SF Giants hitting prospects week in review (6/12-6/18)

Make sure to revisit our weekly SF Giants prospect rundowns to keep up with each of their minor-league affiliates. If you do not feel well acclimated to the prospects throughout the farm system, you might want to revisit our prospect week articles that detailed the system from the top prospects to lower-level fringes. If you’re just interested in the biggest names, then the preseason SF Giants top 31 prospects list is the one-stop-shop for you.

SF Giants Prospects Weekly Rundown: Triple-A

Notable Performers

Thairo Estrada: 4 G, 18 AB, .389 AVG, 1.061 OPS, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K
Joey Bart: 5 G, 22 AB, .364 AVG, 1.073 OPS, 1 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 7 K
Joe McCarthy: 5 G, 18 AB, .278 AVG, .965 OPS, 2 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 4 BB, 2 K
Braden Bishop: 5 G, 23 AB, .261 AVG, .596 OPS, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 7 K
Bryce Johnson: 5 G, 21 AB, .238 AVG, .558 OPS, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 10 K, 1 SB

After getting called up to the bigs for three games, Thairo Estrada got sent down to Sacramento a week ago and has continued his hot hitting. It would take an injury or two for Estrada to have another crack at the MLB club, but he continues performing well at Triple-A, showing a good combination of contact ability, power, and defensive versatility.

Another week, another strong Joey Bart performance. He showed off his abilities defensively as well, throwing out two base stealers in two separate games. He’s definitely worthy of a big-league promotion even if he probably will not be getting one anytime soon.

Joe McCarthy had his 18-game hitting streak snapped in last night’s game. In June, the outfielder is hitting .380 with an OPS of 1.183 and has also tied his season-mark in home runs with his eighth bomb a couple of nights ago. He’s more than deserving to have another crack at the big leagues this year. However, without a spot on the 40-man roster, he’ll probably have to wait for a few other moves to shake out.

On the other end of the spectrum, Braden Bishop and Bryce Johnson cooled off this week. For Bishop, he is coming off a really hot first couple of weeks with the Giants organization. For Johnson, he continued to cool off after a scorching May. Johnson is batting .203 with an OPS of .542 in the month of June. The big worry is the spike in strikeouts with 23 already in just 13 games compared to 26 in 23 games in the previous month. There is still plenty of time for Johnson to bounce back as the temperature heats up though.

SF Giants Prospects Weekly Rundown: Double-A

Notable Performers

Frankie Tostado: 6 G, 23 AB, .304 AVG, .838 OPS, 1 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 8 K
David Villar: 5 G, 18 AB, .278 AVG, .825 OPS, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K
Sandro Fabian: 5 G, 19 AB, .211 AVG, .513 OPS, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K
Heliot Ramos: 6 G, 24 AB, .167 AVG, .536 OPS, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 3 BB, 7 K, 1 SB

It was a good week offensively for Frankie Tostado. The Richmond first baseman is batting .262 on the season. He has big strikeout issues, but he can hit for power on the left side and is an average defender at first base. His triple-slash is relatively unimpressive at .262/.312/.389, but given the pitcher-friendly environment in the Double-A East, Tostado is primarily holding his own. There are many examples of players putting up pedestrian numbers at Richmond before exploding onto the scene at Sacramento (e.g. Bryce Johnson).

With another home run this week, David Villar is currently tied with Vince Fernandez for the team lead in home runs with six. Villar has a bit more extreme profile than Tostado, with more power but greater contact issues. Even with a team-leading six home runs, Villar is hitting just .212/.307/.371.

Sandro Fabian has expectedly cooled off after a hot couple of weeks. With another cold week, Heliot Ramos is now batting .186 in the month of June with an OPS of .633. He has failed to record a multi-hit game so far this month and his two RBIs are the result of his two solo home runs. It is not yet the time to hit the panic button, still posting the best triple-slash on the roster at .262/.352/.434, but there probably is no rush to promote the 2017 first-round pick to Triple-A.

SF Giants Prospects Weekly Rundown: High-A

Notable Performers

Diego Rincones: 5 G, 17 AB, .294 AVG, .988 OPS, 2 2B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 3 BB, 4 K
Franklin Labour: 4 G, 11 AB, .455 AVG, 1.571 OPS, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 2 K, 2 SB
Tyler Fitzgerald: 5 G, 16 AB, .313 AVG, .921 OPS, 3 2B, 0 HR, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, 1 SB
Will Wilson: 5 G, 18 AB, .167 AVG, .485 OPS, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 4 BB, 7 K
Ismael Munguia: 5 G, 23 AB, .130 AVG, .391 OPS, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K

Diego Rincones cooled off a bit, batting 2-15 over a five-game stretch before last night’s seven-RBI performance against the Hops, which included a grand slam. Rincones is now batting .308 with .979 OPS. The 22-year old has proven himself to be an effective hitter with one of the strongest arms by a position player in the farm system. He may not share the high ceiling of several other outfield prospects in the system, but he’s showing the potential to be a solid everyday player.

The hottest hitter this week for the Emeralds is Franklin Labour, as he flashed his power with his home run as well as his speed with his two extra-base hits and a couple of stolen bases. Even though Labour’s batting average is only .232, his offensive production is above average with a wRC+ of 127. It is fueled with a high ISO of .202 but this season, Labour is showing three-true-outcome tendencies with high walk and strikeout rates.

With a couple of big bashing outfielders leading the way at the plate this week, it would come as a surprise that Tyler Fitzgerald is actually leading the team in RBI this season with 24. Fitzgerald’s primarily played second base for the Emeralds, where his size might have been an awkward fit but he’s doing a great job defensively with no errors to his credit. There’s a chance that he moves up a level if he continues to hit this well with a batting average of .304 in June.

Both Will Wilson and Ismael Munguia have been swinging a cold bat this week. However, Munguia has hit more than one home run in a season for the first time in his pro career. His swing has evolved a lot during the quarantine, hitting for more loft and power without sacrificing his signature high-contact ability.

https://twitter.com/EugeneEmeralds/status/1405752831852695552

A final couple of notes: Logan Wyatt drew six walks in three games this week, and Patrick Bailey has missed the entire series against the Hillsboro Hops due to back stiffness, according to the broadcast.