SF Giants hitting prospects week in review (7/10-7/23)

SF Giants Prospects Weekly Rundown: High-A

Notable Performers

Heath Quinn: 9 G, 31 AB, .355 AVG, 1.171 OPS, 4 HR, 12 RBI, 3 BB, 9 K
Carter Aldrete: 10 G, 35 AB, .314 AVG, 1.157 OPS, 5 HR, 13 RBI, 6 BB, 12 K
Brett Auerbach: 10 G, 42 AB, .262 AVG, .983 OPS, 1 2B, 5 HR, 11 RBI, 5 BB, 17 K, 2 SB
Ricardo Genoves: 12 G, 38 AB, .211 AVG, .773 OPS, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 7 BB, 14 K

Heath Quinn has long struggled with injuries throughout his professional career and has fallen out of the outfield depth chart as a result. Over the last two weeks, however, the 2016 third-round pick has shown that he’s still a respectable force when fully healthy, highlighted by a three-game stretch from July 13 to 15 where he went 8-11 with four home runs and 12 RBIs that earned him the High-A West Player of Week award. There’s a lot of fight left in Quinn and a strong finish

The most productive player over the past two weeks for the Emeralds however has been Carter Aldrete. The 2019 15th round selection has tremendous raw power but has struggled to make contact in the first two months of the season with a .212 batting average, only one home run, and a near 32% strikeout rate. This month though, he’s been hitting better with a .268 average but he’s finally hitting for power with five big flies. The strikeouts are still high with a 33.9% strikeout rate this month, but it’s the power that we want to see from Aldrete and it’s the power that we are getting.

Another Emerald who’s hit five home runs came from an unexpected source from super-utility man Brett Auerbach. The 5’9″, 185 lbs. baseball player flexed his muscles over the past two weeks highlighted by hitting a long ball in a three-game stretch. Auerbach now has eight home runs this season and while the strikeouts crept up over the past two weeks to a 36.2% rate, he has opened plenty of eyes this season with his ability to play any position in the field at a high level while showing the ability to make contact with a hint of more power than expected.

After having a stellar San Jose campaign, Ricardo Genoves has largely struggled to find consistency in High-A ball, batting only .206 with three home runs, all three came on a five-game span this week. However, the overall perception is that the 22-year old has improved his stock with his much-improved approach at the plate, posting a 15.7% walk rate in Eugene. The bigger issue for Genoves is his blocking behind the plate, with already 19 passed balls and more than a handful of wild pitches allowed across two levels. His catch-and-throw skills are still good with a 33% caught stealing rate, but his receiving and blocking could push him out of catching as he gets older.