All I am going to say about this game is more of the Reds prospects, including their starting pitcher, were significantly older and more advanced in their development than the players the Giants fielded. As Joe Ritzo noted on the TV broadcast, Keyner Martinez RHP probably had the most impressive game for the Giants. After allowing 2 runs on 3 hits to the first 3 batters, he settled down and recorded 6 consecutive groundball outs between two K's.
Logan Webb had a major letdown coming off the intensity of the WBC but the lineup picked him up and the Giants took a high-scoring game from the Rockies on the road. Key Lines:
Drew Gilbert DH- 3 for 5, 3B, BB, 2 R. BA= .259. Gilbert got a late start due to injury but stated his case today. Is it too little, too late?
Jared Oliva CF- 2 for 5, 2 2B, SB(13), 2 R, 2 RBI. BA= .351. Oliva has shown he is capable of winning a game with his speed alone. No other player in camp or in recent memory could claim that. And what is the old saying? Speed never slumps? He is also a strong defender in CF. The rest may not matter but he also hit well.
Daniel Susac C- 2 for 3, HR(2), 2 R, RBI. BA= .333. Susac is here as a Rule 5 Draft pick. If he doesn't make the team he must be either traded or offered back to the A's. He came to camp hitting the ball hard and never let up. It's very hard to imagine they would let him go after the spring he had and after trading for his rights.
Eric Haase C- 1 for 1, BB, R, 2 RBI. BA= .286. Haase has had a good spring too. He has an opt-out. Is there a way for the Giants to keep both him and Susac?
Victor Bericoto 1B- 2 for 3, 2B, R, RBI. BA= .474. Bericoto was the best hitter in camp, wire-to-wire.
Jerar Encarnacion 1B- 2 for 2, 2B, R, 2 RBI. BA= .319. Encarnacion is out of options. With the way he came on late I doubt the Giants want to lose him to waivers. With Eldridge's option, Jerar may have won himself a roster spot as a DH and Reserve OF/1B.
Luis Matos RF- 2 for 5, 2B, R, RBI. BA= .283. Matos says "Hey! Don't forget about me!"
Casey Schmitt 3B- 2 for 5, RBI. BA= .311. Schmitt had a strong spring.
Christian Koss SS- 2 for 5, HR(1), 2 R, 2 RBI. BA= .417. Koss may be on the bubble simply because of the numbers game but he has certainly done everything any player could do to make the team. FWIW, he is probably a little better defensive SS than Casey Schmitt. One problem for the Giants is all the players who appear to be in line for reserve roles on the position side bat right handed.
Logan Webb RHP- 4.1 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, 8/1 GO/AO. We'll chalk this one up to a letdown coming off the WBC in which Webb performed very well.
J. T. Brubaker RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 2.45. Brubaker appears to have won himself a swingman/long reliever role.
Juan Sanchez LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K. ERA= 0.00. Sanchez had a perfect spring but with Erik Miller apparently healthy again and Joey Lucchesi LHP signed late, is there room in the bullpen for him?
While we talked about the Cactus League in the past tense there are 3 more games to go, a split squad tomorrow and a game on Saturday. Adrian Houser RHP starts the home game against the Royals and Spencer Bivens RHP gets the ball for the road game against the Rangers tomorrow.
As we mentioned, Bryce Eldridge was optioned to the minors. Theoretically he could be called back for Opening Day but it would appear he will start the season in AAA to work on strike zone management.
Freddie Freeman and the Dodgers lineup were to much for Landen Roupp and the Giants pitchers and the Giants lineup wilted in the triple digit temperatures at Camelback Ranch. Key Lines:
Victor Bericoto RF- 1 for 1, HR(3). BA= .457. The Giants lineup managed just 4 hits and Bericoto's home run over the batter's eye in CF was the only one that did damage. His 3 homers leads the Giants on the spring.
Landen Roupp RHP- 4 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K's. ERA= 4.15. Roupp is the type of pitcher who probably does not match up well against this Dodgers lineup and he's far from alone in that. Looking back this may be a pretty good start agains them.
Keaton Winn RHP(6.14), Joey Lucchesi LHP(4.50) and Erik Miller LHP(0.00) pitched shutout innings. Trevor McDonald RHP got nicked for a 2-run HR by Nick Senzel.
The game was mercifully called after 8 innings.
Logan Webb RHP takes the mound on the road against the Rockies at 6:00 PM. The Giants prospects take on the Red prospects on TV in Scottsdale with Keyner Martinez RHP getting the start there.
Tyler Mahle had a sparkling start but was upstaged by Walker Buehler in a road loss to the Padres. Key Lines:
Jared Oliva LF- 0 for 1, HBP, Sac, SB(12). BA= .344. Oliva is getting a long look. He appears to have game-changing speed.
Jung Hoo Lee RF- 1 for 2, 2B, BB. BA= .429. Lee is back from the WBC. Looking for a big season from him.
Buddy Kennedy 3B- 2 for 3, 2B. BA= .346. Tough to see a path to a roster spot for Kennedy despite a strong spring.
Jesus Rodriguez 2B/C- 2 for 4. BA= .353. This guy has one of the shortest, quickest swings I've ever seen. No doubt he can hit. Is there a path to a roster spot?
Tyler Mahle RHP- 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K, 6/1 GO/AO. ERA= 0.00. That is good pitching! Mahle's main challenge this season is staying healthy.
Ryan Walker RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K. ERA= 0.00. I assume Walker goes into the season as the Closer. Hopefully it's a bounce back year.
Walker Buehler RHP(Padres)- 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K's. ERA= 3.09. This is going to turn out to be a great pick up for the Padres on a minor league deal no less. I just know it. Buster! How could you let this happen?
The Giants have today off. They are on the road against the Dodgers on Wednesday, starters TBD.
Jerar Encarnacion's 3-run home run provided more than enough runs as Robbie Ray and the Giants pitchers came within one out of a combined perfect game. Key Lines:
Matt Chapman 3B- 3 for 3, 2 2B, R. BA= .448. Chapman keeps hammering the ball. 6 doubles and 2 home runs out of 13 hits on the spring.
Grant McCray CF- 2 for 2, BB, 2 SB(3), R. BA= .267. One of his hits was a perfect push bunt down the 3B line that rolled to a stop on the grass. An otherwise sparkling performance was marred by a pickoff from 2B.
Bryce Eldridge DH- 1 for 2, 2 BB, R, RBI. BA= .250. 413 OBP, .913 OPS. But that comes with a 36% K rate. I think the Giants would happily take that line for the season but is it sustainable?
Jerar Encarnacion LF- 1 for 3, HR(2), R, 3 RBI. BA= .302. Jerar is coming on like gangbusters and might just be the odds on favorite to start the season as the primary DH. Option situation is a 2-edged sword. Probably slightly increases chances of making the Opening Day roster. If he doesn't he hits the DFA roulette wheel.
Christian Koss 2B- 1 for 2, BB. BA= .429. Koss continues to look good at the plate and made a circus catch in shallow RF but got picked off 1B.
Robbie Ray LHP- 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 K's. ERA= 1.23. Sparkling performance by Ray. Are the stars aligning for a huge season? He's pitching for a new contract and he's an additional year away from surgery.
Carson Seymour RHP, Tristan Beck RHP and Matt Gage LHP combined for 3 more perfect innings. Gregory Santos RHP got two outs in the 9'th but then gave up a walk and a double to end the perfect game, no-hitter and shutout within 2 batters.
Tyler Mahle RHP makes his fourth start of the spring today against the Padres in Peoria.
Bad news for Hayden Birdsong RHP but maybe not surprising in retrospect. Grade 2 UCL and forearm strain. Seeking a second opinion. It appears a long layoff is in his future no matter what the recommended treatment.
The Giants built an early lead behind Rafael Devers hitting and Adrian Houser's pitching but Keaton Winn had a rough day opening the door for a D'backs comeback. Key Lines:
Jesus Rodriguez LF- 2 for 4, 2B, R, RBI. BA= .345. This kid looks like a serious hitter. Is there a path for both him and Daniel Susac to make the Opening Day roster with Rodriguez filling a utility/3'rd catcher role?
Rafael Devers DH- 2 for 3, HR(1), 2 R, 3 RBI. BA= .095. Devers 3-run HR gave the Giants a 6-2 lead in the 4'th inning. He did not look as large on the TV screen today as previous sightings.
Parks Harber 3B- 1 for 1. BA= .357. Harber has had a good spring. As he was going from first to third on Eric Haase's double he pulled up lame and skipped into 3B then limped off the field with a hammy strain. Hard to see him not missing at least 4-6 weeks.
Daniel Susac C- 2 for 3, HR(1), R, RBI. BA= .345. Giants can't let this Rule 5 Draft pick go back to the A's, right?
Christian Koss 2B- 2 for 3, R. BA= .423. Koss just keeps going and going and.....
Jared Oliva PR- 0 for 0, SB(10). BA= .367. Oliva almost pulled off manufacturing a run for the second game in a row. This time he pinch ran for Buddy Kennedy who drew a leadoff walk in the 9'th inning. Oliva stole 2B then went to 3B on a wild pitch. He as stranded there on a groundout and two K's. It looked like he could have come home on the groundout but got a late read. Bryce Eldridge came up as a PH with 1-out. He looked at two strikes then swung through a high and tight fastball. Can't help but think that AB was a test for the kid to see if he could make contact when he had to. He didn't.
Adrian Houser RHP- 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 K's, 8/0 GO/AO. ERA= 3.86. I think you can rest assured Houser is going to be in the rotation to start the season.
Keaton Winn RHP- 0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 0 K. ERA= 7.11. Winn has a disaster appearance after looking unhittable all spring.
Robbie Ray LHP makes his 5'th spring start today against the Brewers in Scottsdale.
The Reds scored a run in the first inning and made it stand up in a loss for the Giants in the road half of a split-squad doubleheader. Key Lines;
Bryce Eldridge 1B- 1 for 4, 2B. BA= .242. The double left the bat at 111 MPH. 6 of Eldridge's 8 hits have gone for extra bases.
Carson Whisenhunt LHP- 3.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 6 K's. ERA= 9.64. A far better start for Whiz than his last two.
Ryan Walker RHP- 1 IP, 0. H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 2/0 GO/AO. ERA= 0.00. Walker came into camp as the presumptive Closer. So far, he has done nothing to lose that designation.
J. T. Brubaker RHP- 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K's, 4/0 GO/AO. ERA= 3.00. Brubaker is on a MLB contract so he has a roster spot to lose. So far he has done nothing to lose it.
Adrian Houser RHP gets the start at home in a televised game tomorrow in Scottsdale facing the D'Backs and Zac Gallen RHP.
Logan Webb RHP was electric for Team USA in a win over Team Canada in the WBC: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's, 4/1 GO/AO.
