SF Giants middle infield prospect quietly finished strong year at the plate in tough hitter's environment

While a lot of the focus is on Bryce Eldridge's meteoric climb through the farm system, another young prospect quietly finished a strong year at the plate. Middle infielder Diego Velasquez earned a midseason promotion to Double-A and did more than just tread water.

SF Giants middle infield prospect quietly finished strong year at the plate in tough hitter's environment

The Giants signed Velasquez as an international free agent in 2020 out of Venezuela. He agreed to a $900,000 signing bonus.

Interestingly, the scouting report from Jesse Sanchez of MLB.Com in the link above described Velasquez as a "glove-first, defense-oriented player." It is hard to project players at that age but he is more of a bat-first player now.

The switch-hitter struggled during his time in Rookie Ball, but he has hit at every full-season stop despite being one of the younger hitters in the league. Last season with San Jose, he registered a .298/.387/.434 line (125 wRC+) with eight home runs, 69 RBI, and 76 runs in 517 plate appearances. This came with a solid 10.8 percent walk rate against a 15.9 percent strikeout rate.

Despite being a young hitter facing off against older competition, Velasquez has typically shown above-average contact skills with a good idea of the strike zone. Those traits have not wavered as he has advanced up the minor league ladder and that is what you want to see.

Velasquez began the year with the Eugene Emeralds and posted a .746 OPS with three home runs and 26 RBI in 318 plate appearances before earning a promotion to Double-A. Those numbers do not jump off of the page, but he continued to show a knack for hitting from both sides of the plate.

That said, there was some level of expectation that he would struggle in the Eastern League. After all, he was just one of a handful of players in his age-20 season to even reach Double-A as an everyday player this year. This is compounded by the fact that the Eastern League is just a tough hitter's environment due to the large ballpark dimensions, wet climate, and advanced pitching.

Double-A tends to be the level that really begins to test a player and reveal talent. It was expected to be a challenge for Velasquez but he has handled that challenge nicely.

Since his promotion, the switch-hitter slashed .313/.389/.374 (125 wRC+) with one home run, 20 RBI, and 14 runs in 170 plate appearances. This includes a 9.4 percent walk rate, 17.1 percent strikeout rate, and .061 ISO.

The Giants hope that Velasquez can develop a little more extra-base power, but the hit tool looks to be a solid one. He has consistent swing mechanics from both sides of the plate. Velasquez tends to hit for a little more power from the right side, but a few more line drives from the left side.

The 125 wRC+ is the number that stands out. There were only 10 hitters in their age-20 season to record at least 150 plate appearances in Double-A this season. Only four of those hitters posted a higher wRC+ than Velasquez and only one hitter (Justin Crawford - .333 batting average) had a higher batting average.

There will be questions about Velasquez's defense. He continues to see time at shortstop and second base, but he has the arm and range for the right side of the infield. That second bas-only profile is a tough one to shake. Nevertheless, Velasquez continues to make a positive impression with his bat and that could even lead to a camp invite next spring.