SF Giants prospects rundown 5/21: Heliot Ramos busts out of slump

SF Giants Prospects Rundown 5/21: Double-A

Bowie Baysox 4 at Richmond Flying Squirrels 9
Performance of the Game: Heliot Ramos (3-4, 2B, HR, 4 RBI)

Heading into last night’s game, Heliot Ramos (fourth-ranked prospect) was in a bit of a slump. In his previous 7 games, Ramos racked up only 4 hits in 27 at-bats with no home runs and 11 strikeouts. The young Puerto Rican finally busted out of his slump in a big way, where he finished a triple shy of hitting for the cycle. He hit the go-ahead three-run home run in the bottom of the fifth. In the bottom of the seventh, Ramos padded the lead with his third hit of the night, a two-out double that scored Bryan Torres. After the game, Ramos’ batting average is now back above .300.

Speaking of the seventh inning, third baseman David Villar put the game effectively out of reach with his team-leading fourth home run of the season. Even though Villar has big flaws in his strikeout rates (3 more strikeouts today) and contact issues, but his defense at third base is Major League-quality and he can put balls into the bleachers when he makes good contact.

On the other side, it was an adventurous outing once again for Tristan Beck (16th-ranked prospect), as he pitched five innings of four-run ball, allowing three of those via the long ball, with three walks and a season-high seven strikeouts. Beck has been very hittable this year, where opposing teams hit .274 against him in his four starts.

After Ramos put the team ahead, it was a lights out for the Baysox hitters, as the duo of Joey Marciano and Norwith Gudino only allowed one baserunner in the final four innings (a harmless ninth-inning walk) with Gudino racking up four strikeouts to earn his third save of the season. Gudino has impressed me greatly so far this season, with a near 40% strikeout rate and a FIP of just 2.09. The secondaries looked really good when I watched him and if he keeps this up, there’s a big chance for a AAA promotion in the coming month.

Andy Sugilio is a pretty fun player to watch, as he punched in the first two runs for the Flying Squirrels today. The 2020 minor league free agent signee has the look of a fourth outfielder with a good knack for putting the ball in play.

One final note in today’s game, I absolutely love the lime and blue uniforms.

SF Giants Prospects Rundown 5/21: High-A

Eugene Emeralds 3 at Tri-City Dust Devils 2
Performance of the Game: Brandon Martorano (2-4, 3B, 2 R including go-ahead run)

It was a real nail-biter in Tri-City on Friday, as the Emeralds just eked out a win. The ninth inning was a real thriller. POG Brandon Martorano tripled to lead off the inning and the Ems loaded up the bases. But after a pair of strikeouts, the ballgame seemed to be over. However, from the jaws of defeat, a wild pitch for the second strikeout and Martorano rushed to home plate to score the go-ahead run.

In the bottom half, the Ems handed the ball to their closer, Jose Marte. The Dust Devils seemed to be in shape to at least tie the game after a HBP to Spencer Griffin followed by a single by Julio de la Cruz. Marte then proceeded to strike out the final two batters looking, both in full counts, to seal the thrilling win.

It was a pitching battle all throughout, as starter Connor Nurse pitched his finest outing of the season, a five-inning effort with 3 walks, 5 strikeouts, and 2 earned runs. The bullpen was stellar as well, with the aforementioned Marte closing it out and righty John Russell earning the W.

Aside from Martorano, most of the bats went relatively quiet but managed to get runs whenever they had the opportunity. Jacob Gonzalez punched in the first run of the game n a line-drive single to right in the second, and Simon Whiteman tied the game up in a 1-4-3 groundout that scored the Emetttrald’s catcher.

SF Giants Prospects Rundown 5/21: Low-A

San Jose Giants 0 at Fresno Grizzlies 10
Performance of the Game: Randy Rodriguez (3 1/3 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K)

When the Grizzlies posted a five-spot in the bottom of the first, I knew that the lil’ Gigantes were going to be in for a long night. In the end, the Grizzlies posted 10 runs while the Giants only mustered 4 hits.

Starter Prelander Berroa allowed five runs in a high-stress outing, although none of them were earned due to an errant throw on a routine groundball by Marco Luciano (top-ranked prospect), a wild pitch by Berroa, and a subsequent throwing error by the catcher Brett Auerbach. The Giants needed someone to douse the burning house and that is what POG Randy Rodriguez did, as he pitched a stellar 3.2 shutout innings to the tune of four hits, no walks, and two strikeouts. The Dominican right-hander flashed a good-looking slider and a fastball that has some running action.

Once Rodriguez was done after 51 pitches, the Grizzlies managed to score 5 more runs in the final four frames, with Luis Moreno earning four and Jorge Labrador earning the final run. Both looked gassed when they pitched their second inning of work.

Even though Berroa has an ERA of 2.79, the stat does not exactly tell the whole story. His walk rate is hovering around 14% and his xFIP (before last night’s game) is an appalling 5.38. On broadcast, he lacks the feel for pitches for most of his outing and was generally missing his spots in his first four starts of the season. Let’s see if he can hone in on his control in the coming months.

The bats were stymied by the Grizzly left-hander Breiling Eusebio, as he pitched six innings of four-hit ball with only 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Three of those hits were harmless singles by Abdiel Layer, who is dancing to the rhythm of an OPS of 1.245. The 40th round selection in the 2018 draft is certainly off to a hot start.

On the other end of the spectrum is Jimmy Glowenke, who is abysmal in the month of May. Heading to last night’s game, Glowenke has a wRC+ of 27 (league average is 100), and for a guy who is well-known for his strike zone control and ability to make consistent contact, his walk rate is a disastrous 2.4% and a strikeout rate of 28.6%. With another 0-3 game with 3 strikeouts, the second baseman’s batting average is now .182 and an OPS of .427. If there’s a silver lining to his poor start of the season, there’s nowhere to go but up. However, we need to see the signs that he’s finally found his footing in the coming weeks.

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