The Giants lineup recovered nicely from it's encounter with Paul Skenes and the Team USA pitchers on Tuesday for a nice win over the Mariners travel squad. Key Lines:
Will Brennan LF- 2 for 2, R. BA= .429. Brennan is a versatile defensive OF who fits the high contact profile Buster Posey prefers. Is he in the lead for 4'th OF?
Jake Holton DH- 1 for 2, HR(1), R, 4 RBI. BA= .412. Holton was a little-noted organizational depth signing in the offseason. He's raking in spring training and might be Bryce Eldridge's main competition for a primary DH roster spot.
Bryce Eldridge PH/DH- 1 for 2, 2B, 2 RBI. BA= .263. 113 MPH exit velocity. I would not be so quick to write off Eldridge to open the season as the co-1B/DH with Devers. Yes, he is young. Yes, he will strike out a lot. He will also hit the ball hard. He will see MLB pitching and learn more from it than beating up on the hitter-friendly PCL.
Robbie Ray LHP- 2.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K's, 4/1 GO/AO. ERA= 3.18. The part that bothers me is 50 pitches in 2.2 IP. That, and the too-tight pants.
Carson Seymour RHP- 2.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K. ERA= 5.06. Seymour was throwing both a 4-seam FB and sinker at 97-98 MPH. A cutter was registering 88 MPH is it really just a slider that doesn't break enough? He needs more of a put away pitch.
Keaton Winn RHP- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 2.70. Winn is a bit of a forgotten man, but I saw some nasty splitters in this appearance.
Michael Fulmer RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 0.00. Fulmer is making up for lackluster velocity with command of a mix of pitches. He's well on his way to winning a bullpen spot.
Nick Zwack LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 2/0 GO/AO. ERA= 6.00. Zwack is a big lefty who is getting a lot of looks. He was part of the Darin Ruf trade along with Seymour.
The Giants have the day off today.
what i really like about Robbie Ray: he's a lefty. what i'm not a fan of: the grunting, the look that he's terminally unhappy, and the tight pants. good call Doc! in a previous post, i voiced concern about Eldridge "getting it" when it comes to MLB pitching. i should add that i saw Heliot Ramos a number of times in Richmond and was convinced he was a total fail. even for a long time fan, the game can be inscrutable. -es
ReplyDeleteInteresting OF competition. I still think it's a motley crew but all of Matos, Brennan, Oliva, Bericoto and even McCray are hitting very well (Encarnacion, not long for the organization, the only negative). Personally, I'd love to se MATOS given one more legitimate shot. Not that any of this matters, they will just be keeping the position warm for the rabid puppy Volunteer Drew Gilbert. Schmidt vs Koss is very interesting also, especially with Schmidt being able to be a RH 1B. Can they keep both?
ReplyDeleteSteveVA
Why not keep both Eldridge and Holton, then trade high on Devers? I just don't have a good feeling about that guy ...
ReplyDeleteRafael Devers is not going to be traded.
DeleteThat swing on Bericoto is impressive. Reminds me of a young Javier Baez. I thought Bo Davidson took a sweet hack as well. If they can figure out how to find the barrel consistently we may have something special
ReplyDeleteZwack was running it up there at 98. If he can control it better (big if) he has a shot.
ReplyDeleteVitello has done a good job of getting those players with a chance to make the 26-player roster a real shot.
ReplyDeleteMatos and especially Encarnación, neither of whom have options, have had many AB's, especially the latter who leads the team with 21.
Matos is not far behind with 17 and has made the most of it with good numbers.
Quite a few Giants have not had walks despite double-digit AB's including Matos, Encarnación, Fitzgerald, Adames, Holten, Bericoto, Chapman, Susac, Lee, and Basabe.
There's been quite a bit of swing-and-miss for a dozen or more players, quite a few who are trying to make that 26-player roster with too many striking out at rates above 30%.
This may be an advantage for Matos who does not strike often (0 this spring) much, but he doesn't walk much either (also 0 this spring).
Doc, do you think that the Giants would lose Encarnación if he doesn't make the cut?
Matos, who is still only 24, could be attractive to a team that is rebuilding, especially considering his good contact numbers.
Agree Matos is more likely to be claimed off waivers than Encarnacion.
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