San Francisco Giants: Quality bullpen reinforcements await opportunity

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SCOTTSDALE, AZ – FEBRUARY 21: Jandel Gustave#81 of the San Francisco Giants poses during the Giants Photo Day on February 21, 2019 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) /

The San Francisco Giants have a deep bullpen at the MLB level. Despite this, they made some savvy moves during the offseason to bring in several quality relievers as minor league free agents.

The San Francisco Giants have some enviable relief pitching depth at the minor league level. That’s not necessarily important today, but when they begin to sell off their relievers this summer, it will most definitely come into play.

The list of intriguing minor league relievers to keep an eye on includes, but is not limited to, Jandel Gustave, Sam Moll, Sam Selman, and Fernando Abad.

These relievers are not only performing well at the minor league level, but three out of four of them have major league experience, with Selman being the lone exception.

Abad, in particular, has extensive major league experience with a 3.65 career ERA over 317.2 big league innings. With the way some bullpens have blown up around the league, Abad could certainly help another team. He could also fit onto the Giants roster if they decide to trade someone else from their bullpen surplus.

While Abad, Gustave, and Selman were all brought in on minor league deals, Moll was selected in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft. It is not often that teams get a chance to nab someone with major league experience in the minor league rounds.

From this quartet, three out of four are also left-handed relievers, with Gustave being the lone exception. Teams are always seemingly in need of more left-handed relievers. And, the Giants loaded up on left-handed relievers in preparation of this expected demand.

Let’s take a closer look at those four relievers, how they’ve performed this season, and what they bring to the table.

BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 01: Pitcher Fernando Abad #58 of the Boston Red Sox pitches in the top of the seventh inning during the game against the Houston Astros at Fenway Park on October 1, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images) /

Fernando Abad, 33, is trying to re-establish himself after being suspended 80 games in 2018 for a failed PED test.

Like many middle relievers, Abad did not sign until after spring training began. His contract did not include a major league camp invite.

Splitting his time between Double-A and Triple-A, Abad has posted a 1.45 ERA with a fantastic 22-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 18.2 innings. Lefties are batting just .087 against him with a .217 OPS and seven strikeouts in 24 plate appearances.

As a southpaw with extensive experience, Abad might be appealing to a lot of teams and could wind up serving as a minor trade chip for the San Francisco Giants. With the way he is pitching, it is clear he is above the talent he is competing against.

As for Sam Selman, he too has split his season between Double-A and Triple-A with solid results.

The 28-year-old carries a bit of intrigue for two reasons:

First, he worked out at Driveline this past offseason. Driveline is a training facility where pitchers incorporate data to improve their mechanics and pitch quality.

Second, he has not yet made his major league debut, so there is some mystery to him as an unknown commodity. With Abad, teams already know what he brings to the table.

In that sense, Selman could be a fringe reliever, or he could be a quality bullpen arm thanks to the changes he made during the offseason at Driveline.

He has captured the attention of at least one Giants beat writer:

He has continued to impress, posting a 1.31 ERA with 34 strikeouts against six walks in 20.2 innings. He has been very difficult to hit, as evidenced by his 4.4 H/9 and .141 opponents’ batting average.

The 2012 second-round pick has always had swing-and-miss stuff with 11.0 K/9 in 497 career minor league innings.

The issue has been his control. He has walked batters at a 5.4 BB/9 clip during his career, including 6.6 BB/9 last season. The marked improvement he has shown in that area this season could wind up being his ticket to the big leagues.

ARLINGTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 29: Sam Moll #62 of the Oakland Athletics pitches against the Texas Rangers during the fifth inning at Globe Life Park in Arlington on September 29, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /

Sam Moll pitched 6.2 forgetful innings for the Oakland Athletics back in 2017, allowing 13 hits and eight earned runs in 11 appearances for an unsightly 10.80 ERA.

A third-round pick by the Colorado Rockies in 2013, Moll has posted solid numbers throughout his time in the minors, though his 4.19 ERA at Triple-A has not necessarily demanded a promotion.

This season has been a different story.

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In 8.2 innings of work at Triple-A Sacramento, he has a 1.04 ERA and a 10-to-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He’s been a bit more hittable than Selman with 8.3 H/9, but he has still limited base runners with a solid 1.07 WHIP.

Moll was recently reassigned to Double-A Richmond, but this is likely a temporary assignment. Many of the Giants affiliates are thin on pitching, so pitchers are being moved around to fill organizational needs.

Lastly, Jandel Gustave recently joined the Sacramento bullpen after making a couple of rehab appearances in San Jose.

The hard-throwing right-hander debuted in impressive fashion with the Houston Astros in 2016, posting a 3.52 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 15.1 innings over 14 appearances.

However, he struggled the following season before ultimately needing Tommy John surgery, and he spent the 2018 season recovering.

The 26-year-old is back healthy and his fastball has returned to form:

Jandel Gustave on the road back from TJ surgery works a 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout tonight for the #SJGiants. Gustave has thrown two hitless innings in his two appearances w/SJ. FB was 97-98 tonight. Made 20 appearances with Houston in 2016-17.
— Joe Ritzo (@JoeRitzo) May 8, 2019

Aside from Reyes Moronta, the San Francisco Giants bullpen does not have any arms who can pump a high 90’s fastball consistently the way that Gustave can.

Gustave has appeared in two games since earning a call-up to Sacramento. He struck out two in a perfect inning of work in his first outing for the team but was touched up for three earned runs in two-thirds of an inning in his second appearance.

That leaves him with a 16.20 ERA as he swims in small-sample territory. Unfortunately, it can take a long time for a reliever to fully recover his ERA after a rough appearance or two.

In the meantime, he still has a reputation for generating plenty of swings-and-misses.

While bullpens blow up all across baseball, the Sacramento relief contingent gives the Giants an intriguing stable of reinforcements to back an already strong bullpen at the big league level.

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