San Francisco Giants: 5 Players in Richmond to Watch in 2017

6 of 6

Feb 20, 2017; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Sam Coonrod poses for a portrait during photo day at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

Sam Coonrod, RHP

Coonrod has been an odd prospect. I was debating between a couple of other options here but he seemed like the best one. Jonah Arenado, Dylan Davis, and Ronnie Jebavy were all decent options, but because of Coonrod’s place in the top 30 prospects on MLBPipeline (13), I thought he’s quite worth the look.

Coonrod took a while to figure his stuff out. He was a fifth round draft pick in the 2014 draft. He really seemed to get his stuff together last year, and was really impressive overall. He posted a 1.98 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in eleven starts in San Jose. After the good start, they put him up in Richmond, where he posted a 3.03 ERA in 13 starts.

He’s not necessarily a strikeout pitcher, just a 2:1 K/BB Ratio, but his opponents have a low batting average against him (.209 across two levels in 2016). Hopefully he can continue his trajectory over the next year or two. He definitely needs another full year in Richmond, so that’s where he’ll likely start out. If the Giants feel like he’s already mastered it, he might be a fast mover next year, alongside Suarez and Gage.

Next: Who To Keep an Eye on In San Jose

So far we’ve previewed players to watch in San Jose (High A) and Richmond (Double A). Stay tuned tomorrow as we bring you who to watch in Sacramento for the 2017 season!