Your 2012 Non-Roster Invitees: Part 3

On Monday, ten players were optioned and reassigned to the Giants’ minor league Spring Training camp: pitchers Jake Dunning, Austin Fleet, Stephen Harrold, David Quinowski, Seth Rosin, and Shawn Sanford; catchers Andrew Susac and Francisco Peguero; and infielders Ehire Adrianza and Joe Panik. Unfortunately, that’s ten players taken off the non-roster invitee list, but we’ll keep an eye on them throughout the season and let you know when they might make an appearance in San Francisco.

Here are today’s five non-roster invitees from the Giants’ camp:

Brian Burres

Burres is a left handed pitcher returning to the Giants’ fold after six years with Baltimore, Toronto, and Pittsburgh. He was originally picked by San Francisco in the 2000 amateur draft, and recently completed a 30-game season split between the Pirates and their Triple-A team. In 14.0 big-league IP, Burres finished with a 6.17 FIP, striking out 6.43 batters per 9 innings, and walking 2.57/9. In 129.1 IP with the Indianapolis Indians, he kept a 4.57 FIP in 25 appearances, with a slightly higher 6.61 K/9 and 3.13 BB/9. Yesterday, Henry Schulman mentioned Burres as competition for LHP Eric Surkamp, who is vying for the backup fifth starter role this season.

Wilmin Rodriguez

Unlike Burres, Wilmin has yet to leave the Giants’ farm system. He has made the rounds of minor league teams for seven years, and most recently was found in Double-A Richmond and Triple-A Fresno. A fellow left-hander, Rodriguez picked up 40 games in 2011, putting up a 4.19 FIP, 5.97 K/9, and 3.61 BB/9 in Richmond. During the tail end of the season, his numbers bounced to a 4.34 FIP, 6.43 K/9, and a whopping 7.71 BB/9 in Fresno. In Monday’s game against Kansas City, Wilmin earned his first save of the year, striking out LF David Lough and allowing a single to 1B Billy Butler in the 9th.

Matt Yourkin

Our last pitcher on the non-roster list is lefty reliever Matt Yourkin, who is just coming off three seasons with the Giants’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. In 2011, he started 29 games and pitched 167.0 innings for the Grizzlies, earning a 4.34 FIP and 2.59 K/BB. Matt made a shining Cactus League debut on March 5, pitching three shutout innings and allowing two hits to CF Carlos Gomez and C Cesar Izturis. Five days later, he didn’t shine quite as much, blowing a save with 4 hits, 2 earned runs, 2 walks, and only 1 strikeout in 2.0 IP against the Angels.

Jackson Williams

Following roster cuts, Jackson is the only remaining catcher left in the non-roster pile. He was chosen by the Giants in the 1st round of the MLB June Amateur Draft, and spent five seasons climbing the minor league ranks. Like Rodriguez, he split his 2011 season between the Giants’ Double-A and Triple-A teams. Richmond saw 11 hits and 8 runs in 59 PA for a .208/.288/.415 batting line and .316 wOBA, while Fresno yielded 23 hits and 13 runs in 147 PA, giving Williams a line of .184/.288/.232 and .244 wOBA. So far in Spring Training, he’s filled in during three games, going 0-for-6 with one walk and six left on base. He has yet to make a start behind the plate.

Joaquin Arias

In 2011, Joaquin picked up 69 games with the Royals’ Triple-A team, batting .200/.250/.233 and turning 20 double plays at first, second, third, and short. He collected the most time at third base, with 47 starts that produced 29 putouts, 87 assists, and 8 errors. Although there is little to no room for Arias in San Francisco’s increasingly crowded infield, he has seen plenty of playing time over the Giants’ 13 Cactus League games. In 9 appearances and 15 PA, he put up 3 hits, 1 run, and 2 RBIs, striking out twice and stranding 4 runners.

From CSN Bay Area’s Rael Enteen:

"“Tim Lincecum took notice, even if he’s not sure how to pronounce his teammate’s name.‘Arias right? I can’t pronounce it right without messing it up,’ Lincecum said. ‘He’s got a lot of range out there. It’s nice to have him and Crawford up the middle making plays, keeping the innings short and pitch counts down.’Arias has also made an impression on his manager.‘I like the way he’s played all spring,’ Bochy said. ‘He’s got a calmness about him; great glove defensively.’”"

This week, we’ll wrap up the remaining six non-roster invitees—and hopefully before the Giants cut another batch of soon-to-be minor leaguers. Until then, sit back, relax, and enjoy another day of beautiful, meaningless Spring Training games.