Opening Day Game Wrap 3/30/2023: Yankees 5 Giants 0

 Gerrit Cole shut down the Giants lineup after a series of head-spinning move to finalize the roster.  Key Lines:

Gerrit Cole RHP(Yankees)- 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 11 K's.  When he is healthy and on, Gerrit Cole is one of the elite pitchers in baseball.  On the other hand, the Giants did not even bother to put their own best lineup out to face him on Opening Day.  More on that later.

Logan Webb RHP- 6 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 12 K's, GO/AO= 4/0.  You could make a case that Webb pitched every bit as well as Cole, maybe even slightly better.  The difference in this game was found in the lineups which were starkly different in quality.

Aaron Judge CF/RF- 2 for 4, HR(1).  Judge rubbed salt in the wound of his rejection of the Giants offseason contract offer by homering in his first AB against them in the first inning. Grrrr!!!!

Gabe Kapler Manager- Kap's explanation for sitting David Villar while starting Wilmer Flores and batting him 3'rd in the lineup:  Opening Day is unique and Wilmer Flores has earned the right to be in the middle of the lineup.  WTF?  So is the guy you've named as your starting 3B the best player for that position or not?  If he is, how didn't he earn the right to be in the middle of the lineup?  If not, why is he your starting 3B?  Yeah, not a great explanation, Kap!

Farhan Zaidi PBO- OK, the man can't help himself.  Days after all but naming Bryce Johnson OF and Sean Hjelle RHP to the Opening Day roster, he pulls one of his roster switcheroos making a cash trade with the Royals for....wait for it.....former Dodger Matt Beaty, a lefthanded-hitting 1B/Corner OF.   I mean, you could not have written a better parody than that, except it was for real.  That move had a ripple effect as it closed the open spot on the 40-man roster needed to add Bryce Johnson.  That, in turn left the Giants without a backup option in CF so Brett Wisely UT, who was already on the 40-man roster was added to the 26 man active roster, even though Wisely is primarily a middle infielder.  Oh well, the The Giants didn't have a back up middle infielder on the roster either so.....Those moves added up to 14 position players leaving room for just 12 pitchers and Hjelle was the odd man out there because he has options.  

As for Beaty, he's had an up and down career:

2019(Dodgers):  .265/.317/.458, 9 HR, 268 PA

2020(Dodgers):  .220/.278/.360, 2 HR, 54 PA

2021(Dodgers):  .270/.363/.402, 7 HR, 234 PA

2022(Padres):  .093/.170/.163, 47 PA.

So, there's a chance he's an upgrade to someone but geez, do the Giants really need another lefty-batting 1B/corner OF on the roster?  

The Giants have a day off on the Big Apple before sending Alex Cobb RHP out to face Clarke Schmidt RHP on Saturday in a 1:05 PM PT start.  Hopefully Kap will send out a better lineup to face Schmidt that what Gerrit Cole dominated today.

2023 Giants Season Preview: Keys to the Season

With spring training behind us the Giants are headed to the Big Apple for an Opening Day Matchup against..... the Yankees!  That's right!  The old crosstown/cross-league rivals meet again in the ol' hometown.  Before that happens, let's take a look at the keys to a successful Giants season:

1.  Pitching, pitching, pitching!  The pitching half of the roster made it through spring training healthy and their performance was (mostly) sensational.  While they don't have that ace 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation they did last year, they have depth, upon depth and more depth with every pitcher from rotation to Closer potentially being at least an average MLB pitcher or well above. If the pitching is what it appears to be, they Giants will win a lot of games on that strength alone.

2.  Michael Conforto OF and Mitch Haniger OF have to stay healthy.  While the Giants did not exactly break the bank for these guys, they also shelled out a nice chunk of payroll.  They are the core of the Giants offseason upgrade and pretty much everything on the positional side.  They both have injury histories and the Giants cannot afford to have either of them miss significant time.  It's not encouraging that Haniger is starting the season on the IL with a dreaded oblique injury but based on everything we know, he should only miss the first week or two of the season.

3.  Stabilize the catching situation.  Look, either Joey Bart needs to figure it out quickly or they need to move on with the lower ceiling but much higher floor of Roberto Perez.  If nothing else the pitchers need to know who they are working with and get settled into that.

4.  Middle infield depth.  Right now, the Giants plan for middle infield depth consists of Thairo Estrada playing 162 games, 100% of Brandon Crawford's off days at SS plus all of the other games at 2B.  They may get away with that for the first 2 weeks to a months but not for a full season.  So who is going to step when the crunch comes?  Brett Wisely?  Casey Schmitt?  Will Wilson?  Marco Luciano?  Stay tuned on this one.

5.  At least one 30 HR season out of David Villar, J. D. Davis and Lamonte Wade Jr.  I don't think they need to get 30 HR out of all of them if Haniger and Conforto stay healthy but they need to get 30 out of at least one and preferable two.

Go Giants!

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/27/2023: A's 12 Giants 6

Sorry for the late post.  Edison turned off our power all day for local line maintenance.

They played a game at Oracle Park last night but that was really a sideshow to the main event, which was Sergio Romo's retirement.  I am pretty sure no roster spots were won or lost and there was definitely nothing that happened to shed any light on what will happen in the regular season.  Ross Stripling RHP needed to make his pitch count without getting hurt.  That was pretty much the goal of the game and it showed.

Sergio Romo's retirement ceremony was touching and joyous but also a bit sad at the same time.  He threw a couple of throwback sliders but was mostly not at all sharp and wasn't able to record the out he desperately wanted.  And afterward in the dugout after the hug line had run out, Sergio obviously did not want it to end and keep looking for one more teammate or coach or waterboy to hug.  And that's OK.  We didn't want it to end either.  Sergio Romo will always be one of my very favorite Giants of all time.

The Giants got Rule 5 Draft pick Nick Avila RHP back from the White Sox.  The other 8 players they lost in the Rule 5 Draft won't be coming back since they were taken in the minor league phase and there is not return rule for that phase.

Prospect Retrospective: Sergio Romo

Sergio Romo is scheduled to put on a Giants uniform as a player for the last time tonight and retire after a remarkable 15 year MLB career.  Romo's story is way too big for one post.  I hope someone writes a book about it someday and it really should be made into a feature length movie.  I will focus on his path to Oracle Park through the minor leagues.  

"The Boy From Brawley" as Vin Scully loved to call him, came from one of the more God-forsaken places in the country south of the Salton Sea in California's Imperial Valley.  When he went off to pitch JC ball at Orange Coast College his friends said, "you think you're bad because you're going off to college?  You'll be back like all the rest of them."  Sergio's reply was "I'll be back, but it won't be like all all the rest of them."  And it wasn't.

He ended up pitching for 4 different colleges in 4 years putting up good numbers but not impressing scouts with his small size and a fastball that barely reached 90 MPH with a flat looking slider.  He was drafted by the Giants in 2005 in round 28.  He started his pro career in low A ball in 2006, a conservative placement for a college senior draftee, where he worked as a swingman with solid numbers:

10-2, 2.53, 103.1 IP, 8.27 K/9, 1.65 BB/9, 31 G, 10 GS, 4 Saves.  The number that caught my eye was the extremely low walk rate, but maybe that was just his advanced age and experience for the level?

In 2007, he moved up to A+ San Jose where he was exclusively a multi-inning reliever.  BTW, I think that is a great role for minor league pitchers to hone their skills.  Stay away from that 1-inning Closer track!  His numbers went from solid to fantastic, even getting 9 Saves despite the multi-inning role:

6-2, 1.36, 66.1 IP, 14.38 K/9, 2.04 BB/9, 41 G, 9 Saves.

Scouts and prospect sites were still not impressed with his stuff seeing the same small size, soft fastball and flat slider.  Either the Giants saw something the scouts and prospect watchers didn't or they just let him keep rising to his ceiling based on performance.  Either way, credit to the organization.  

2008 is when things really took off and he made it all the way to his MLB debut.  He also moved into more of a 1-inning Closer track role:

AA:  1-3, 4.00, 27 IP, 10.00 K/9, 2.33 BB/9, 24 G, 11 Saves.

AAA:  0-0, 0.00, 6 IP, 10.50 K/9, 3.00 BB/9, 3 G.

MLB:  3-1, 2.12, 34 IP, 8.74 K/9, 2.12 BB/9, 29 G.

Wow!  I did not recall him pitching that much his rookie season or putting up numbers that good.  As we all know it turned out that flat slider was one of the unique and great single pitches in MLB history.  I don't think I need to go into anymore detail for this audience of highly informed Giants fans.

He appeared in 6 more minor league games in 2009 which I think were rehab assignments but from that point on he became one of the "Core Four" Giants relievers who, without any one of them, the Giants may well have not won any World Series Championships let alone 3.  Ironically Romo's signature moment came on one of his "soft" fastballs that Miguel Cabrera wasn't expecting to end the 2012 Series.

I went to Cot's Baseball Contracts site, linked over the left, and added up all of Romo's MLB Salaries.  He earned a grand total of over $43 M in his 15 year career in salary alone not counting endorsements.  I remember his TV ads for local Mercedes dealerships that were so engaging they made me want to go out and buy a Mercedes as soon as the game was over!  LOL!  

Sergio Romo.  Forever and always a Giant. He is very high on my list of favorite Giants players of all time.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/26/2023: Giants 9 A's 5

Alex Wood looked good while pitching into the 6'th inning and David Villar brought the toonder in his bat.  Key Lines: 

David Villar 2B- 1 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .156.  Villar dropped the hammer on A's SP Waldichuk in the second inning.  Waldichuk was having command issues out of the stretch and served one up to Villar who put a short, quick swing into and crushed it halfway up the cement terraces down the LF line.  Nice bat flip from Villar too.  The overall BA on the spring doesn't look great but he's been looking better since an extremely slow start and short injury stint.  We like those 3-run HR's!

Joc Pederson 1B- 1 for 1, HR(1), BB.  BA= .304.  Joc crushed his first spring homer to CF later in the game and looks ready to start the season.

Brett Auerbach RF- 4 for 5, 2B.  BA= .343.  Auerbach looked great last spring too but then struggled mightily in AA.  That was an aggressive placement so look for a breakout this year.  Utility players who can play catcher are incredibly valuable.

Brett Wisely CF- 2 for 4, SB(2).  BA= .209.  Nice little game for Wisely who looks like he could in a nice fill-in down the road if a need arises.

Casey Schmitt SS- 0 for 5, 3 K's, E(4).  BA= .340.  Young Casey shows he might need a tad more salt down on the farm but he should keep after the SS thing.

Joey Bart C- 0 for 3, BB, 3 K's.  BA= .214.  4 PA's, no contact, not good.  Joey may be punching his ticket to Sacramento.

Alex Wood LHP- 5.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 10 K's.  ERA= 3.60.  Not sure what Woody's exact role is going to be as one of 6 SP's....well actually 8 potential SP's.....on the roster, but he looks healthy and ready to start the season.  Giants probably need to be judicious with his innings this season.

Jake Junis RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K.  ERA= 3.38.  Junis looks perfect for the multi-inning/swingman role FZ mapped out for him in the offseason.  

Giants wrap up spring training and the Bay Bridge Series tomorrow evening with Ross Stripling RHP starting against James Kaprelian RHP(he's still around?).  Hopefully they get the game in before the rain sets in so Sergio Romo RHP can do his well-deserved retirement thing wearing a Giants uniform.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/25/2023: Giants 7 Mariners 4

The Giants closed out the Cactus League with a ragged win over the Mariners in Scottsdale.  Maybe it wasn't as ragged as it seemed to me because there was a bad connection on the streaming feed. First the audio was unintelligible then went to being a full pitch ahead of the video which kept cutting out to reconnect.  If finally shut down completely sometime around the 6'th inning.  Key Lines:

Lamonte Wade Jr 1B- 2 for 2, 2B.  BA= .278.  After a slow start to the spring, LMWJ finishes strong and maybe he's the guy at 1B after all?

Roberto Perez C-  2 for 3.  BA= .261.  It seems significant that Perez caught Webb in his final tuneup for Opening Day.  The Giants appear set on starting the season with 3 catchers on the roster, although Blake Sabol OF/C will function more as an OF while filling in for injuries to Mitch Haniger OF and Austin Slater OF.  At this point the depth chart appears to be 1.  Perez.  2.  Joey Bart C.  3.  Blake Sabol OF/C.  This makes me sad because I admit I am a fanboy for Joey Bart and really want to see him succeed with the Giants, but my rational side tells me that Perez is the smart play if the goal is to win this season, and I think it has to be.  Perez is perceived to be a glove-only C and there's nothing wrong with that, but he did hit 24 HR's in 2019 before suffering a long string of injuries.  Based on that and his spring performance he looks capable of being at least an average offensive catcher which paired with elite catcher defense is a really, really good thing.  Longer term the word among the beats is that the Giants are really high on Patrick Bailey C.  One more wrinkle in all this is FZ stated flatly on his broadcast appearance that Sabol has to be able to make a significant contribution behind the plate to stay on the roster all season.  Unless his bat craters in the regular season, I can't imaging the Giants giving him back to the Pirates without a fight so the tea leaves are pointing away from Joey Bart both long and short term despite him having a decent spring himself.  Sad but that's baseball.

Blake Sabol LF- 1 for 2.  BA= .349.  Sabol's hit was a squeeze bunt that he beat out and wow!  He sure seems to do a lot of things well!  He later came around to score on LMWJ's double.  In LF he made a couple of non-routine catches although it looked like he got slow starts on  both of them.  What in interesting player and story!

Logan Webb RHP- 5 IP, 8 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 4.50.  Webb threw some great looking pitches but generally was inconsistent and not sharp with lots of traffic on the bases.  No worries as I am sure he just wanted to get stretched out and not get hurt in his final spring tuneup.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.23.  Hjelle inherited 2 runners with no outs in the 6'th inning and allowed 1 to score when the first batter he faced got a hit.  He settled down after that and got 6 outs while facing 7 more batters striking out 4 of them.  Strong spring for Hjelle and I am pumped to see how he emerges this season.  Is he a sleeper ROY candidate?

Taylor Rogers LHP pitched a scoreless inning and also has an ERA of 1.23 on the spring.

Non-roster pitcher Spencer Bivens RHP allowed 3 runs in mop-up time in the 9'th inning.

Afternoon game tomorrow in Oakland for the Bay Bridge series with Alex Wood LHP getting the start.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/24/2023: Royals 3 Giants 0

Three runs of Giants starter Tristan Beck RHP were the only scores in this uninspiring game in Surprise, AZ.  Key Lines:

Tristan Beck RHP- 4 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 5 K"s.  ERA= 4.61.  Beck settled down after the first inning and ended up with strong K/BB numbers but the Giants offense never found traction.

The Giants had 8 hits in the game with Ford Proctor 3B getting the only XBH with a double.  He reached base 3 times. 

David Villar 1B went 2 for 5.  His overall BA of .143 is not great but he's been better since a something-like 0 for 20 start to the spring.

Cade McClure RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 2.70.  I have a feeling we'll be seeing more of McClure as the season progresses.

Melvin Adon RHP also pitched a scoreless frame.  He's had a great spring but needs to prove he can stay healthy and get AAA hitters out.

The Giants close out the Cactus League season tomorrow with a game against the Mariners in Scottsdale.  SP TBD.  Could be bullpen game with mostly minor leaguers.

Spring Training Game Wrap: 3/23/2023: Giants 6 White Sox 3; Guardians 12 Giants 0

 Sorry for the late post.  I and my family are all down with the COVID.  So far it looks like we'll all survive but I have to post between naps when the Advil peaks.  Meanwhile, the Giants prepare to wrap up their Cactus League Schedule and break camp ahead of the Bay Bridge series this weekend.

The Giants split a split-split squad doubleheader topping the White Sox in Glendale in the afternoon and then getting blown out by the Guardians in the nightcap in Scottsdale.  Key Lines:

Bryce Johnson CF- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .361.  Johnson may bave won himself a berth on the Opening Day roster, at least until Mitch Haniger OF and/or Austin Slater OF return from the IL.  What a terrific spring he's had!

Blake Sabol C- 1 for 3, 2B, SF.  BA= .359.  Another eye-opener spring.   It's also looking like Sabol will be rewarded for his tremendous spring performance with a trip to New York for Opening Day.

Brett Wisely 2B- 2 for 4, HR(3), BB.  BA= .194.  Wisely will probably start the season in AAA but may be needed as a MI later in the season.  I am pretty sure Brandon Crawford SS and Thairo Estrada 2B are not not going to play 162 games each.

Will Wilson SS- 2 for 3, HR(2).  BA= .320.  Wilson has also had a fine spring. As we have noted before, he seemed to be gaining traction last season before going down with a hamate fracture.  he seems fully healthy now and a strong start in Sacramento should give him a leg up on a future call up.  Hey!  Maybe the Giants will get something for the $12 M they paid Zack Cozart to go away after all!

Sean Manaea LHP- 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, GO/AO= 8/4.  ERA= 4.08.  This is about what we should expect from Manaea this season.  The BABIP gods will giveth and taketh.  The key for him is to limit the walks and keep the ball on the ground.

John Brebbia RHP- 1 IP, 0 H 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 5.06.  Hopefully Brebbia will have a bit lighter workload this season than last.

The Giants mustered just 2 hits against the Guardians and nobody pitched well except Cole Waites RHP who K'd 2 in a scoreless inning of work and Camilo Doval RHP who pitched a scoreless ninth.

As mentioned above, FZ stopped by the TV broadcast booth for the Guardians game and strongly implied that Bryce Johnson OF, Blake Sabol C/OF and Sean Hjelle RHP will be on the Opening Day roster and that is how it should be, 3 young players who went out and earned their spot.  He also said he is confident Casey Schmitt 3B can handle SS defensively and said he is almost ready. Needs to work on hitting quality breaking balls from RHP's.   I did not see or hear any comments about the catching situation.  

Alex Cobb RHP has a knee bruise (uh-oh, isn't that what LMWJ had most of last season?) and his expected start against the Yankees on April 1 may be pushed back.

The Giants finish the Cactus League with a bus trip to Surprise, AZ with a lineup that will be light on expected active roster guys and Tristan Beck RHP getting the start.  David Villar 1B, Blake Sabol DH and Joey Bart C are the only likely active roster guys making the trip.

Spring Training Update: Thoughts on the Bullpen Situation

 The bullpen is all but set and is looking much better than what passed for a bullpen for much of last season.  The biggest question to settle is how many pitchers the Giants will carry.  Most analysts expect them to split the 26-man roster evenly, but with 3 days off out of their first 15, they could opt for 12 for the first 15-18 days of the season.  Here's how it's looking:

Closer:  Camilo Doval RHP- Since adding a two-seam FB and after a couple of dominant appearances in the WBC, Doval is now one of the elite closers in MLB.  Giants game are an inning shorter when they have the lead.

One-inning Guys:  

Taylor Rogers LHP- Has closing experience and may get some Save-Ops if the opposing lineup is lefty-heavy, but he's mostly the setup/8'th inning guy.

John Brebbia RHP- Brebbia was overworked last season in too many roles.  He should benefit the most from the Giants pitching depth.

Scott Alexander LHP- Was terrific in a small sample late last season after the Giants signed him.  Even got a Save-Op or two.

1-2 Inning Guy:

Tyler Rogers RHP-  Rogers best role is eating 1-2 of the middle-late innings.  In 13 appearances of over 1 inning last season, Rogers allowed just 3 ER in 22 IP for a 1.23 ERA.  On the other hand, he is just 16 for 28 in Save-Ops over his career.

Bulk-Innings Guys:

Jake Junis RHP- Did well in the role last season.  Seemed to wear down after being pressed into the rotation due to injuries.

Sixth Starter ?- Not clear who this is going to be with all 6 veteran SP's performing well.  My guess is Alex Wood LHP who has experience coming out of the bullpen and may be at a point in his career where it's best to limit his innings.

60-day IL: 

Luke Jackson RHP- Will he give the Giants a midseason boost or become trade bait like Matthew Boyd last year?

8'th Man?:  Preseason favorite Thomas Szapucki LHP looks likely to start the season on the IL, possibly even the 60-day IL with an as-yet undiagnosed left arm ailment.  Latest news was he was set to visit a thoracic-outlet syndrome specialist.  Cole Waites RHP is starting to throw after an oblique strain.  The only other candidate already on the 40-man roster is Sean Hjelle RHP and he's had an outstanding spring.  This would create a fascinating situation with 3 potential bulk-innings guys in the Giants bullpen.  I love it!  Bring back the 2-3 inning Save!  Has options so could ride the Sacramento shuttle depending on how many relievers the Giants carry at a given time.

Non-roster Considerations:  

Melvin Adon RHP- Adon is attempting a comeback from a brutal series of injuries.  He's looked good throwing in triple digits but the Giants will probably want him to prove he can stay healthy and get AAA hitters out first.

Kade McClure RHP- McClure was acquired from the Pirates for Gregory Santos RHP.  Big RHP who has looked good in a handful of spring appearances.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/22/2023: Giants 4 Rangers 0

 The Giants pitching continued to shine while Blake Sabol LF and Bryce Johnson CF continued to press for roster spots in as the Giants won for the 7'th time in 9 games(with one tie).  Key Lines:

Brandon Crawford SS- 1 for 1, BB.  BA= .167.  Crawford looked frisky in his first game back after a knee injection.

Blake Sabol LF- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .361.  The Giants are going to find a way to keep him, right?

Bryce Johnson CF- 1 for 4, 2B, SB(12).  BA= .353.  Bryce Johnson continues to state his case for not just a roster spot but to be the starting CF!

Joey Bart C- 1 for 2, BB, SB(2).  BA= .300.  It's looking more and more like the Giants will start the season with 3 catchers on the active roster.  What happens when Mitch Haniger OF and Austin Slater come back?  Stay tuned!

Ross Stripling RHP- 4.2 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 5.00.  16 K's and 0 BB in 18 IP for Stripling on the spring.

Jake Junis RHP- 2.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 4.15.  Junis is expected to play a swingman role out of the bullpen.  He's looking like the right man for the job.

Taylor Rogers LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.42.  Giants pitching is locked and loaded for the season to start.  Just stay healthy, guys!  Yes, I am running out of things to say about it.

Tomorrow is another split squad game(what?) with Sean Manaea LHP getting on the bus to take on the White Sox and Anthony DeSclafani RHP stying home to battle the Guardians.

Spring Training Update: Thoughts on the Starting Pitching Situation

 The Giants starting pitcher situation is good.  In fact, maybe too good.  Well, I guess you can never have too much pitching so it's never too good.  If you look up spring training team stats, the Giants have the third worst Team ERA but there are two caveats to that:  1.  It's not accident that 5 of the 6 worst Team ERA's are from teams in the Cactus League.  2.  If you take out the performances of pitchers who never had a chance to make the Opening Day roster, the Team ERA would be a lot lower.  The Giants 6 veteran SP candidates, Logan Webb RHP, Alex Cobb RHP, Sean Manaea LHP, Ross Stripling RHP, Anthony DeSclafani RHP and Alex Wood LHP have a combined K/BB of 74/12 in 66.1 IP.  That's pretty fantastic and doesn't even count Sean Hjelle RHP who has an 18/2 K/BB in 15 IP.  1 of the 6 vets will end up starting the season joining Jake Junis RHP as"bulk innings" guys out of the bullpen although that may be a rotating role even if there are no injuries.  That would seem to leave Hjelle headed to AAA Sacramento as deep depth since he has an option and all, but there seems to be one bullpen slot open with nobody really stepping up and grabbing it.  Would the Giants carry 3 "bulk inings" guys in the pen?

Tristan Beck RHP has also had a strong spring and is probably next in the SP deph chart after Hjelle.  Kyle Harrison LHP made three disappointing appearances and looks like he needs to iron out the wrinkles in AAA.  Keaton Winn RHP who is wowing everybody with a mid-high 90's FB and a killer split and is on the 40-man roster may by ahead of Harrison on the depth chart.

Could the Giants trade from their surplus to upgrade their middle infield or CF depth?

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/21/2023: Giants 12 Dodgers 1

 The Giants brought their hitting shoes against Noah Syndergaard and Alex Wood was sharp in a runaway win over the Dodgers in Glendale, AZ.  Key Lines:

Lamonte Wade Jr 1B- 3 for 4, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .258.  LMWJ must have read what we said about him yesterday and decided do something about it.  Reached base 5 times as the leadoff hitter.  I hope he proves me wrong and keep this going. 

Thairo Estrada SS- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .355.  Once again, I think Estrada is on the brink of reaching a new level due to a convergence of physical maturity and experience.

J. D. Davis 3B- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .361.  David Villar started at 2B and went 0 for 4.  Could Villar get optioned out with Davis starting at 3B?

Bryce Johnson CF- 2 for 5.  BA= .367.  With YtY playing LF and going 0 for 5 and striking out 3 times to lower his spring BA to .048, is is possible that Johnson is winning the starting CF job?

Austin Wynns C- 1 for 2, HR(3).  BA= .188.  All three of Wynns' spring training hits have been HR's.  

Will Wilson PR/SS- 1 for 2, 2B.  BA= .300.  Wilson continues to have a solid spring and may be moving up the middle infield depth charts.

Alex Wood LHP- 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 3.72.  Dominant start for Alex Wood against his old team.  All 6 of the Giants veteran SP's have performed well this spring creating a good problem for Kap in choosing his starting 5. Who goes to the bullpen?  Ross Stripling?

Sean Hjelle RHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 4/0.  ERA= 1.80.  Hjelle has pitched well enough to win a rotation spot.  Would the Giants carry 3 bulk-innings guys in the bullpen?

Camilo Doval RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, GO/AO= 2/0.  ERA= 2.25.   Doval is ready to start the season after his work in the WBC.  He just needs to get his work in and not get hurt.

Noah Syndergaard RHP(Dodgers)- 4.1 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.61.  Thor's velocity has been down enough this spring to get people talking but he's had good results until today.

Ross Stripling RHP takes the ball tomorrow against Jonathan Gray RHP and the Rangers in Scottsdale.

Spring Training Update: Thoughts on the Outfield Situation

 The Giants made a couple of significant signings in the offseason to shore up an outfield that was decimated by the end of last season.  The two OF's they signed, Michael Conforto and Mitch Haniger are very good players when healthy but they both have significant injury histories.  So let's check in on how it's shaking out this spring.

Conforto and Haniger have both looked good a the plate but Haniger is nursing a grade 1 oblique strain and will likely start the season on the IL but that should be a short stay.  Of greater concern is CF where Mike Yastrzemski and Austin Slater seemed like a nice platoon team.   Slater has a cranky elbow and now a hammy strain and will also likely start the season on the IL.  

For his part, YtY seems healthy but has looked terrible at the plate with a slash line of .063/.250/.188.  One commenter who saw him in person noted the swings looked weak and the body language negative.  This might not be concerning if he was coming off a couple of solid seasons but YtY has not looked right since 2020 and we really have to start wondering if he is just done.

Veteran Steven Piscotty made some noise early in camp but is now also out with a strain somewhere.  His fielding metrics are not great and he is limited to corner OF.  

Heliot Ramos is the only other potential CF on the 40-man roster but clearly needs to get his feet on the ground in AAA.  Bryce Johnson has emerged as an intriguing option as the new rules appear to favor his slap and dash style.  The Rules Committee is meeting this week to discuss some tweaks so it remains to be seen if that apparent advantage will hold up.  In the meantime, Johnson is looking like a possibility to start the season on the active roster. As a switch-hitter, he is currently the only healthy OF in camp who can bat righthanded.

Blake Sabol was primarily on OF until last season and the Giants wanted him to focus solely on catching.  The injuries seem to have opened up an alternate path to the Opening Day roster as an OF.  The bat looks real but can he field either position?

Luis Matos looked good in camp but has not played above A+ ball and needs to find traction at the minor league level before considering him for a MLB job.

Spring Training Update 3/20/2023: Thoughts On The Infield Situation

While Catchers seems to be the most unsettled position on the Giants roster thus requiring its own separate post, plenty of questions remain about the infield.   We'll take them in order, 1B through SS.  

First Base:  

The FZ and Kap clearly want 1B to be a platoon with Lamonte Wade Jr on the strong side with Wilmer Flores and/or J. D. Davis on the short side.  The problem with that plan is while LaMonte was terrific for much of 2021, he kind of cratered at the end and then struggled all last season while battling a persistent injury to his knee.  Granted, spring training stats don't mean much but you would hope to see better than a .185/.179/.400.  That's right, his OBP is less than his BA and that comes with a 25% K rate.  Seeing Joc Pederson get reps at 1B suggests that FZ and Kap are also getting a bit nervous about LMWJ taking up 2/3's of the 1B PAs.  

Meanwhile, J. D. Davis put up solid numbers after his trade to the Giants last season and has continued to do so this spring.  I am fairly confident that if they made him the full time 1B and gave him 600 PA's over the season, Davis would give you 30+ HR's with solid BA/OBP numbers.  That's what I would do if it were up to me.  

Second Base:

This is Thairo Estrada's position and as I said in a recent post, I think he is poised, maybe not for a breakout, but for another level of production due to a convergence of physical maturity and experience at age 27.  The problem for Thairo is he is also the backup SS and Crawford's health is anything but a given and he could very well start the season on the IL.  It's also not a given that the Giants will carry a true reserve MI who can play both SS and 2B.  Of the two possibilities, Brett Wisely seems to have the inside track over Isan Diaz despite Diaz putting up better offensive numbers this spring.

Third Base:

This is David Villar's to lose.  He got off to a very slow start then just as he seemed to be heating up, suffered a minor injury.  He hit a double in his first game back.  Hopefully he ramps up nicely to start the season.  Casey Schmitt is making a LOT of noise in camp both offensively and defensively and looks like the Giants 3B of the future.  Will Villar be able to move to another position?  Will he hit well enough to make that worthwhile?  Could he become trade bait?  Lots to watch here. 

Shortstop:

Brandon Crawford is the undisputed SS unless he is injured which he is at this time.  What's the back up plan?  Can Thairo Estrada handle full time SS?  Can he play 162 games?  Will the Giants carry a backup who can play both MI spots like Brett Wisely?  Can Casey Schmitt play the position at the MLB level?  Again, lots going on here.

.....and where in all this does Wilmer Flores fit in?

Spring Training Update 3/20/2023: Thoughts on the Catcher Situation.

 Let's take advantage of a spring training day off to see if we can sort out the catcher situation.  

Whew!  O boy!  What a mess!  Just before camp opened, the Giants threw down a challenge to presumptive first stringer Joey Bart by bringing in Roberto Perez on a minor league deal with a MLB salary guarantee if he makes the team.  You know where those usually end up.  Yep, with the veteran making the roster and the kid with options going down.  So what's happened since?  

Joey Bart has done nothing at the plate to lose the position.  OPS .906.  4 K's and 2 BB's in 20 PA's, granted a small sample size.  He's also picked off a couple of runners and has generally acted the part of the leader and incumbent catcher.  

Roberto Perez has drawn raves for that intangible tangible skill of framing pitches, an unfortunate and tiresome statistic we are probably stuck with until we get a true electronic strike zone.  Meanwhile he's hitting just .200/.250/.400 in 16 PA's.  

The wild card in all of this is Blake Sabol the Rule 5 Draft pick the Giants traded for.  He's torn up the Cactus League on offense with an OPS of 1.207 but shown his inexperience behind the plate.  You can bet the Giants do not want to send him back to the Pirates without seeing his his success at the plate can translate to the regular season so recently he's gotten some innings in the OF with mixed results.   Can they carry him as a utility/third string catcher?  Given the Giants love of platoons and Sabol's lefty bat he will likely get plenty of work if he is even adequate defensively behind the dish.

At this point, Austin Wynns looks like strictly deep depth and headed for AAA Sacramento.

Outlook:  Injuries in the OF may open a path for the Giants to keep Bart, Perez and Sabol, but that will hopefully be a temporary situation and they will have some tough decisions to make 1-2 weeks into the season if not before.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/19/2023: Giants 9 Angels 6

 The Giants brought their hitting shoes in a home game against the Angels while Logan Webb RHP got his work in prepping for Opening Day.  Key Lines:

Thairo Estrada SS- 3 for 5, 2 2B, SB(2).  BA= .296.  This is Thairo's age 27 season.  I know there are statistical reasons to doubt we'll see significant improvement going forward, I feel like he's at a harmonic convergence of peak physical tools and MLB level game experience to take another step forward.  The next 3-4 seasons should be the peak of his career.   Is a 20/20 season too much to hope for? 

J. D. Davis DH- 3 for 4, 2B, SB(1).  BA= .333.  I sure hope FZ and Kap are at least considering the possibility of Davis playing 1B full time.  Dude can hit!

Casey Schmitt 3B- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .441.  Schmitt also made a sparkling defensive play on a dribbler down the line to take an infield hit away from an Angels batter.  Schmitt is looking more and more like the real deal.

Blake Sabol C- 0 for 3, Sac, SB(2).  BA= .344.  Sabol's bat seems to have cooled a bit but he contributes in many ways.  The SB was a steal of home to score a run.  He was charged with a catcher interference and whiffed on a pitch from Tyler Rogers that was charged as a WP to Rogers.

Will Wilson PR/2B- 1 for 2, HR(1).  BA= .278.  Wilson is having a strong spring.  Very unlikely to make the team but if he carries it over to AAA, he could be back if a need arises.

Logan Webb RHP- 4.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 6 K's, GO/AO= 5/2.  ERA= 5.54.  Peripherals look good.  I am sure the last thing Webb wants to do at this stage of the spring is bear down in a high stress inning and hurt himself.  Just needs to get his work in and stay healthy.

Kade McClure RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(1).  ERA= 3.38.  Don't sleep on McClure.  There is a solid chance he makes an impact for the Giants this season.

John Brebbia RHP and Tyler Rogers RHP pitched a scoreless frame each.

Tomorrow is an off day.  Alex Wood LHP takes the mound against the Dodgers on Tuesday afternoon.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/18/2023: Giants 5 Cubs 1

 Bryce Johnson OF kept the pedal to the metal in his quest for a roster spot and the Giants pitchers continued to shine in a win over the Cubs.  Key Lines:

Bryce Johnson CF- 2 for 3, 2B, 2 SB((11).  BA= .360.  The Giants appear to be testing the impact of the new rules and bases on basestealing and Bryce Johnson is making a case that he's the guy to make that strategy work.  He led off the bottom of the third inning with a ground ball single to CF.  He followed that with a SB and scored from 2B when Eric Hosmer made a throwing error on a Will Wilson 2B sacrifice bunt.  He later doubled to drive in David Villar 3B who doubled ahead of him, then stole 3B and came home on Lamonte Wade Jr RF double.  With Mitch Haniger OF and Austin Slater OF on track to start the season, the Giants don't have any RH batting OF's from the 40-man roster left in camp. With Steven Piscotty also injured it would seem Johnson, who is a switch-hitter, could have a path to break camp with the team.

David Villar 3B- 1 for 2, 2B.  BA= .125.  Villar got off to a slow start to the spring then tweaked a hip flexor just as he seemed to be heating up.  Hopefully he can pick up where he left off and ramp up to start the season.

Lamonte Wade Jr RF- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .185.  Wade Jr. has also had a quiet spring. He drove in a pair of runs with a double in this one.

Anthony DeSclafani RHP- 3.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  DeSclafani has been sharp all spring.  Great to see him apparently healthy.  A bounceback year for him would be huge for the Giants fortunes.

Sean Manaea LHP- 3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 5.40.  Manaea gave up a run on a double and single in his third inning of work but was mostly sharp.

Taylor Rogers LHP pitched a scoreless 9'th inning.

The Giants stole a total of 6 bases in this game but had 3 CS.

Logan Webb RHP gets the start against the Angels tomorrow in Scottsdale. 

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/17/2023: A's 7 Giants 2

Ross Stripling got BABIP'd and the Giants offense couldn't find traction in a desultory mid-March spring training game.  Key Lines:

Blake Sabol DH- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .407.  Sabol did not figure in the scoring but continues to state his case for a roster spot which seems more likely after the unsurprising announcement that the Giants are going to play the long game with Mitch Haniger and put him on the IL to start the season and with Steven Piscotty and Austin Slater also nursing injuries.

Bryce Johnson LF- 1 for 3, 2 SB(9).  BA= .318.  Johnson parlayed the SB's into both of the Giants runs.  On both SB's he was able to advance to 3B on throwing errors.  Per Pavs, the Giants believe the running game will play a more important role this year with the new rules and Johnson's ability to create runs on the basepaths is starting to get noticed.  Again, the injuries are creating a plausible scenario for him to see if his spring success can carry over into the season.

Mike Yastrzemski CF- 0 for 3.  BA= .067.   What's going on with YtY?  The play list says the second batter of the game for the A's doubled on a flyball to centerfielder Mike Yastrzemski.  I couldn't find a video of it but what's that all about?  Is YtY done?  He hasn't been particularly good at the plate for 2 full seasons now.

Ross Stripling RHP- 5 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 3 K, GO/AO= 7/2.  ERA= 6.75.  12 of the 22 batters Stripling faced hit groundballs(55%) and 5 of those went for hits.  He got his 5 innings of work in and didn't walk anyone.  That mix should produce more good games than bad over the course of the season.

Scott Alexander LHP and Tyler Rogers RHP worked a scoreless inning each.

Injury Updates: 

Brandon Crawford SS is set to re-start baseball activities over the weekend.

David Villar 3B is expected to start tomorrow's game against the Cubs.

Austin Slater OF has calf and hamstring tightness and left yesterday's game with calf cramping.  He is scheduled for an MRI.  That doesn't sound promising for Opening Day.

It looks like Mitch Haniger OF won't be starting baseball activities for at least another week which makes it highly unlikely he will be ready to start the season on Opening Day.

Anthony DeSclafani RHP will try to stretch it out tomorrow afternoon agains the Cubs in Scottsdale.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/16/2023: Giants 0 Mariners 0

Alex Cobb RHP and Sean Hjelle RHP shut down the Mariners but the Giants lineup couldn't find traction in a game that ended in a scoreless tie.  Key Lines:

Alex Cobb RHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's, GO/AO= 7/1.  ERA= 4.15.  Dominant 5 IP for the Giants #2 SP.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 5/1.  ERA= 1.50.  Am I wrong to think Sean Hjelle should be the Giants #3 SP? 

Per SFGProspects on Twitter, Gerelmi Maldonado RHP hit 98 MPH with 2 K's in 1.2 IP in a A+ spring training game against the Cubs.

Sergio Romo RHP signed a contract with the Giants with the plan to appear in an spring training game and retire wearing a Giants uniform......and well.....I feel the tears welling up as I write this.  What a great story and what a fabulous career!

Ross Stripling RHP starts for the Giants tomorrow on the road against the A's.

Scouting the 2023 Draft: Brock Wilken

 Brock Wilken 3B.  DOB:  6/17/2002.  B-R, T-R.  6'4", 225 lbs.  

2022(Wake Forest):  .272/.362/.602, 23 HR, 34 BB, 71 K, 293 PA.

2022(Cape Cod League):  .229/.368/.413, 5 HR, 21 BB, 35 K, 133 PA.

2023(Wake Forest):  .364/.463/.939, 12 HR, 14 BB, 18 K, 82 PA.

Tall, big-boned but lean, Wilken has tremendous power with a selective approach at the plate which yields 3-true-outcomes stat lines.  Strong throwing arm will allow him to stick at 3B in the pros.  Ceiling is 40+ HR's but the risk is in the K's and whether he can keep his BA above the Mendoza Line. If he's still on the board at #16 I can see an FZ-led organization drafting him.

Time to shake up DrB's 2023 Draft Board:

1.  Dylan Crews OF(College)

2.  Paul Skenes RHP(College)

2.  Chase Dollander RHP(College)

3.  Wyatt Langford OF(College)

4.  Max Clark OF(HS)

5.  Jacob Gonzalez SS(College)

6.  Jacob Wilson SS(College)

7.  Arjun Nimmala SS(HS)

8.  Aiden Miller 3B(HS)

9.  Walker Jenkins OF(HS)

10. Tommy Troy SS(College)

11. Kyle Teel C(College)

12. Brock Wilken 3B(College)

13. Brayden Taylor 3B(College)

14. Hursten Waldrep RHP(College)

15. Rhett Lowder RHP(College)

16. Will Sanders RHP(College)

17. Noble Meyer RHP(HS)

18. Thomas White LHP(HS)

19. Charlee Soto RHP(HS)

20. Matt Shaw SS(College)

21. Enrique Bradfield OF(College)

22. Yohandy Morales 3B(College)

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/14/2023: Giants 7 D'Backs 6

 Austin Slater DH drove in 4 runs and J. D. Davis 3B drove in 3 to help the Giants outscore the D'Backs at Talking Stick.  Key LInes:

Mike Yastrzemski CF- 0 for 1, 2 BB.  BA= .083.  Nice to see a couple of walks from the leadoff spot in the lineup but gotta be concerned about YtY's offense going into the regular season.

Austin Slater DH- 1 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .143.  Slater hit a bases-loaded double off the "green monster" in CF to drive in 3 and then drew a bases-loaded walk for the game-winning RBI.

J.D. Davis 3B- 1 for 2, HR(1).  BA= .261.  Davis manned the hot corner today.  The 3-run HR was a monster bomb to oppo field.

Damon Dues LF- 1 for 1, 2B, BB.  BA= .500.  

Wade Meckler LF/CF- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .417.

Brett Wisely SS- 1 for 4, 3B.  BA= .211.  Isan Diaz was optioned out while Wisely stays which probably tells us something about the Giants middle infield depth chart.  Is Wisely first in line to play SS if Crawford isn't ready?

Logan Webb RHP- 3.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, GO/AO= 6/1.  ERA= 4.15.  Webb has been officially named Opening Day starter against the Yanks in NY.

Melvin Adon RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's, Save(2).  ERA= 3.60.  Is Adon back in the prospect picture after a long string of injuries?  He has to prove he can stay healthy and command his pitches consistently.

Scott Alexander LHP and John Brebbia RHP recorded a scoreless frame each.

Brandon Crawford SS received a cortisone shot to the knee.  

Luis Gonzalez OF underwent surgery for a herniated disk in his back.  May be able to play again mid-late season.

Alex Wood LHP faces the White Sox and Lucas Giolito RHP in the home half of a split-squad game tomorrow.  Sean Hjelle RHP goes against Madison Bumgarner LHP and the D'Backs in Talking Stick.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/13/2023: Giants 11 Padres 9

 The Giants scored early and often and held on to outscore the Padres in Peoria, but the injuries keep piling up with Brandon Crawford SS the latest to be shut down.  Key Lines:

Blake Sabol LF- 1 for 2, BB SF.  BA= .526.  Injuries to Mitch Haniger OF and Austin Slater OF open the door for Sabol to make the team as a utility player rather than strictly as a catcher.  Seems like the Giants would do almost anything to avoid giving him back the Pirates before getting a look at him in the regular season.

Thairo Estrada SS- 1 for 2, HR(1).  BA= .222.  Thairo is suddenly the starting SS.  He follows up yesterday's double and triple with a HR today.

Michael Conforto RF- 2 for 4, HR(4).  BA= .304.  Conforto is looking like the pre-2021 version and that's a very good thing.

Casey Schmitt 3B- 2 for 4, 3B, HR(2).  BA= .462.  Villar is DTD with a mild hip flexor strain.  If that carries past Opening Day, does that open a door for Schmitt?  Bonus is Schmitt seems to be able to play SS too.

Bryce Johnson CF- 1 for 2, 2 BB, 4 SB's(7).  BA= .333.  The new rules may have opened a path for Bryce Johnson to have a significant MLB career.  Players who can give you plus D, get on base and steal bases at this clip suddenly have a whole lot of value.

Austin Wynns  C- 1 for 2, HR(2), BB.  BA= .143.  Wynns is the forgotten man in the catcher competition but a nice game here.  He finished strong for the Giants last season.

Lamonte Wade Jr DH drove in a pair of runs with a single and SF.

Patrick Bailey C and Isan Diaz 2B had a double each.

Sean Manaea LHP- 3.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, GO/AO= 3/1.  ERA= 6.75.  The two run rally for the Padres came after two outs in the second inning:  Walk, flyball double to LF, groundball single to drive in 2.  Without an video available we have to wonder about Blake Sabol in LF. Would Haniger or Conforto have caught it?

Tyler Rogers RHP gave up 2 runs in 0.2 IP and Kyle Harrison LHP gave up a run in 1 IP.

As mentioned, Brandon Crawford is shut down with left knee soreness. This is the same knee that gave him problems most of last season so this is very disappointing, especially since the Giants have no clear back up plan for SS.

Logan Webb RHP makes the start tomorrow with Tommy Henry LHP going for the D'Backs at Talking Stick.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/12/2023: Giants 4 A's 3

 Thairo Estrada and Wilmer Flores were the hitting stars of this game but the Giants may have lost  Ronald Guzman LHP, one of the more exciting players in camp, to an injury.  Key Lines:

Austin Slater DH- 0 for 3, BB.  Slater finally makes his first spring appearance in a game but as DH.  Per Kap, he still needs to go through a throwing progression to play OF.  I would think he starts the season on the IL if he can't do more than DH.

Thairo Estrada 2B- 2 for 3, 2B, 3B, SB(1).  BA= .188.  This is about the right time for Estrada's bat to start heating up.

Wilmer Flores 3B- 2 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .167.  Ditto Thairo Estrada.

Ross Stripling RHP- 3.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 6.48.  Stripling gave up a couple of rockets in the 2'nd inning but would have been out of it were it not for a 2-out bloop single.  The peripherals were fantastic.

Tristan Beck RHP- 2.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, GO/AO= 4/0.  ERA= 3.72. Beck continues to impress with a heavy FB and decent secondary stuff. 

Ronald Guzman LHP- 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 8.10.  Guzman oncorked a sailer and walked of mound hanging his left arm and appeared to be in pain.  Reports say he felt the pain in his forearm.  Not good!  Guzman had been impressing with a high 90's FB and command of secondary stuff while trying to establish himself as a 2-way player.  That plan may be on hold for awhile now. Too bad.

The Giants get on the bus to take on the Padres tomorrow in Peoria with Sean Manaea LHP facing Julio Teheran RHP.

Jesus Alou RIP

Here is something I posted on my Facebook page in memory of Jesus Alou.

Jesus Alou, a player I remember well from the San Francisco Giants teams of the 1960's died yesterday at the age of 80. He was the youngest of three brothers from the Dominican Republic to play major league baseball. They all started their careers with the San Francisco Giants, one of the first MLB teams to scout and sign players from Latin America. Per the Society of American Baseball Research(SABR), Jesus was just the 13'th player from the Dominican Republic to play major league baseball but only the third from his family. At one point during his rookie season in 1963, he and his brothers, Felipe and Mateo(Matty) became the only trio of brothers to play in the same outfield at the same time in MLB history.

By the time I started listening to games on the radio in 1966, Felipe had been traded to the Milwaukee Braves where he performed at an All-Star level and Matty was with the Pirates where the manager, Harry "The Hat" Walker, got him to change his hitting approach which produced a string of National League batting championships(highest batting average). Jesus was still with the Giants who thought he had the physical tools to be the best of the three. The name sounded exotic to a 10 year old kid living up in the mountains of Napa County listening to Russ Hodges pronounce it on the radio broadcast, HaySOOSaloo! It sounded like one word.

Alas, Jesus would never achieve the stardom of his older brothers. He had tremendous eye-hand coordination and could hit almost any pitch but that was his big limitation. He swung at everything and almost never took a walk. Swinging at bad pitches limited his ability to drive them for home runs so by today's metrics which value on-base percentage and slugging percentage over batting average, he was a terrible hitter. He also was eventually traded and ended up winning a couple of World Series Championships across the bay as a part time player with the Oakland A's.

RIP Jesus Alou

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/11/2023: Dodgers 13 Giants 8

 OK, let's all take a deep breath and say together:  Spring Training games don't count and spring stats don't matter.  Another deep breath and repeat.....Hey!  Blake Sabol and Casey Schmitt want spring stats to count....for something!  Blake Sabol and Casey Schmitt starrred in a dismal losing game for the Giants in Scottsdale.  Key Lines:

Blake Sabol DH- 3 for 3, HR(3), 2 BB, SB(1).  BA= .529.  Oh my!  Not only did Sabol hit his third HR of the spring, but he also bunted for a base hit then stole 2B.  Not quite a cycle or 5 for 5, but he reached base all 5 PA's which might actually be a better line in the long run.  Giants gotta find a place on the roster for him, right?  I mean if you take a peek at his AA and AAA numbers from last season what we are seeing this spring is no fluke and the Pirates had to be out of their minds to not protect him.  Postgame, Kap said he'll get some reps in the OF and possibly even at 1B.

Casey Schmitt SS- 3 for 4.  BA= .455.  Schmitt minor league numbers from last season also tend to confirm the realness of what we're seeing from him offensively this spring.  He started at SS for the first time in the spring but only handled one chance, a pop fly he caught for a putout.  

Isan Diaz 2B- 1 for 3, HR(2).  BA= .333.  Diaz and Brett Wisely would seem to be in competition for the same role on the roster but it's not clear that role even exists.

J. D. Davis 1B- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .296.  Davis is quietly having a solid spring.  BTW, Lamonte Wade Jr is batting .143.

Will Wilson 2B/SS- 1 for 2, 2B.  BA= .308.  Wilson is also quietly having a solid spring.  Barring more injuries, he is almost certain to start the season in AAA but could be a sleeper to play an important role this season.

Alex Cobb RHP= 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 6.75.  Cobb breezed through 3 scoreless innings against the Dodgers scrubs but Miguel Vargas led off the 4'th inning with a line drive off Cobb's knee which forced him out of the game.  Fortunately X-rays were negative and the damage is limited to a bruise which he'll hopefully shake off in time for his next start.

Melvin Adon RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.00.  Adon reportedly touched triple digits in his inning of work.

Forever Giant Steven Duggar played RF and batted cleanup in this game.  He went 2 for 4 with a double and HR.  Please don't tell me Duggar is going to turn into a star with the Hated Ones!

David Villar 3B was a late scratch today with left hip tightness.  He is listed as DTD.  Ford Proctor took his place at 3B and had two hits with a double.

New daddy Ross Stripling RHP takes the mound tomorrow afternoon against the A's in Scottsdale.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/10/2023: Rockies 8 Giants 1

 Luis Matos OF had a big day at the plate but the rest of the game was quite forgettable.  

Matos homered in his second AB of the game in the 5'th inning.  He later smoked one to CF that was caught by Michael Tucker then singled to RF in the 9'th.  Per Alex P on NBC Sports Bay Area Matos was hampered by a quad strain most of last season but feels healthy this spring.  He's put on some muscle weight and impressing the coaches in camp.

Alex Wood LHP and Jake Junis RHP allowed 4 ER in 2 IP each.  Maybe we are entering the proverbial "dead arm" phase of spring training?  

Joey Bart C had a hit in 2 AB's and picked a runner of 1B.  I think that is at least the second runner he's picked off this spring.  He's still hitting .300 and would seem to still be in the thick of battle for the starting C job.  Blake Sabol C started the game and drew a walk in 2 PA's and drew a catcher interference call.  The bat is exciting but can Sabol handle the defensive duties at C?

Tyler Rogers RHP got 2 GO's in a scoreless frame to keep his spring ERA at 0.00.

The Dodgers come to Scottsdale tomorrow afternoon with Alex Cobb getting the start.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/9/2023: Giants 5 Brewers 2

Michael Conforto stayed hot and the Giants pitching continued to shine in their return to Cactus League action.  Key Lines:

Michael Conforto RF- 1 for 2, HR(3), SF.  BA= .313.  Conforto not only returned to the field but played RF which is generally thought to require more arm strength than LF.  I did read the initial plan is for him to throw only to the cutoff man while continuing to build arm strength.  There are no questions with the bat as he answered Christian Yelich's leadoff HR with a leadoff HR of his own in the first inning.  He drove in a second run with a SF.

Roberto Perez DH- 1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .200.  Interesting choice for DH as Perez is generally a light hitting C.  He got a bit of a later start than the other catcher candidates so maybe just needs more PA's?  BTW, Joey Bart C worked an intrasquad scrimmage catching Logan Webb RHP who threw 50 pitches.

Bryce Johnson CF- 1 for 2, 2 SB(3).  BA= .333.  Again, Johnson is having a nice little spring.  Gotta think there is going to be a need for his skills in CF before the season is over.

Stephen Piscotty LF- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .389.  Piscotty continues to rake.  Gotta think the only path to a roster spot for him is if Austin Slater OF starts the season on the IL but Slater reportedly is starting a throwing program and plans to be ready by Opening Day.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 3 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 5/0.  ERA= 2.25.  Hjelle gave up a leadoff HR to Christian Yelich then settled down.  Those are dominant peripherals.  Hjelle reportedly put on 15 lbs over the winter and is stronger and throwing harder.  Despite his unique height, he's always had great control/command all the way back to college ball.  He'll most likely get optioned in a numbers game but he sure is stating a case for himself to grab at least a swingman role.  Could FZ leverage his pitching surplus into a favorable trade?

Ronald Guzman LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 9.00.  Guzman said he was too amped up in his first pitching appearances.  He was calm today and opened some eyes, not only with velocity that hit 98 MPH but with command of his offspeed stuff.  With Thomas Szapucki LHP out with elbow soreness, there could be a roster opening for Guzman.

Alex Wood LHP makes the start tomorrow in a roadie against the Rockies who are just down the road in Scottsdale.

Nothing against Carlos Rodon LHP who pitched his heart out for the Giants last season, but FZ has an opportunity to say "I told you so" as the Yankees announced that Rodon has a forearm strain and will be shut down for 7-10 days and will likely start the season on the IL.

Spring Training Game Wrap: Giants 5 Team USA 1

The Giants played their best game of the spring by a large margin with Mitch Haniger and David Villar starring on the hitting side and the Giants pitchers shutting down a packed lineup of USA All-Stars.  Key Lines:

Mitch Haniger LF- 2 for 3, 2 2B.  After Lamonte Wade Jr RF led off the Giants half of the first inning with a booming single off the RF wall, Haniger drove one off the same wall for a double to set up two runs for the Giants on a FC groundout by Joc Pederson 1B and a SF by Wilmer Flores DH.

David Villar 3B- 2 for 3, HR.  Villar singled hard up the middle in his second AB of the evening for his first hit of the spring then drove one onto the RF berm for his first spring HR(Stats from this game don't officially count for Cactus League).  The HR came off a pretty good RHP in Kendall Graveman.

Bryce Johnson CF- 2 for 2, 2B, SB.  Johnson is having himself a nice little spring.  As thin as the Giants are for guys who can field the CF position, he could be playing himself into a MLB gig.

Anthony DeSclafani RHP- 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K.  After starting the game walk to Mookie Betts RF and HBP to Mike Trout CF, DeSclafani calmly went fly out, K and fly out to Kyle Schwarber DH, Paul Goldschmidt 1B and Nolan Arenado 3B.  He then breezed through the next 2 innings and is looking like the guy we saw in the first half of 2021.

Sean Manaea LHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  No shame in giving up a solo HR to Goldy.  Manaea was otherwise sharp and looks ready for a bounceback season.

Scott Alexander LHP, John Brebbia RHP and Mauricio Llovera RHP pitched single scoreless innings each with Alexander striking out the side.

While the Giants spring record is not impressive, most of the runs scored against them have come off pitchers who are not expected to make the team.  The Giants SP's in particular have dominated so far....all 8 of them!

Sean Hjelle RHP who has had a terrific spring so far gets the start today against the Brewers in Scottsdale.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/7/2023: Reds 7 Giants 3

 Kyle Harrison LHP got knocked around in his first try at a starter role in spring training and the Giants couldn't catch up.

Young Kyle gave up 5 ER in 1.2 IP.  He did not finish the first inning due to pitch count limit but came back out for the 2'nd(as allowed by spring training rules) to pitch a complete inning.  No worries.  From what I can recall, it seems like Matt Cain and Bummy had their spring struggles when they were still prospects too.

Michael Conforto DH- 1 for 3, HR(2).  BA= .286.  Giants announced Conforto is ready to start playing in the field.

Isan Diaz 2B- 2 for 3, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .333.  Diaz was only 2 for 9 before this game.  Things can turn around quickly in spring training.

Casey Schmitt 3B- 2 for 3, 3B.  BA= .467.  Is any Giant having a better spring than Casey Schmitt?  He's absolutely raked at every level and is doing it in spring training to boot.  Is his time sooner than we think?

Roberto Perez C- 1 for 3.  BA= .143.  Perez has now started two games in a row at C.  It that a tea leaf?

Tristan Beck RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 5.14.   Beck got knocked around in his last appearance, a start.  He was dominant in relief here but he was facing scrubs in the last two innings.

Anthony DeSclafani RHP gets his second spring start against Team USA tomorrow evening.

Spring Training Game Wrap: Royals 5 Giants 1

 One bad inning by Ross Stripling RHP was way too much for a weak-hitting Giants lineup to overcome.

Stripling took over after three strong innings from Alex Cobb RHP and gave up 3 runs including 2 line drives and a HR.  He seemed to get stronger over his 3 innings of work allowing another run in the 5'th inning and finished with a scoreless 6'th.

Alex Cobb RHP- 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 6 K's. ERA = 9.00.  Cobb let the catcher call the pitches with much better results than his first start in which he tried to call his own pitches and found it difficult with the strict time limit on the pitch clock.

Jake Junis RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.25.  Giants are looking for Junis to be a multi-inning reliever/spot starter a role that he seemed to thrive in last season before seeming to wear down after being pressed into a full time starting role by injuries to other SP's. 

Camilo Doval RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.00.  Doval seems to be in mid-season form.  Please just stay healthy!

Continued futility at the plate for multiple projected Giants starting position players is starting to become a bit worrisome, although it's admittedly still crazy early in spring training.  Lamonte Wade Jr, Thairo Estrada, Wilmer Flores, Brandon Crawford and YtY went a combined 1 for 13 in today's game and are a combined 5 for 42(.119) on the spring.  Again, wouldn't be too concerning at this point but all of these guys have something to prove coming into the season.

Forever Giant Matt Duffy started at 3B for the Royals and went 3 for 3, 2B to help sink his old team.

The Giants go on the road tomorrow to play the Reds with the SP TBD.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/4/2023: D'Backs 9 Giants 5; Brewers 14 Giants 2

The Giants got smacked around in both games of split-squad doubleheader.  On the brighter side, there were encouraging individual performances and most of the pummeling was at the expense of pitchers who are neither projected to make the team nor are considered top prospects.

Alex Wood LHP and Logan Webb RHP were the starters and looked sharp:

Wood- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 Ks.  

Webb- 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's, GO/AO= 5/0. 

Notable offensive performers:

Michael Conforto DH- 2 for 2, HR(1), BB.  BA= .273.

Mitch Haniger RF- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .300.

Steven Piscotty LF- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= .500.

Grant McCray CF- 1 for 3, SB(1).  BA= .300.

Bryce Johnson CF- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .300.

Alex Cobb will try to figure out pitch clock management in his second spring start against the Royals in Scottsdale this afternoon.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/3/2023: Giants 3 Rockies 2; Rangers 11 Giants 7

 Anthony DeSclafani pitched 2 shutout innings in his first spring appearance and the scrubs continue to outplay the regulars in the field.  

Anthony DeSclafani RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  FB was reportedly sitting at 94 MPH.

Vaun Brown RF- 1 for 2, HR(1).  BA= .333.  HR as oppo field shot to get the Giants their first run in bottom of the first inning in the Scottsdale game.

Sean Hjelle RHP- 3 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 3/0.  ERA= 1.80.  Hjelle seems to be the forgotten prospect(even I forgot to put him in my Top 50) but keeps putting up solid outings.

The Rogers Bros pitched a scoreless inning each with Tyler getting 3 GB outs.

Blake Sabol C- 1 for 2, 2B.  BA= .556.  Sabol is 5 for 9 on the spring and all 5 hits have been XBH's.  3 doubles and 2 HR's.  

Steven Piscotty RF- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= .444.  Seems like if Austin Slater's elbow doesn't come around, Piscotty might have the inside track at the roster spot.  On the other hand, Piscotty's defensive metrics are awful and he does not seem to be an option for CF.  Conforto and Haniger have both played CF in small samples but with poor defensive metrics.

Sean Manaea LHP- 2.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 7.71.  There might be some bad BAPIP luck in his line.  Two of the runners who scored reached base on groundball hits.  The third run scored on a WP by an inherited runner off Jonathan Bermudez LHP.

5 of the runs in the Rangers game were given up by Daniel Tillo LHP in 0.1 IP.

There was an Ismael Munguia sighting in the home game.  He went 2 for 2 with a HR.  The HR came in Munguia's first AB since 2021 and ended a 14-pitch AB.

Alex Wood LHP makes his first spring start tomorrow afternoon against the D'Backs in Scottsdale.

Scouting the 2023 Draft: Kyle Teel

 Kyle Teel C.  DOB:  2/15/2002.  B-L, T-R.  6'1", 190 lbs.

2021(College-Virginia):  .335/.416/.526, 9 HR, 5 SB, 24 BB, 37 K, 238 PA.

2021(Northwoods League);  .277/.436/.426, HR, 2 SB, 10 BB, 8 K, 62 PA.

2022(College- Virginia):  .276/.402, 439, 6 HR, 3 SB, 41 BB, 36 K, 277 PA.

2022(Cape Cod League):  .125/.276/.167, 4 BB, 8 K, 29 PA.

2023(College- Virginia):  .482/.588/.778, 2 HR, SB, 6 BB, 1 K, 34 PA.

Athletic enough to play multiple positions with a plus arm but projects to stay at catcher.  Plus contact and plate discipline.  Worked on getting stronger this offseason and off to a hot start to the college season.  Whether his power will emerge is the biggest question mark, but a plus defensive catcher with that kind of contact and plate discipline is a valuable asset, especially if he hits lefty.  The ultimate Giantsy pick for #16.

DrB's Updated 2023 Draft Board:

1.  Dylan Crews OF(College)

2.  Chase Dollander RHP(College)

3.  Wyatt Langford OF(College)

4.  Max Clark OF(HS)

5.  Jacob Gonzalez SS(College)

6.  Jacob Wilson SS(College)

7.  Paul Skenes RHP(College)

8.  Arjun Nimmala SS(HS)

9.  Aiden Miller 3B(HS)

10.  Hursten Waldrep RHP(College)

11.  Rhett Lowder RHP(College)

12.  Will Sanders RHP(College)

13.  Noble Meyer RHP(HS)

14.  Thomas White LHP(HS)

15.  Charlee Soto RHP(HS)

16.  Tommy Troy SS(College)

17.  Kyle Teel C(College)

18.  Matt Shaw SS(College)

19.  Walker Jenkins OF(HS)

20.  Brayden Taylor 3B(College)

21.  Enrique Bradfield OF(College)

22.  Yohandy Morales 3B(College)

Spring Training Game 2023: Guardians 4 Giants 3

 An OF error by Grant McCray in the 8'th inning led to an unearned winning run for the Guardians in Goodyear, AZ.  Key Lines:

J. D. Davis 1B- 2 for 2.  BA= .333.  It's about time some of the Giants veterans started hitting.

Brett Wisely 2B- 1 for 2, HR(2), BB.  BA= .429.  The Giants seem high on Wisely.  His minor league numbers suggest he is more of a speed than power guy but he's showing plenty of power so far in the spring.

Tristan Beck RHP- 3 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 7.20.  Beck gave up 3 runs in his third inning of work.  Interesting that he's made two spring starts before we've seen Anthony DeSclafani RHP or  Alex Wood LHP and I'm not sure why Beck seems to be ahead of Sean Hjelle RHP on the SP depth chart.

Kade McClure RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.00.  McClure was acquired in the offseason from the ChiSox for Gregory Santos RHP.  He looks like a better prospect than Santos to me.

R. J. Dabovich RHP and Randy Rodriguez RHP pitched scoreless frames.

Split squad games tomorrow with Anthony DeSclafani making his spring debut against the Rockies in Scottsdale and Sean Manaea LHP traveling to Surprise, AZ to take on the Rangers.

Spring Training Game Wrap 3/1/2023: D'Backs 8 Giants 5

The Giants seemed to forget the game time and didn't show up to play until the 7'th inning.  Their late rally fell short.  Key Lines:

Austin Wynns PH/DH- 1 for 2, HR(1), SB(1).  BA= .200.

Blake Sabol C- 1 for 2, HR(2), BB.  BA= .571.  Sabol continues to pound the ball Can the Giants find a place for him to play?  His best bet seems to be reserve C if he can handle it defensively.

Brett Auerbach 3B- 1 for 2, HR(1).  BA= .500.  Auerbach recovered ahead of schedule from left ulnar neuritis and wasted little time picking up where he left off last spring training.  Unfortunately, things did not go as well in AA Richmond last season.

Roberto Perez C made his spring playing debut. 

Jake Junis RHP gave up a run in 2 IP as the SP.  Scott Alexander LHP pitched a scoreless 3'rd inning.  Every other Giants pitcher gave up at least 1 ER.

Kyle Harrison LHP made his spring training debut allowing 2 runs in 1 IP but hit 96 MPH on the radar gun.

Ronald Guzman LHP made his pitching debut and reportedly hit an easy 97 MPH.

Austin Slater OF was shut down due to ulnar neuritis in his throwing arm.  This comes after he was limited to DH duties in the second half last year due to a flexor strain in his R elbow.  Gotta think it's somehow related, which is not good for him. 

Tristan Beck RHP makes his second spring start tomorrow against the Guardians in a travel game.