San Francisco Giants: A look at the 2018 Non Roster Invites

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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – AUGUST 31: Alen Hanson #39 of the Chicago White waits after getting called out after stealing second base against the Minnesota Twins in the sixth inning during of their baseball game on August 31, 2017, at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota.(Photo by Andy King/Getty Images) /

The San Francisco Giants have a very evident group of guys at the top of the list for 2018. But there are some fringe spots available.

Last spring a few of the San Francsico Giants non-roster invites ended up making the club at one point or another. None stuck at the big league level, but a few guys made a good impact at the minor league level. Slade Heathcott is one that initially comes to mind.

Over the last few years guys have come up and done something surprising. Whether it was Brandon Hicks a few years ago, Mark Minicozzi, and last year’s lottery winners, Chris Marrero, Aaron Hill, and Neil Hernandez. Of course, last year’s group had a few high points among some low points.

Marrero hit his first homer, but was pretty much terrible. Hernandez either struck everyone out or gave up a ton of runs, and Hill was apparently an option to be the leadoff hitter, which angered me to no end. But there aren’t as many “well known” names on this year’s list.

I’ve decided to go by position grouping for this. Each slide will take a look at the invitees at each position grouping, their careers and whether or not they have a serious shot at playing a role in 2018.

So who is on the NRI list? And what could they possibly bring to the table?

PHOENIX, AZ – SEPTEMBER 09: Kyle Jensen #29 of the Arizona Diamondbacks hits a two-run home run against the San Francisco Giants during the third inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on September 9, 2016 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Infielders

Orlando Calixte

We actually have a pretty good idea of who Calixte is. Except last year, the Giants viewed him as an outfielder. Thankfully they’re done with those experiments, after he, Aaron Hill, and Eduardo Nunez got run well out of position. This year, Calixte is going to be viewed as a middle infielder, which is where he initially broke into the big league ranks with the Royals.

Calixte had a .143 average in 45 AB’s with the big league club last year. He was awful in the outfield when it came to defense. In Sacramento, where he spent most of his time in 2017, he compiled a .247 average and .704 OPS. He did pop 14 homers, but anybody can do that in the PCL. Defensively he can play all over the middle of the infield, so if things got really bad he could hop in. Calixte’s ceiling is likely the same as Juaqin Arias’. Frankly, Ehire Adrianza would be a better option there, but this is what they’re stuck with.

Chase d’Arnaud

Chase d’Arnaud is the brother of Travis d’Arnaud, the Met’s catcher. Chase’s bat is even worse than Calixte’s so again, I’m not really feeling this. He feels more like a career 4A player than a big league bench help.

In 450 AB’s at the big league level, d’Arnaud has a .223 average and a .594 OPS. Again, not bright. AAA he has roughly a .260 average and an OPS hovering around .700. Career 4-A guy? Yes sir(or Ma’am). Is he going to help at the big league leve? Likely not. You can catch him in Sacramento though!

Alen Hanson

Hanson is intriguing because of his somewhat ridiculous speed. The infielder has 205 career stolen bases in the minor leagues. He’s bounced around the league and around the minors since he started out in 2010. He actually has had better success in the minors than the previous two guys, and if the Giants want to keep someone on the bench that they can put in to pinch run or play late inning defense, Hanson might be the guy. I give him a better chance to get game time in 2018 than the previous two.

Kyle Jensen

Kyle Jensen is a known minor league slugger. In 2016, he hit 30 homers with the D-Backs’ AAA team, the Reno Aces. He did not play anywhere in 2017 as he dealt with injury. Jensen has 178 career homers in the minor leagues, and a good batting average of sorts. He’s 29, and if he can get himself going, he could actually help out the Giants bench squad a bit. Jensen has played in the outfield mostly, but got more run at 1B in 2016.

Also, Jensen’s listing in the infield screams 1B/PH potential. If the Giants viewed Chris Shaw as a 1B option anymore, he’d be listed here and Jensen potentially in the outfield. So for now, Jensen is looking to make it as a 1B/PH guy and I wouldn’t put it past him to impress a bit in Spring Training. Now, getting the roster spot would be another thing, but Jensen’s addition to the ST fold means Shaw is destined for the OF.

Josh Rutledge

Rutledge is a well known guy in the die-hard circles of the NL West. Rutledge came up with the Rockies, but has only played more than 100 big league games in a season once. The often injured middle infielder could bring some valuable depth though, if Kelby Tomlinson were to regress. Rutledge will be an intriguing add to the fold in spring, but things are more about “if he’s healthy” than “does he have the ability.” If he is actually healthy, he might be making the Giants’ roster at some point. He and Jensen are my best chances to make the big league roster out of this group of Infield invitee’s.

Outfielders

Steven Duggar

Ahh, the well discussed Steven Duggar. The heir to the center-field throne at AT&T Park. Duggar is going to be given a serious chance to get onto the 25 man roster. And that’s fair. This fall he made the Arizona Fall League “All Prospect Team,” voted upon by scouts and managers in the prospect league. Duggar became a regular fixture in center field for the Scottsdale Scorpions, giving most scouts a chance to see his improvements in 2017. He missed almost all of the 2017 season due to injury, and only got 164 at bats, mostly at the Single-A level.

Duggar performed well though, posting an .810 OPS after jumping into the fold straight from injury rehab, without a spring training of any sorts. Duggar’s defense is honestly big league ready according to most scouts, and frankly has been since he stepped into the organization. The biggest area of concern is his bat.

In the minors he’s done really well, posting an overall .292/.384/.427/.811 slashline in 900 at-bats in the minors. The problem is that only 46 of those at-bats have come above AA. While AAA isn’t where stud prospects are made, that still is a little concerning if they have any inclination to hand him the starting job come opening day. Duggar will be in the big league fold this year no matter what.

Barring injury he’ll be on the 25 man roster at some point. It’s no longer a matter of “If,” but “when.” The question is does he show enough in Spring Training that convinces them they don’t need to go get another center fielder, or does he show enough in Spring Training to get the 25 man nod? If the answer is no to either of those, then I wouldn’t put it past Evans to pull the trigger for a centerfielder out of place somewhere else.

Chris Shaw

Shaw is another intriguing prospect. He was listed in the top 10 1B for the last few seasons, until the Giants transitioned him to the outfield last season. Shaw has shown strides in his outfield play, but still isn’t ready to field the position. If he was ready to field the position, Bobby Evans thinks he could play right away. Evans said this to the then KNBR (Now Mercury News) reporter, Kerry Crowley:

Bobby Evans said this today about Giants' prospect Chris Shaw.

"Shaw needs every bit of time to prepare himself for the outfield. I think he could rake right now in the big leagues, we just want to make sure that he can cover the position."
— Kerry Crowley (@KO_Crowley) January 18, 2018

Shaw’s bat has never been an issue barring him from a rise to the bigs. It’s his defense. This spring, we should hopefully see some extended run of Chris Shaw in the San Francisco Giants outfield. Take a good look at his defense. If it looks good and he’s raking, he could very well bump one of Jarrett Parker or Mac Williamson off the 40-man with a stellar spring.

Catchers

Hector Sanchez

Ahh, Hector is back! Thankfully he won’t be destroying us with late inning homers on Sunday afternoons anymore. Last year, he had a knack for destroying the Giants when he played against them. After having a good season with San Diego, he’s back. But keep in mind that this is simply an NRI.

Buster Posey and Nick Hundley are the clear one/two tandem when it comes to the backstop position. But bringing Hector into the fold is going to be a positive. They’ll have someone who knows the big leagues, and knows the Giants, and even some of the pitching staff well. In the event that Buster or Hundley get hurt, they have someone who they can count on waiting in the wings.

Trevor Brown

Brown’s career arc has fallen off greatly since he made the big league camp in 2016. His bat has unfortunately made him unplayable though. His big league defense faltered towards the end of the season in ’16, which made him fall out of favor with the Giants organization. He clearly doesn’t have a place at the big league level, but needs to be above the minor league camp. I wouldn’t call it a pity invite, but the Giants probably want to see where he’s at if it’s not worth cutting him.

Justin O’Conner

O’ Conner is another intriguing NRI. The Giants will now have SIX catchers in camp, and this guy has nothing to do with the organization. That’s weird to me. But I guess the more the merrier? Anyways, O’Conner hasn’t played a single game above AAA and has been around MiLB since 2010. Whatever. NEXT.

Pitchers

RHP Tyler Cyr

The pitching invites, for the most part, start to bring a lot of internal excitement for the Giants org. A lot of their NRI pitchers are “in-house” prospects. Cyr is one of them. He’s mainly a reliever, and in 144.2 innings in the minors he has 173 strikeouts, an ERA under three, and a WHIP under 1.3. Cyr is a stud reliever and the Giants will be hoping he could help out their bullpen at some point in 2017. I think Cyr has a great shot at the team if he pitches well in spring training. He’s definitely one to keep an eye on.

RHP Jose Flores

Flores is another “meh” invite. The 28 year old has yet to pitch above the minors and didn’t pitch well in AAA last season. After a nice start to the year in Richmond, he struggled with the jump in Sacramento. He can go both as a starter and long relief. I feel like he’s an invite mainly because he’s 28, and not because they really believe he could help their big league squad in 2018. At least I certainly don’t think so.

RHP Dereck Rodriguez

“Pudge” Rodriguez’s son, is actually an intriguing “out of org” invite. The 25 year old didn’t make his minor league debut until 2014, despite being drafted by the Twins in 2011. He is an interesting starter project. He’ll likely land in Richmond to start in 2017, but he has put up some decent numbers in the past. I’m not sure where the Giants view him, but he could bring some intrigue down the road with a breakout season.

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LHP Andrew Suarez

Ahh. The man himself. One of the Giants’ most wanted pitching prospects this offseason, Suarez has been a lightning fast mover. If he were able to have a solid spring, start out hot in Sacramento, the Giants might be forced to call him up if there are injuries, or Blach/Stratton are struggling. Suarez has been very intriguing as a prospect for the last two years, and his lightning rise up the levels, alongside Chris Shaw, have many in the organization excited for what he could bring in a year or two.

RHP Jose Valdez

Valdez is an interesting pickup. Defenitely a bullpen guy, but I’m not sure how much he’ll factor into the picture in 2017. Should you keep an eye? Yeah. But don’t expect anything good enough to warrant a spot.

RHP Madison Younginer

The Giants have the opportunity to have two Madison’s on one big league team. Incredible. Younginer looked like he was about to break through to the big leagues in 2016 after a solid year in AA. But his move up to AAA was a wreck, and his short stint with Atlanta didn’t impress. He wasn’t great in Oklahoma City last year either. The Giants might be able to get something out of him, but he’s likely destined for Sacramento.

LHP Derek Holland

AHH. The best NRI of them all, Mr. Holland. Too bad it’s not Greg Holland. But, I digress. Most Giants fans have fond memories of Derek Holland’s World Series implosion in Game 2. Holland didn’t get a batter out and walked three, giving up three runs as the Giants took Game 2 and the 2010 World Series by the neck. But Holland had a decent career after. The Giants need some lefty influence somewhere, and Holland is a good “take a chance” guy on an NRI. The Giants expect him to compete for both bullpen and starting depth. It’s always good to have seasoned guys with big league experience in the fold, so Holland is a nice idea. Will it work? Who knows. But it’s worth a look.

Next: Time to make Bumgarner a Giant for life

The San Francisco Giants will have pitchers and catchers report on Valentines day, with the first full-team workout slated for February 19th. Their first Spring Training game of 2017 will be February 23rd against the Milwaukee Brewers.

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