SF Giants hitting prospects rundown (5/8 - 5/14)

Make sure to revisit our weekly SF Giants prospect rundowns to keep up with each of the organization’s minor-league affiliates.

SF Giants hitting prospects rundown (5/8 - 5/14)

If you do not feel well acclimated to the prospects throughout the farm system, you might want to revisit this year's Prospect Week article (specifically the SF Giants 2022 prospects depth chart) or purchase the 2022 SF Giants Prospects Primer filled with scouting reports of 150 San Francisco Giants prospects from the best of the best to the unheard-of prospects. If you’re just interested in the biggest names, then the monthly updated 2022 Top 30 Prospects is just what you need.

River Cats Hitting Prospects

David Villar: 5 G, 20 PA, .471 AVG, 1.844 OPS, 2 2B, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 3 BB, 4 K
Kevin Padlo: 4 G, 18 PA, .375 AVG, 1.132 OPS, 2 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 SB
Heliot Ramos: 5 G, 19 PA, .105 AVG, .210 OPS, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 7 K,

David Villar is an unstoppable force. It is another one of those weeks once again for the third baseman and let's take a look at where Villar is in the PCL:

Batting average: ninth
OBP: fifth
SLG: first
OPS: first
Homers: first

Yeah. He is that kind of dude. The only way that could ever make us worry about Villar is the fear of him turning to Jaylin Davis when he gets to the big leagues and that could very well happen. But for now, let's enjoy the season that Villar is having because it is ridiculous.

It is another week of good stuff from Kevin Padlo as he continues to be a pretty solid addition for the Giants. Unlike Mike Ford who the Giants traded back to the Mariners, Padlo has looked good after a fresh start in the Giants organization early on with a 1.150 OPS for the River Cats squad. He's been called to action last week when the Giants needed bodies in the big league level but it looks like Padlo will be a mainstay in the River Cats lineup because of the return of several veterans to the big leagues. Both Padlo and Villar will likely struggle to find playing time but Farhan Zaidi once mentioned that they need to see a prospect dominate their level before calling them up and that's what both Villar and Padlo have to do in order to get the call.

That Zaidi quote of "dominating the level" refers to Heliot Ramos being sent back to Sacramento after he had a good first taste of the big league level this season. However, Ramos has done anything but dominate upon his return to the Triple-A level. In 23 games since his big league stint, Ramos has a .187 batting average, .515 OPS, and just one home run. He's doing well in terms of generating walks (11.4% in his return) but the strikeouts have crept up (23.8% strikeout rate in his return) and the power is basically non-existent so far. His .246 BABIP does not help, either but it shows that there is more to come for Ramos once he gets his groove back. My stance with Ramos has not changed much even after this rough patch but it will move if it extends up to the middle of June.

SF Giants hitting prospects rundown (5/8 - 5/14)

Flying Squirrels Hitting Prospects

Frankie Tostado: 6 G, 27 PA, .360 AVG, .927 OPS, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K
Brandon Martorano: 5 G, 24 PA, .158 AVG, .924 OPS, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 2 BB, 8 K, 1 SB
Brett Auerbach: 5 G, 22 PA, .167 AVG, .651 OPS, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 4 BB, 8 K

We have not talked about Frankie Tostado for quite some time but the first baseman is off to another strong start this season for the Flying Squirrels. The 24-year-old has a .333 batting average, .861 OPS, seven doubles, and four homers this season. His power production has been consistent for the past three seasons and he's shown that he does not mind hitting against lefties (.333 batting average against) or righties (also a .333 batting average against). The only couple of aspects that I am worried about in Tostado's 2022 season is the massive decrease in his walk rate (2.6%) as well as his swinging strike rate (19.8%, second-highest in the farm system) but the line drive rate is as high as it's ever been (26.2%) and he's been a massive believer in the opposite field approach this season. Tostado might not be more than a high-Minors depth piece but his bat could find a way to the Majors if he can sustain his hot starts towards the end of the season.

I have a question for you, guys. How can you still achieve a greater than .900 OPS while having a batting average below the Mendoza line? As Brandon Martorano proved to us, have all of your hits go out of the yard is the answer. After a strong start to the season, Martorano's production went to the gutter for the past couple of weeks but has pretty much turned on his power production. Ten of his 15 hits this season went for extra bases (five doubles and five homers) and his slugging has been inside the top five among all Richmond hitters while being in the bottom five in terms of batting average. His defense behind the plate has been pretty solid with the exception of his run game control. He's turned himself into a three-true-outcomes hitter with good framing ability behind the plate.

It's been pretty weird to not ever hear about Brett Auerbach's whereabouts since he missed two weeks from the end of April to the start of May. I asked a couple of people and it looked like Auerbach was sick, physically sick enough to miss games. Well, he's back and that's what matters. He's also hit an opposite-field home run last game and he's been clearly shedding off some rust before he pops off once again.

SF Giants hitting prospects rundown (5/8 - 5/14)

Emeralds Hitting Prospects

Casey Schmitt: 4 G, 15 PA, .455 AVG, 1.327 OPS, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 4 BB, 1 K
Carter Aldrete: 4 G, 14 PA, .462 AVG, 1.346 OPS, 2 2B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K
Hunter Bishop: 4 G, 17 PA, .400 AVG, 1.004 OPS, 2* 2B, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, 2 SB

With the constantly changing weather resulting in postponements or outright cancellations of games, those who keep finding the hits and putting on good at-bats amidst the weather are the ones who get my attention.

Casey Schmitt has not let up in terms of production with another standout week. It was interesting to note that Schmitt is currently tinkering with his swing with him having a straighter top hand in his follow-through in what could be an effort for his bat to travel better through the zone. He implemented that swing tweak cleanly by continuing to produce at a very high level. How high you might ask? He leads the Northwest League in both OPS (.994) and batting average (.325) and tied for first in homers (six) while having 30% fewer plate appearances. As I have mentioned last week, the whiffs have crept up on Schmitt in the recent weeks but he's shed down his strikeout rate this week. Oh, he's also played at shortstop once again this week too. And he's got the best slide to home plate this season as well. Is there anything that this guy can't do?

Like Schmitt, Carter Aldrete has kept on swinging a hot bat this month with a .308 batting average, 1.034 OPS, a couple of doubles and a couple of bombs this month. What's been amazing though is that he's dramatically improved his peripherals with double the walks compared to his strikeouts this month (four walks versus two strikeouts). His performance increased his OPS by 300 points to .745 and his batting average by 77 points to .231. He's been doing well in his second taste of the High-A and he's been doing well on defense to boot. He should be in line for a mid-season promotion if he keeps this up.

You might have noticed that I have an asterisk on Hunter Bishop's double because one of it was ruled a double but it was clearly a home run as it clearly hit the scaffolding above the yellow line in center field. Don't believe me? You be the judge!

Bishop finally has put on a strong week after scuffling hard over the first four weeks of the season. My biggest issue for him is his 37.8% strikeout rate. If I could compare his game at the moment, it would be like a team in football who had a couple of splash plays on offense sandwiched between plays for negative yards. I am not a fan of Bishop's all-or-nothing approach but if that's his way towards the big leagues then he will live and die by the three-true-outcomes.