Wednesday, February 4, 2026

DrB's 2026 Giants Top 50 Prospects: #11 Blade Tidwell

 11.  Blade Tidwell RHP.  DOB:  6/8/2001.  6' 4", 207 lbs.  40-man roster, 2 Options.

2025(AAA- Mets):  6-4, 4.10, 79 IP, 9.91 K/9, 3.65 BB/9.  
2025(AAA-Giants):  0-0, 1.50, 18 IP, 12.00 K/9, 2.50 BB/9.
2025(MLB- Mets):  1-1, 9.00, 15 IP, 6.00 K/9, 6.00 BB/9.

Tidwell is a former 2'nd round draft pick for the Mets out of Tennessee and acquired by the Giants in the Tyler Rogers trade.  It does seem like it might be more than coincidence the Giants have acquired several ex-Tennessee players leading up to Tony Vitello's hiring.  He's a big, hard-throwing RHP with two pitches:  4-seam FB that averaged almost 96 MPH and a slider.  He throws in a 2-seam FB which he throws under 20% of the time.  He pitched great in 3 appearances after the trade but then went on the IL with shoulder discomfort for a month.  He reportedly did not have structural damage.  He made one 2-inning start on 9/17 near the end of the season.  He is expected to be ready for spring training.  He has been used mainly as a SP in the minors but his pitch mix looks more relieverish unless he can add a changeup or split.

12 comments:

  1. I could easily see him falling into the closer position, and even succeeding. My sense is he can ramp it up over a single inning quite a bit.

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  2. 80 grade name for a closer, and hopefully has the stuff and swagger to match!

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  3. Didn't he have problems giving up homers in the minors?

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    1. Tidwell gave up 80 HR's in 687 IP for a rate of 1.05/9, which is on the low side of expected range, over the course of his minor league career.

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    2. Gonna have to miss you for a week or 2, Doc, as my wife sees her doc, a cardiologist, in the morning, for heart surgery, hopefully just some valve repair, but a super doc from the Bay Area will take a look and do what is necessary, this is certainly stressful for her but she is young (ish) and can handle this better than I who will, hopefully, see 86 in a couple of months.
      Healthy gal with no history, quite suddenly was diagnosed with pneumonia, and when that didn't go away, wiser meds said NOT, and has scheduled this with incredible speed, from Tuesday exam to Thursday surgery.
      There were a few "dropped balls" along the way but an earlier stay in the hospital didn't move the needle until this week.
      The big problem, to this layman, is there aren't enough doctors, and the ones we have up here in Northern California are stretched far too thin.

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  4. An interesting veteran pitcher, the Giants signed Michael Fulmer to a Minor League deal today, and he will be a non-roster invitee to spring training.
    https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2026/02/giants-sign-michael-fulmer-to-minor-league-deal.html

    The Giants announced 19 non-roster invitees for 2026 Major League Spring Training, featuring top prospects Bo Davidson (OF) and Parks Harber (1B), along with veteran right-handed reliever Michael Fulmer. The group includes 8 pitchers, 3 catchers, 5 infielders, and 3 outfielders competing for roster spots.
    Pitchers (8):
    Michael Fulmer (RHP - experienced reliever)
    Gregory Santos (RHP - returnee)
    Caleb Kilian (RHP - starting depth)
    Nick Margevicius (LHP)
    Will Bednar (RHP)
    Trent Harris (RHP)
    Wilkin Ramos (RHP)
    Juan Sánchez (LHP)

    Catchers (3):
    Eric Haase (Veteran)
    Logan Porter (Returnee)
    Diego Cartaya

    Infielders (5):
    Parks Harber (Prospect)
    Osleivis Basabe
    Buddy Kennedy
    Nate Furman
    Jake Holton

    Outfielders (3):
    Bo Davidson (Prospect)
    Victor Bericoto
    Jared Oliva

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  5. Here's one Buster wasn't ever going to sign:
    Left-hander Framber Valdez, the top starting pitcher left on the market, is headed to Detroit on a three-year, $115 million contract. That's not $40 million a year, but it's close!
    Whoa!

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  6. Doc, you might want to double check that calculation?

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    1. OK, it's actually 40 HR in 344 IP which is still 1.05 HR/9. Point still stands.

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    2. IP looked really high at first calculation for someone as young as Tidwell.

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    3. Fangraphs lists stats from separate levels plus a cumulative stat combining the levels for each season. I did not notice that when I added them up so it effectively doubled both the HR's and IP. The ratio remained the same.

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  7. Framber Valdez to sign a three-year, $115 million deal with the Tigers, as reported by multiple sites on line.
    $115,000,000/3 = $38,888,888.89 per year or 4.34% less than $40MM.
    Close enough?

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