SF Giants prospects rundown 5/9: Eugene scores 15 in blowout

SF Giants Prospects Rundown 5/9: Double-A

Richmond Flying Squirrels 4 at Hartford Yard Goats 2
Performance of the Game: Frankie Tostado (2-3, 3B, BB, K, R, 2 RBI)

Heliot Ramos continued his strong start at Double-A, dropping another 1-3 performance alongside a double, walk, and a strikeout. The lone well-established hitting prospect on the Flying Squirrels roster, Ramos remains the only obvious follow for prospect fans at the start of the season at Double-A. With that said, this roster could very easily have some future big-league contributors in bench or platoon roles.

Andres Angulo, a 23-year-old catcher who has moved through the Giants system because of an advanced feel behind the plate, raised his batting average to .421 with a 2-4 day that included a double. David Villar might not have a good enough bat to justify a starting MLB job at third base, given his inconsistent defense. Still, he could tap into his power consistently enough to be a bench corner bat. He showed off his power on Sunday, homering for the second time on the season.

Not to be taken lightly either, Frankie Tostado blasted 18 home runs in his first taste of full-season ball with Augusta in 2019. A 19th round selection in the 2017 draft out of Oxnard College, Tostado will have to hit his way to the bigs without elite athleticism. Still, the junior college selection has adjusted well after skipping High-A. While he’s yet to hit any homers on the season, he’s struck out a reasonable six times in 22 plate appearances and has hit the ball hard frequently.

On the mound, Tristan Beck made his second start of the year. He did a much better job limiting the Yard Goats overall offense than on Opening Day, allowing just two runs in five innings of work. However, Beck managed just two strikeouts against two walks and five hits. With minor-league teams playing week-long series to limit travel, it will be interesting to see if starters struggle to rack up strikeouts the second games they throw against a team in the same week.

SF Giants Prospects Rundown 5/9: High-A

Eugene Emeralds 15 at Spokane 1
Performance of the Game: Will Wilson (4-6, 2B, 3B, K, 2 R, RBI)

It had not happened yet this season, but if you follow the minors long enough, you know the blowouts are always right around the corner (for better or worse). This time, the Eugene Emeralds were on the right side of the final score.

The Emeralds have easily been the most dominant Giants affiliate in the first week of the season, flashing a strong pitching staff but consistently generating offense throughout their lineup. On Sunday, every player in the lineup scored a run, and while Eugene racked up 15 runs by the end of the contest, they never scored more than four in an inning. Instead, a steady barrage of offense from the third through seventh inning took care of business.

Spokane’s pitchers struggled to find the strike zone all night, and Emeralds hitters took advantage, working 11 walks. In fact, they only managed six extra-base hits over the course of the game. Franklin Labour became the latest prospect to homer on back-to-back days, launching a three-run homer off Trysten Barlow in the seventh inning. Sean Roby doubled on his only hit. Speedster Simon Whiteman swiped his third bag of the year on a 2-3 day with a walk and a triple. Diego Rincones became the first Giants minor leaguer to hit three homers in 2021, adding a solo shot in the ninth to top off a 2-5 day. After an impressive performance at the Venezuelan Winter League this offseason, Rincones has carried that play into the regular season, hitting .455/.520/1.000.

Through all of the runs, only one player emerged with more than two hits in the game: Will Wilson. Wilson finished the game a home run short of the cycle and, perhaps more than anyone else at High-A, has the strongest case for a quick promotion to Double-A. The Angels first-round pick in 2019, Wilson was considered a safer prospect that could move quickly through the minor leagues. Over the past year, he has gained experience at the alternate site, instructs, and major-league spring training. Not only is he putting up the closest triple-slash to Rincones, who admittedly could find himself at Double-A some point this year as well, but Wilson has struck out just four times in 27 plate appearances in contrast to five walks.

On the mound, Caleb Kilian built off his dominant Opening Day start with another impressive outing. After striking out nine batters in four innings to start the season, Kilian recorded five strikeouts across five innings of work and allowed just one run on two hits. Through two starts, Kilian has allowed just one run through nine innings with 14 strikeouts and zero walks. Out of the pen, John Russell and Ryan Walker kept their ERA at 0.00, throwing two shutout innings.

SF Giants Prospects Rundown 5/9: Low-A

Fresno Grizzlies 3 at San Jose Giants 5
Performance of the Game: Armani Smith (2-2, HR, BB, 3 R, 2 RBI)

Heading into the season, the San Jose Giants roster was filled with powerful hitting prospects. The roster looked primed to show off some highlight-reel power. Through the first few games of the year, though, most of the hitters, especially those making their full-season debuts, have struggled against Fresno’s pitchers. While the offense was far from clicking on all cylinders on Sunday, fans got to see a glimpse of this roster’s highlight reel potential.

Top prospects Alexander Canario and Marco Luciano were quiet, both finishing 0-4 with two strikeouts, while Luis Matos received the day off. However, some of the more prominent former college players picked up the slack. After Zac Veen gave the Grizzlies an early 2-0 lead, Armani Smith started a small rally of his own, grounding a single past the shortstop. An error by the opposing second baseman on a hard-hit grounder by Casey Schmitt enabled Smith to finish his trip around the bases and cut the lead.

When Smith returned to the plate, he ensured the Giants would take the lead with a towering 400+ foot home run to put them up 3-2. After Fresno tied the game in the sixth, Smith worked a lead-off walk in the bottom of the seventh and scored on a massive home run by Schmitt.

The final line might suggest otherwise, but starting pitcher Prelander Berroa looked more comfortable on the mound than he did on Opening Day, finding more consistent location with all of his pitches. He again sat between 91-93 mph, touching 94 with his fastball, while occasionally deploying his breaking ball to minimal success. A throwing error by Schmitt on a bunt and some bad batted-ball luck in the first inning put Berroa in a quick hole, but he pitched through the rally well. He allowed two runs on five hits and one walk alongside two strikeouts in 3.1 innings of work. Justin Crump, who recorded his second win of the season, was incredibly valuable out of the pen, shutting out the Grizzlies for the final 2.2 innings.

We’ll be back with looks at the SF Giants farm system throughout the minor-league season with daily rundowns on the entire organization’s minor-league affiliates.