Sunday, April 26, 2026

Game Wrap 4/26/2026: Giants 6 Marlins 3

 
Jung Hoo Lee's four hits and Casey Schmitt's home run helped Landen Roupp overcome an early 3-run homer as the Giants won their third series in a row.  Key Lines:

Jung Hoo Lee RF- 4 for 5, 3B, 2 R.  BA= .313.  Maybe Tony Vitello reads this blog?(Just kidding).  While he didn't bat Arraez and Chapman bat 1, 2, he batted Lee, Chapman and Arraez 1, 2, 3 which is even better.  

Matt Chapman 3B- 0 for 1, 2 BB, HBP, 1 R.  BA= .283.  The top two batters reached base a total of 7 times.  What a concept!

Casey Schmitt DH- 1 for 3, HR(4), BB, 2 R, 3 RBI.  BA= .296.  Schmitt's second 2-run HR in as many days capped off the Giants scoring and gave them breathing room over the last 2 innings.  

Rafael Devers 1B- 1 for 3, 2B, BB, R, RBI.  BA= .216.  Devers dropped to 5'th in the batting order and responded with a double to drive in a run and then scored on a Drew Gilbert single to erase the Marlins lead from the 3-run HR in the 2'nd inning.

Drew Gilbert CF- 2 for 4, RBI.  BA= .265.  Gilbert might be Wally Pipping Harrison Bader.  

Landen Roupp RHP- 7.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 6 K's, 13-1 GO/AO.  ERA= 2.55.  Roupp hung in their after giving up the 3-run HR in the second inning and ended up with a Quality Start and the Win. FWIW, his W-L record on the season is 5-1.

Erik Miller LHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(2).  ERA= 3.48.  It was Miller's turn to play Closer and he closed it out while recording 4 outs.

The Win gave the Giants a 13-15 record and helped them keep pace with the Dodgers in the NL West, trailing the Hated Ones by 6 games.  They gained a game in the Wild Card race and now trail by 3 games.

The Giants hit the road to start a 3-game series against the Phillies on Tuesday with Tyler Mahle RHP facing Jesus Luzardo in Game 1.  The Phillies may be dangerous as they are coming off a 1-9 stretch.

Down on the Farm: 4/25/2026

 AAA:  Albuquerque Isotopes defeated the Sacramento River Cats 5-3(7 innings, game 1 of doubleheader).

Bryce Eldridge 1B- 0 for 1, 2 BB.  BA= .279.
Thomas Gavello 3B- 1 for 2, HR(3), BB.  BA= .188.
Seth Lonsway LHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 4 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.50.

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats cooled off the Albuquerque Isotopes 9-2(7 innings, game 2 of doubleheader).

Nate Furman 2B- 2 for 3, HR(2), BB.  BA= .333.
Jesus Rodriguez C- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .289.
Bryce Eldridge DH- 2 for 4.  BA= .289.
Buddy Kennedy 3B- 2 for 3, 2B, HR.  BA= .356.
Osleivis Basabe SS- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= 234.
John Bertrand LHP- 6 IP, 9 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K's, 8/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 4.57.

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels crushed the Somerset Patriots 9-1(7 innings, delay).

Sabin Ceballos 1B- 2 for 4.  BA= .286.
Adrian Sugastey C- 2 for 2, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .256.
Diego Velasquez 2B- 1 for 2, BB, SB(5).  BA= .238.
Jonah Cox RF- 2 for 3, 2B, HR(3).  BA= .429.
Darien Smith RHP- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.35.

Not sure why Jonah Cox continues to bat 9'th for the Squirrels.  Darien Smith continues to outpitch more highly regarded prospects.  

A+:  Eugene Emeralds outscored the Hillboro Hops 5-2.

Dakota Jordan CF- 1 for 2, HR(4), 2 BB.  BA= .338.
Ty Hanchey C- 1 for 4, HR(2).  BA= .269.
Yunior Marte RHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 1.89.

A: Ontario Tower Buzzers beat the San Jose Giants 7-4.

Jhonny Level SS- 2 for 4, 3B, HBP.  BA- .375.
Hayden Jatczak 1B- 0 for 0, 4 BB, SF.  BA= .311.
Isaiah Barkett RF- 1 for 2, 2B, BB.  BA= .348.
Ubert Mejias RHP- 5.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 9 K's.  2.93.  

Saturday, April 25, 2026

Game Wrap 4/25/2026: Giants 6 Marlins 2

The Giants fell behind early again but the lineup came to life in the late innings and pulled away for a solid win.  Key Lines:

Luis Arraez 2B- 2 for 5, 2B, RBI.  BA= .324.   What a breath of fresh air Luis Arraez has been so far!  He is tied for 10'th in MLB in hits only 3 hits behind the leader, Yordan Alvarez.  He has gone hitless in just 6 of 26 games and has multiple hits in 10 games.  On top of all that he has been a slightly plus defender per Fangraphs.  I am happy to see that defensive metric because he definitely passes my eye test.  

Matt Chapman DH- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 BB, R.  BA= .286.  Chapman's OBP is .342, Arraez is at .355.  Anyone for batting Arraez and Chapman 1, 2 and putting Adames lower in the lineup?

Casey Schmitt 3B- 2 for 3, 2B, HR(3), R, 2 RBI.  BA= .295.  For the second game in a row, Schmitt rounded 2B a bit too far and too hard and got thrown out trying to get back.  He made up for that blunder later with a laser shot home run at least a third of the way up the bleachers in left field.  

Jung Hoo Lee RF- 2 for 3, 2 2B, BB, R.  BA= .287.  Lee is finally living up to the "Grandson of the Wind" reputation.  He's batting .400 over his last 7 games and .385 over his last 15.  The Hoo Lee Gans are loving every minute of it.

Heliot Ramos LF- 2 for 4, HR(3), R, RBI.  BA= .277.  As much criticism as I have seen of Ramos, I did not realize he is hitting .400 over his last 7 games and .333 over his last 15. His homer in this game was not a splash hit but was over the RF wall which is also rare for a RH batter.

Drew Gilbert CF- 1 for 4, HR(2), R, RBI.  BA= .233.  Gilbert's numbers are not great but I like the way he carries himself at the plate and I like his swing.  He's still learning.  Keep putting him out there. I think he can turn into a....hate to say this.....but a Lenny Dykstra type player.

Patrick Bailey C- 1 for 3, BB, SB(2), R, RBI.  BA= .156.  At least when Bailey does get a hit it tends to be in the later innings and in higher leverage situations.  He singled in Jung Hoo Lee for the Giants 4'th run in the 6'th inning then drew a walk and scored on Arraez' double in the 8'th inning.  He was charged with a throwing error in the 9'th that cost the Giants a run although it was a tough angle on a dribbler in front of the plate and the throw clipped the runner's left shoulder changing the ball's direction causing Devers to miss the catch.  So not only did they not get the out but it put a runner at 2B who scored on a single.

Robbie Ray LHP- 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.70.  Ray threw 33 pitches in the first inning and was at 47 through 2.  He ended up with 97 in 5 innings but allowed just the one run which gave the lineup a chance to come back in the later innings.

Matt Gage LHP(1.64), Keaton Winn RHP(2.53) and Erik Miller LHP(4.00) pitched a scoreless frame each.  

Ryan Walker RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 3.00.  Non-Save situation.  The runner at 2B on the error was not his fault.  He gets extra-credit for an acrobatic comebacker GIDP to end the game.

Hmm....hadn't noticed but the Padres are in first place in the NL West. The Giants trail them by 6.5 games and remain 4 games behind in the Wild Card race.

Landen Roupp RHP tries for another series win tomorrow against Max Meyer RHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/24/2026

 AAA:  Sacramento River Cats topped the Albuquerque Isotopes 4-3.

Grant McCray RF- 1 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .197.
Victor Bericoto DH- 2 for 4.  BA= .293
Turner Hill CF- 2 for 3, 2B, BB. BA= .389.
Trevor McDonald RHP- 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 5.40.
Michael Fulmer RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.60.
Dylan Smith RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's, Save(1).  ERA= 0.00.

AA: Richmond Flying Squirrels outscored the Somerset Patriots 7-6.

Scott Bandura LF- 1 for 4, HR(2), BB.  BA= .347.
Drew Cavanaugh PH- 1 for 1, HR(2).  BA= .350.
Maui Ahuna SS- 2 for 4, SB(5).  BA= .297.
Jonah Cox CF/RF- 1 for 3, BB, SB(12).  BA= .415.
Trystan Vrieling- 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 5.40.
Jack Choate LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.45.

We've had some questions about whether Scott Bandura is a legitimate prospect.  I've always thought he was and he has a great back story to boot.  He was the catcher for the Little League team that won the college World Series when Mo'Ne Davis pitched.  He father was the coach of the team.  Scott played college ball for Princeton and was drafted by the Giants in Round 7, 2023.  He batted .241 but with 6 HR an OBP of .364 in 79 AB for the SJ Giants in 2023.  Back in SJ to start the 2024 season, he batted .276/.389 in 105 AB before a midseason promotion to A+ Eugene where his BA slipped to .227 but with 6 HR and an OBP of .332 in 211 AB.  That is where his speed first showed up with 19 SB.  Back in Eugene to start 2025 his BA improved to .307 in 319 AB with 7 HR and 30 SB.  He got a later season promotion to AA where he struggled to a .199 BA.  It looks like he put that introduction to AA pitching to good use as he is off to a hot start.  He has a pattern of improving with experience at each level. If he continues the strong performance to midseason I could see him getting a promotion to AAA and being protected from the Rule 5 draft in November.  

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Hillsboro Hops 9-4.

Lisbel Diaz LF- 2 for 5, 2 HR(4).  BA= .216.
Dakota Jordan CF- 1 for 4, BB.  BA= .333.
Gavin Kilen SS- 3 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .282.
Ty Hanchey C- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .273.
Esmerlin Vinicio LHP- 2.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Lisbel Diaz shows flashes of turning into a big time hitting prospect but has yet to find consistency.  Hopefully the start of a another hot stretch for Gavin Kilen.  

A:  Ontario Tower Buzzers strafed buzzed the San Jose Giants 7-3.

Jhonny Level DH- 2 for 3, BB, SB(6).  BA= .368.
Jeremiah Jenkins 1B- 2 for 4.  BA= .375.
Braydon Risley LHP- 4 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 7 K's, 4/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 3.38.
Mauricio Estrella RHP- 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.45.

Game Wrap 4/24/2026: Marlins 9 Giants 4

This one got away early as Adrian Houser gave up 8 runs in 4 innings of work and the lineup was not able to catch up.  Key Lines:

Luis Arraez 2B- 3 for 5, RBI.  BA= .320.  Arraez keeps hitting but the impact of singles hitters is limited by the batters around him in the lineup.  Arraez batted second and the #1, 3 and 4 went a combined 1 for 13.  If you add in the #5 batter, it was 2 for 17.

Jung Hoo Lee RF- 3 for 4, HR(2).  BA= .275.  Lee continues his hot hitting.  Can we please get him and Arraez batting closer together in the lineup?

Eric Haase C- 1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .333.  Once upon a time Haase was one of the more promising young power-hitting catchers.  He seems to be back healthy and hitting more like that version of him.

Adrian Houser RHP- 4 IP, 11 H, 8 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, 4/1 GO/AO).  ERA= 7.36.  Houser's early season struggles continue but not too surprising given his career history.  Note he has a career positive groundball tendency.  Thanks to Around the Foghorn for noting that Kruk thinks the ABS Challenge System has caused trouble with sinkerballers by giving batters a point of reference for laying off low pitches and forcing the pitchers to elevate into the strike zone.  This was in reference to Logan Webb's early season struggles.

The Loss drops the Giants record to 11-15. They fall 6.5 games behind the Dodgers in the NL West and 4 games out of the Wild Card race.

Robbie Ray LHP tries to be the Stopper this afternoon facing Eury Perez RHP.  

Thursday, April 23, 2026

Down on the Farm: 4/23/2026

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats outscored the Albuquerque Isotopes 12-10.

Buddy Kennedy 3B- 3 for 4, 3B, BB.  BA= .358.
Thomas Gavello SS- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .190.
Osleivis Basabe 2B- 2 for 4, 2B,  HR(1).  BA= .214.
Turner Hill CF- 3 for 4, SB(1).  BA= .333.
Carson Seymour RHP- 1.2 IP, 4 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.15.
Wilkin Ramos RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 3/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 2.77.

....and just like that, Carson Seymour blows up the next guy up narrative.

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels defeated the Somerset Patriots 5-2.

Scott Bandura LF- 2 for 2, BB, HBP, SB(5).  BA= .352.
Maui Ahuna DH- 2 for 4, 2B, SB(4).  BA= .283.
Jonah Cox CF- 2 for 3, HR(2), SB(11).  
Joe Whitman LHP- 5.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 5.68.
Shane Rademacher RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 2.89.
Mitch White RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.32.

Bo Davidson seems to have disappeared from the Squirrels lineup again. He last appeared in a game on 4/18.  He is not listed on the 7-day IL.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds topped the Hillsboro Hops 3-1.

Trevor Cohen RF- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .235.
Gavin Kilen SS- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .260.
Dakota Jordan CF- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .338.
Niko Mazza RHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 4.40.
Austin Strickland RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 6.52.
Ryan Vanderhei RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's, Save(2).  ERA= 2.89.

A:  San Jose Giants beat the Ontario Tower Buzzers 9-6.

Lorenzo Meola 2B- 2 for 4, BB, 2 SB(3).  BA= .242.
Junior Barajas C- 2 for 2, 2B, 3 BB.  BA= .302.
Cam Maldonado CF- 2 for 3, HR(7), 2 BB.  BA= .355.
Jeremiah Jenkins DH- 3 for 5.  BA= .364.
Dario Reynoso 3B- 2 for 3, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .302.
Argenis Cayama RHP- 5 IP, 6 h, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 K's. ERA= 3.06.
Garrett Langrell RHP- 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.08.
Dylan Carter RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, Save(1).  ERA= 4.00.

Argenis Cayama's composite line over his last 3 starts is 1-0, 1.29, 14 IP, 12 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 18 K.

Game Wrap 4/23/2026: Dodgers 3 Giants 0

Logan Webb RHP pitched a Quality Start but the Giants lineup was completely shut down by Tyler Glasnow RHP who limited the Giants to one hit and one walk(Luis Arraez had both).  There really isn't anything else to say about this game.  Oh, Dalton Rushing C is trying hard to become the latest in a long line of Dodger villains with Logan Webb deciding to play the role of straight man for no other reason than why-the-heck not?

This was the 5'th time the Giants lineup was shut out on the season.  The Giants have pitched 4 shutouts so it's not totally a one way street.