo Lee, who had the day off, would have had it.  I think Matos is a tad taller so it might have been hit above Lee's reach. It's remarkable to me that Hicks settled down and went 7 full innings without giving up another run.  He only gave up one more hit the rest of the way.

The Loss drops the Giants overall record to 13-6.  They are 4-3 on the 10 game road trip so far against two good teams and in very challenging weather conditions so the team should feel good about that.  

The Giants fly to Anaheim for the final 3-game series of the trip starting tomorrow night with Logan Webb RHP facing former Giant(they're everywhere!) Tyler Anderson LHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/16/20225

AAA:  Salt Lake City Bees defeated the Sacramento River Cats 4-1:

Carson Seymour RHP- 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K's, 2 HBP,  5/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.00.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.86.

Antonio Jiimenez LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 10.80.

7 River Cats players had one hit each, all singles.  Carson Seymour has put up the best numbers of the Cats SP's so far.  Sean Hjelle seems to have ironed out his spring hiccups.  Arizona is probably not the best environment for his style of pitching.  Unfortunately for them, there is not yet an obvious need at the MLB level but there is still a whole lot of innings to fill over the course of the season.

AA:  Chesepeake Baysox outscored the Richmond Flying Squirrels 10-6:

Carter Howell CF- 2 for 5.  BA= .275.

Jairo Pomares LF- 1 for 4, HR(3).  BA= .256.

Victor Bericoto DH- 2 for 3, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .300.

Dylan Cumming RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.15.

A+:  Vancouver Canadians topped the Eugene Emeralds 5-2:

Thomas Gavello 2B- 1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .385.

Josh Wolf RHP- 3 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.25.

Brayan Palencia RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K's, 3/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 2.84.

A:  Rancho Cucamonga Quakes beat the San Jose Giants:

Lisbel Diaz RF- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .261.

Niko Mazza RHP- 3.2 IP, 3 H, 5 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Charlie McDaniel LHP- 4.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.16.

The Young Giants managed just 3 hits in the game.  The Quakes scored all 5 of their runs in the 4'th inning.  The sequence went K, E5, GB single, IF single, walk(Run), Force Out 2B(Run), walk, walk(Run), (Pitching Change)2-Run LD single.  That's rough!

Game Wrap 4/16/2025: Giants 11 Phillies 4

The Giants lineup wore their hitting shoes on another cold, windy night in Philly to pick up Robbie Ray's wild start and the bullpen shut it down over the last 5 innings.  Key Lines:  

Mike Yastrzemski RF- 2 for 4, 2B, 2 BB, 2 RBI.  BA= .314.  I am pretty sure this is the best start to a season of YtY's career.  Stay healthy!

Willy Adames SS- 1 for 5, BB, R, RBI.  BA= .205.  Adames is still swinging at just about everything but at least he is 6 for 22(.272) over his last 5 games.  Maybe trying a little too hard to prove he deserved the contract?

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 2 for 5, 2B, SF, 2 R, 2 RBI.  BA= .338.  Melvin raised a lot of eyebrows when he installed Lee as the #3 hitter in the lineup but that move is as responsible for the Giants early season success as anything. Oh, and he's already exceeded every major counting stat from last season in less than half the games and PA's.

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 4, BB, R.  BA= .222.  Chappy is 5 for 12 over his last 3 games.

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 3 for 5, 2B, 2 R, RBI.  BA= .314.  Fitz took some batting lessons from Barry Bonds and wow!  Have they paid off!  He's on fire going 11 for 23 with 3 2B, 3B, HR over his last 6 games.

Robbie Ray LHP- 4 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 5 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 4.19.  The Giants lineup staked Ray to a 4-run lead before he took the mound.  He promptly gave 2 runs back without allowing a ball out of the infield.  He gave the other 2 back in the 4'th inning on Bryce Harper's HR.  Out of 23 batters faced, 14 had either a walk, strikeout or home run.  I guess that's what you call a 3-true outcomes pitcher?  Oh, and the MLB pitcher to walk 5 batters while striking out 8 in 4 IP?  That would be Robbie Ray!  

Bullpen:  5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  Lou Trivino RHP really gets the credit here for stopping the bleeding and giving the lineup breathing room to build the lead to 7-4.  Camilo Doval RHP looked great in a scoreless frame and Spencer Bivens RHP brought it home with two more scoreless frames in the 8'th and 9'th innings.

The Win improved the Giants overall record to 13-5 and gave them a 2-1 lead in the 4 game series and a 4-2 record on a road trip against two daunting teams and extremely difficult weather conditions.  

Jordan Hicks RHP tries for a series win tomorrow in a 1:05 PM PDT start facing Christopher Sanchez LHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/15/2025

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats outscored the Salt Lake City Bees 8-6:

Grant McCray CF- 2 for 5, 2B, SB(5). BA= .283.

Marco Luciano LF- 1 for 2, 3 BB.  BA= .197.

Max Stassi C- 2 for 4.  BA= .242.

Sergio Alcantara 2B- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .270.

Keaton Winn RHP- 4 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 5.91.

Tristan Beck RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.93.

Kai-Wei Teng RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 6.75.

Sergio Alcantara has split time at SS and 2B.  He started the season 0 for 14 over his first 5 games and 12 for 24 in 7 games since.  He hit .271 last season but mostly for AAA Reno which tends to inflate offensive numbers more than Sacramento.  Keaton Winn gave up a 4-spot in the second inning, otherwise pitched quite well.

AA: Chesapeake Baysox defeated the Richmond Flying Squirrels 4-1:

Victor Bericoto 1B- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .270.

Aeverson Arteaga SS- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .152.

Seth Lonsway LHP- 5 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.70.

Will Bednar RHP- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.15.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds topped the Vancouver Canadians 11-8:

Jonah Cox CF/LF- 1 for 4, 2B, 2 BB, 2 SB(8).  BA= .238.

Charlie Szykowny 1B- 3 for 6, 2 2B.  BA= .289.

Quinn McDaniel 2B/CF- 2 for 5, SB(3).  BA= .242.

Scott Bandura LF/RF- 2 for 5, BB.  BA= .391.

Zane Zielinski SS- 2 for 4, 2B, 2 BB, 2 SB(4).  BA= .429.

Onil Perez C- 1 for 2, 3 BB, SB(1).  BA= .263.

Austin Strickland RHP- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.59.

Sadrac Franco RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.00.

Cody Tucker RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 12.46.

A:  Rancho Cucamonga Quakes outlasted the San Jose Giants 4-3(10 innings):

Jose Ortiz RF- 1 for 2, Sac, SB(2).  BA= .344.

Drew Cavanaugh C- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .346.

Jean Carlos Sio 3B/2B- 2 for 4, HR(2).  BA= .263.

Hunter Dryden RHP- 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 K's, 4/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 1.13.

Ubert Mejias RHP- 3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 7.71.

Cole Hillier RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.60.

Here is my in-person scouting report for this game:

Jose Ortiz was having a good game when he took a tumble down the RF line after beating out an error.  It looked like he grabbed his right hammy and limped off the field favoring his R leg in what looked like a hammy gait.  Hunter Dryden is on the small side for pitcher, but threw hard, mostly fastballs 92-94 MPH.  Ubert Mejias and Cole Hillier threw mostly offspeed stuff and did not register a pitch over 90 MPH on the stadium radar gun.  

It was fun to see Travis Ishikawa in the Giants dugout.  He is the hitting coach.  I saw Travis play for the San Jose Giants when he was a prospect, watched his epic walk-off HR in 2014 on TV and now see him working in the coaching ranks.  Dan Runzler was also in the dugout as the SJ Giants pitching coach.  The SJ manager is longtime Giants middle infield prospect Ydwin Villegas.

Game Wrap 4/15/2025: Phillies 6 Giants 4

There is an old sports saying, "you can't win them all" especially true in baseball.  The Giants had to battle a different kind of inclement weather, a gale-force wind blowing from left to right, plus a very good baseball team.  This time the law of averages caught up with them and they came up just short....as in about 3 feet short.  Key Lines:

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .333.  Lee made a nice recovery from last night's 0 for 5.  In addition to a good game at the plate, he threw out Bryce Harper at 2B who was strangely attempting to advance on a caught flyball.  Harper is an immensely talented player but he sometimes tries to do too much.

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 3, 2B, BB, SB(2).  BA= .203.  Giants need Chapman to get going.  Hopefully this is the start.  BTW, I was reading a post on Blue Sky that per statcast, Chapman has the second highest foot speed on the team.

Casey Schmitt 1B- 1 for 4.  BA= .211.  Chapman and Wilmer Flores, of all players, pulled off a double steal in the 4'th inning to set up Casey's 2-run single to tie the game at 2. Dave Flemming and Javy Lopez had fun with Wilmer's back-end steal of 2B.  Schmitt alo came up about 3 feet short in his bid for a 3-run HR to CF that would have given the Giants a 7-6 lead in the 8'th inning.

Justin Verlander RHP- 5.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 6.75.  Verlander ran into trouble in the second inning for the third game in a row but limited the damage to 2 runs.  I am sure Verlander gets a pretty big voice in whether he stays in a game or not.  He tried to stretch it out to 6 innings and didn't make it out of the inning. In retrospect I think both Verlander and Bob Melvin might think it would be better to bring Randy Rodriguez in to start the 6'th inning or at least have Verlander on a shorter leash in the inning.

Hayden Birdsong RHP- 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 1.80.  Birdsong faced the top of the Phillies order in the 7'th inning.  Bryson Stott led off with a triple.  He got Trea Turner on a groundout with the runner staying put at 3B but then gave up a 2-run blast to.....Bryce Harper to give the Phillies a 6-3 lead that stood up by 3 feet.

The Loss evened the 4-game series at 1-1 and dropped the Giants record to 12-5.  Their record on this road trip is 3-2.  As Taylor Swift sings it, you gotta Shake It Off!

Robbie Ray LHP tries to get the Giants back on the winning side of the W-L ledger tomorrow evening facing Aaron Nola RHP who is off to a slow start to the season which means he is due to positively regress any start now.

Game Wrap 4/14/2025: Giants 10 Phillies 4

Landen Roupp got off to a rough start allowing three runs in the first inning but the lineup jumped to his defense and picked him up big time with a 6-run second inning and the Giants never looked back.  Key Lines:

Mike Yastrzemski RF- 2 for 5, 2B, HR(3), 2 R, 3 RBI.  BA= .311.  YtY's 2-Run HR in the 7'th inning extended the Giants lead to 8-4.  He doubled in Fitz in the 9'th and scored on Chapman's single to account for the final two runs of the game.  He's had some good stretches in his career but I think this is his hottest start yet.  Stay healthy and stay hot!

Willy Adames SS- 2 for 5, HR(1), R, RBI.  BA= .203.  Adames singled in his first AB but got picked off 1B by Taijuan Walker who is a career leader in pickoffs.  Adames made up for it but capping off the second inning rally with a HR to R-CF which is hopefully a breakthrough for him as the Giants need his bat to heat up if they want to keep the winning going. 

Heliot Ramos LF- 2 for 5, 2B, R.  BA= .221.  Ramos has been scuffling while swinging at too many pitches above the strike zone.  He started the 6-run rally with a double to RF.  

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 3 for 4, 2B, 3B, HR(1), 3 R, 3 RBI.  BA= .286.  Breakout game from another hitter who has been scuffling.  The 3-run HR in the 2'nd inning was the big blow of the game.  The double and triple later in the game set up additional scores.  

Landen Roupp RHP- 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 4.80.  Roupp had poor command of but his curveball in the first inning and was on the ropes.  He managed to get out of the inning then settled down to pitch 5 innings after the lineup's big rally in the second.  It appeared to me he leaned on his curveball a lot after the first inning and what a curveball it is!  

Bullpen- 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K's.  Randy Rodriguez RHP, Erik Miller LHP, Tyler Rogers RHP and Camilo Doval RHP each pitched a scoreless inning.  Doval looked particularly sharp in a non-save situation in the 9'th against the top of the Phillies order striking out Bryce Harper to end the game.

The Giants played an impressive game to take the first game of a 4 game series on the road against one of the best teams in the league.  They improved their record to 12-4.  

Justin Verlander RHP tries to keep the winning ways going tomorrow evening facing Jesus Luzardo LHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/13/2025

AAA:  Tacoma Rainiers defeated the Sacramento River Cats 6-2:

Brett Wisely 2B- 1 for 4, HR(3).  BA= .214.

David Villar DH- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .381.

Carson Whisenhunt LHP- 3.1 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.86.

Trevor McDonald RHP- 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 6 K's, 6/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 4.15.

Wisely's bat regressed after a hot start but drives in both River Cats runs with a homer here.

AA:  Harrisburg Senators outscored the Richmond Flying Squirrels 8-6:

Carter Howell CF- 2 for 4, HBP.  BA= .267.

Diego Velasquez 2B- 2 for 5.  BA= .290.

Victor Bericoto 1B- 3 for 5, 2 HR(2).  BA= .242.

Justin Wishkoski 3B- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .263.

A+:  Tri-Cities Dust Devils beat the Eugene Emeralds 4-2:

Bo Davidson CF- 2 for 3, 2B. BA= .273.

Cole Foster SS- 3 for 4.  BA= .161.

Shane Rademacher RHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ER 1.00.

Tommy Kane LHP 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.

A:  San Jose Giants edged out the Visalia Rawhide 3-2:

Dakota Jordan CF- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .346.

Gerelmi Maldonado RHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 6.75.

Evan Gray RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.69.

Gerelmi Maldonado missed all of last season, presumably due to elbow surgery.  His scouting report had him hitting 97 MPH before the injury.  It would be a big boost for the Giants farm system if he is back to full health.   And gotta love the name.

Game Wrap 4/13/2025: Giants 5 Yankees 4

Jung Hoo Lee's two home runs were the key to a Giants win in Yankee Stadium.  Key Lines:

Jung Hoo Lee CF- 2 for 3, 2 HR(3), BB, 2 R, 4 RBI.  BA= .352.  Wow! Jung Hoo Lee is a star!  Dude plays the game with flair and backs it up with results.  He pretty much singlehandedly won this game.  He may be looking at that short porch in Yankee Stadium and thinking to himself he should have signed with them.

Christian Koss 2B- 1 for 4.  BA= .100.  Koss got his first MLB hit on an infield single that ticked off the glove of Anthony Volpe SS and then scored on Lee's second HR.  He later hit a sharp grounder that went under Paul Goldschmidt 1B's glove and Casey Schmitt 1B scored from 2B but that play was ruled an error so Christian did not get credit for a second hit or for his first MLB RBI.  

Logan Webb RHP- 5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 5 K's, 7/2 GO/AO, 97 pitches.  ERA= 2.63.  It was better weather than the first two games of the series by a lot but game time temperature was 54 F with a 13 MPH wind blowing out to RF.  In that context, this is a good line, although I am sure Webb himself would say he did not have his best stuff or command.

Hayden Birdsong RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  It was pretty amazing to see how easy Birdsong breezed through his 2 innings and on just 20 pitches.  Although there is no glaring need right now, it does seem Birdsongs's immense talent is underutilized.  Fun Fact:  The surname Birdsong is germanic in origin and derived from the same root word as Vogelsang or Vogelsong.

Ryan Walker RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(4).  ERA= 1.29.  Walker had to face the Yankee's #1 and 2 batters including Aaron Judge and had no problem recording 3 outs and his fourth Save.

The Giants win the weekend series in an extremely challenging environment.  They now move down I-95 to Philadelphia for a 4-game set against the Phillies.  Landen Roupp RHP starts tomorrow evening facing Taijuan Walker RHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/12/2025

 AAA:  Tacoma Rainiers outscored the Sacramento River Cats 10-9:

Marco Luciano LF- 2 for 4, 2B, HR(3), BB.  BA= .182.

Hunter Bishop RF- 2 for 4, HBP.  BA= .227.

Sergio Alcantara SS- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .281.

Kyle Harrison LHP- 3 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 5.73.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 2.35.

Luciano is 5 for 14 with a double, 2 HR's and 3 BB's over his last 3 games.  Kyle Harrison's start was pushed back a day in case he was needed in New York for a doubleheader.

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels topped the Harrisburg Senators 3-2(Game 1 of doubleheader, 7 innings):

Carter Howell CF- 1 for 2, BB, HBP.  BA= .208.

Diego Velasquez 2B- 2 for 3, Sac.  BA= .280.

Nick Sinacola RHP- 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.45.

Trent Harris RHP- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.

AA:  Harrisburg Senators edged out the Richmond Flying Squirrels 2-1(Game 2 of doubleheader, 7 innings):

Carter Howell DH- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .231.

Diego Velasquez SS- 0 for 1, 2 BB.  BA= .269.

Adrian Sugastey C- 1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .278.

Manuel Mercedes RHP- 4 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 9.53.

Justin Garcia RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.60.

Adrian Sugastey is the Giants most advanced catching prospect(not necessarily the best and not the depth guys at AAA).  Worth keeping an eye on. He had a good spring training in limited action.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Tri-Cities Dust Devils 7-4(Game 1 of doubleheader, 7 innings):

Jonah Cox LF- 2 for 4, 2B, 3B.  BA= .290.

Charlie Szykowny 3B- 1 for 2, HR(1), BB, SF.  BA= .280.

Quinn McDaniel 2B- 1 for 3, BB, SB(2).  BA= .240.

Zane Zielinski SS- 2 for 3, SB(2).  BA= .571.

Brayan Palencia RHP- 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.15.

Marques Johnson RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(1).  ERA= 7.71.

A+:  Tri-Cities Dust Devils blew away the Eugene Emeralds 7-0(Game 2 of doubleheader, 7 innings):

Scott Bandura LF- 1 for 1, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .467

Charlie Szykowny 3B- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .286.

A:  San Jose Giants whipped the Visalia Rawhide 11-4:

Jose Ortiz RF- 2 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .385.

Carlos Gutierrez LF- 2 for 4, 2B, 3B, BB.  BA= .276.

Dakota Jordan CF- 0 for 1, 3 BB, SF.  BA= .348.

Lisbel Diaz DH- 1 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .273.

Drew Cavanaugh C- 3 for 4, 2B, HR(3), BB.  BA= .333.

Ryan Reckley 2B- 0 for 1, 3 BB, SF.  BA= .063.

Jose Ortiz is 20 years old.  13'th round draft pick in 2023.  Batted .306 in the ACL last season.  Carlos Gutierrez is also 20 years old.  Signed in January 2023.  Batted .359 in the DSL in 2023 and .333 in limited action in the ACL last season.  Two young prospects to keep an eye on.

Game Wrap 4/12/2025: Yankees 8 Giants 4

More hot hitting from Wilmer Flores was not enough to overcome subpar pitching and a second day of poor field conditions.  Key Lines:

Willy Adames SS- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .196.  Giants need Adames to get going at the plate.  Maybe a start? 

Wilmer Flores DH- 2 for 4, HR(6).  BA= .275.  Flores HR in the second inning came after Heliot Ramos' double.  The other two RBI's came on a bases-loaded single in the 6'th inning.

Jordan Hicks RHP- 4 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 3 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 5.87.  I anticipate some comments piling on Hicks but the weather has been a problem for all pitchers and Hicks hung in there pretty well through 4 innings which remember, Robbie Ray came out after 4 innings yesterday after throwing over 90 pitches.  I guess my biggest criticism is of Melvin who seemed awfully slow to get Hicks out of there.  Hicks was already getting long on his pitch count and came out serving up batting practice to the top of the Yankees order in the 5'th.  Melvin didn't come get him until 2 runs were in and the bases were loaded with no outs.  This time Randy Rodriguez couldn't keep the inherited runners from scoring.  That was the ballgame.  So yes, not a great start by any stretch for Hicks but I'll give him a pass for a harmonic convergence of difficult weather conditions, a potent Yankees lineup and Melvin's slow hook.

Logan Webb RHP tries for a series win tomorrow against former Giant Carlos Rodon LHP, hopefully in better weather.

Down on the Farm: 4/11/2025

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats topped the Tacoma Rainiers 3-1:

David Villar 1B- 3 for 5,.  BA= .353.

Sergio Alcantara 3B- 1 for 2, 2 BB, SB(1).  BA= .241.

Carson Ragsdale RHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 7.20.

Joey Lucchesi LHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.84.

Justin Garza RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, Save(3).  ERA= 0.00.

Villar drove in all 3 River Cats runs.  Joey Lucchesi is the most likely add if Buster and BoMel decide they need another lefty reliever.

AA:  Harrisburg Senators edged out the Richmond Flying Squirrels 2-1:

John Michael Bertrand LHP- 5 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 5.40.

Nick Morreale RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 2.25.

Cameron Cotter RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 7.71.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds outscored the Tri-Cities Dust Devils 7-6:

Bo Davidson CF- 3 for 5, 2B, 2 HR(2).  BA= .292.

Jonah Cox LF- 2 for 4, BB, 4 SB(6).  BA= .259.

James Tibbs III DH- 0 for 2, 2 BB, 2 SB(2).  BA= .318.

Quinn McDaniel 2B- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .227.

Scott Bandura RF- 1 for 2, BB, SF.  BA= .429.

Zane Zielinski SS- 2 for 4.  BA= .500.

Josh Bostick RHP- 4 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 9 K.  ERA= 4.91.

Elijah Pleasants RHP- 2.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 2 K.  ERA= 21.00.

Huge game for Bo Davidson.  Jonah Cox again shows he has the best SB speed in the organization.

A:  San Jose Giants defeated the Visalia Rawhide 3-1:

Lisbel Diaz LF- 2 for 3, HBP, SB(1).  BA= .286.

Greg Farone LHP- 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 1.17.

Ryan Slater RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, 5/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 0.00.

Cole Hillier RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.00.

Cameron Pferrer RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(1).  ERA= 3.00.