San Francisco Giants Comeback Against the WhiteSox: Positives and Negatives from the Win

The San Francisco Giants largely rolled out a triple-a team today and nearly paid for it. But they managed to pull it out, getting a 3-2 victory over the Chicago WhiteSox.

In reality, spring training records are not something to be worried about. Heck, even “bad springs” like the ones Jeff Samardzija and Hunter Pence are having, are usually not that big of a deal. The San Francisco Giants front office clearly aren’t worried too much about them.

However, it still is nice when a bunch of guys who likely won’t be on the roster, can come out and get a win. Even more so when it’s in comeback fashion!

Ryder Jones, a guy who was drafted alongside Christian Arroyo, blasted a 3-run homer in the top of the eighth inning to give the Giants a 3-2 lead. That 3-2 lead was not surrendered thanks to Neil Ramirez and Will Smith.

Positives

Uhhh Ryder Jones

Jones is a relatively lesser known prospect, but has had some good years in the minor leagues. He most likely will start out in Richmond this year, as he didn’t really show much hitting prowess at that level. He could really make a leap up the prospect boards with a good start there.  Jones has hit .385 with a 1.121 OPS this spring. Granted, it’s in limited at bats. However, the guys in big league camps are no slouches. If he can continue what he’s done in spring training this year, he could turn out to be a nice bench option in a few years.

Johnny Cueto is Ready

Cueto was fantastic in his five innings of work today. He looked like Cueto. The shimmy, the goofiness, the masterpiece pitching. He only got three strikeouts in the five innings, but only allowed one hit and one run, and didn’t walk anyone. Cueto is a key this year. If he has a great season, everything else should fall into line behind him and MadBum in the rotation.

Negatives

Will Smith‘s Elbow

Smith was starting to get back into it. Sadly, he came away with another injury today. He was pulled after a recurrence in the previous elbow problem that sidelined him for the first couple weeks of spring training. Now, it almost looks like Neil Ramirez is going to be a lock for the opening day roster. Smith was supposed to be a big part of the bullpen, but that just doesn’t seem possible this year until his elbow fully heals.

Next: How the Giants' Top Prospects are Doing This Spring

Opening Day is on the way! Stay tuned as we build up to the first regular season game of 2017!