SF Giants: Heliot Ramos and Sam Long Star in 9-4 Victory

The SF Giants pounced on Cincinnati Reds pitching early and often, blasting five home runs and 14 hits en route to an easy 9-4 victory. The pitching staff held the Reds to just one run through the first five innings of play before relievers Dominic Leone and Sam Wolff allowed three runs over the next two innings. Most importantly, starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani looked strong in his two innings of work, showing mid-90s velocity with his fastball and issuing no walks.

SF Giants Notes From the 9-4 Victory:
Heliot Ramos and Sam Long Star

The offensive star of the night, though, was 21-year old outfielder Heliot Ramos, the fourth-best prospect in the Giants organization, per Around The Foghorn’s official rankings. Ramos has looked good at the plate all spring but had yet to record a home run. On Sunday, he blasted two. Most impressive of all, he pulled his first and sent his second to the opposite field, showing his power potential.

A pair of flyballs did go in and out of Ramos’ glove in center, but neither error was a side-effect of range: the biggest concern surrounding Ramos’ ability to stick in the middle of the outfield. The first was caused by miscommunication with right fielder Luis Alexander Basabe, who collided with Ramos. The other was a ball directly into the sun that Ramos never quite picked up.

Sam Long (11th-best prospect) entered the game with 2 outs in the seventh to face Nicky Delmonico. He froze him with a nasty breaking ball at the knees, got a swing-and-miss with an electric fastball at the top of the zone, and then struck him out looking on another curveball. Then, in the eighth inning, Long induced a flyout, broken-bat single, and two more strikeouts to end the game. He has been one of the biggest surprises of early spring training, but he showed why he’s already one of the best pitching prospects in the system.

SF Giants Notes From the 9-4 Victory:
Jason Vosler Keeps Going

Not much needs to be said here about Jason Vosler. He went 2-3 again today and is now hitting .500 on the spring. He’s putting together great at-bats and has struck out just twice. He also showed off some of his defensive versatility, starting at second base. While adding Tommy La Stella seemed to block Vosler’s shot at the big-league roster, his play should be forcing the Giants to reconsider their plans.

SF Giants Notes From the 9-4 Victory:
Outfielders Go Deep

Ramos was not the only young Giants outfielder to send a ball over the fence. Recently acquired LaMonte Wade Jr, who has struggled in the early part of spring training, pulled a ball high over the right-field fence. Steven Duggar, who looked like the odd-man-out heading into the year, hit an opposite-field home run of his own. Both are still hitting just .182 on the spring, but Wade showed off some defensive versatility, looking quite comfortable at first base, which could be particularly valuable if Brandon Belt will be on the injured list to start the season.

SF Giants Notes From the 9-4 Victory:
Prospects Hold Their Own

It was a fitting performance for the final day of SF Giants prospects week. Ramos was obviously the star of the day. Still, the best prospect in the system, Marco Luciano, continued showing his improved defensive acumen at shortstop, which is one of the most exciting developments of the spring for the team’s future. Luciano also recorded his first hit on an infield single down the third-base line.

Joey Bart (3rd-best prospect in the system) continued his scorching start as well, producing two hits, including a ninth-inning home run to right-center field. Defensively, Bart looked strong behind the plate and showed off his arm on a couple of attempted back picks as well.

A pair of 2019 first-round picks, Hunter Bishop (6th-best prospect) and Will Wilson (15th-best prospect), got in on the action too. Bishop recorded his first hit of the spring on an RBI double and showed off his athleticism, nearly beating out an infield hit in his second trip to the plate. Wilson started the game at shortstop, looked solid, and reached base once in three plate appearances via a walk.

The SF Giants return to action tomorrow. They will be hosting the Arizona Diamondbacks at Scottsdale Stadium at 12:05 pm PST.