SF Giants pitching prospects rundown (4/16 - 4/22)

SF Giants pitching prospects rundown (4/16 - 4/22)

Emeralds Pitching Prospects

Brooks Crawford: 2 G (1 W), 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 0.00 ERA
Randy Rodriguez: 1 G (1 GS), 2.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R (1 ER), 2 HBP, 2 BB, 4 K, 3.38 ERA
Wil Jensen: 2 G (1 W), 4.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 7 K, 2.08 ERA

Let's start off with the standout pitcher of the week for the Emeralds: Brooks Crawford. Crawford was one of the better performing pitchers in the San Jose bullpen throughout
2021 with a 1.96 ERA in 46 innings pitched. His fastball sits in the low-90s that he pairs up with a decent,
late-breaking slider that he can throw in and out of the zone pretty consistently. It's tough to project him anywhere else aside from relief given his age and his arm action but he has been a performer for more than a year now and will likely do so once again this time for the Emeralds.

After talking about Kyle Harrison last week, let's talk more about Randy Rodriguez this week. After only topping out at 94 MPH in his first appearance, Rodriguez has been more like himself in his second one topping out at 96 MPH with his fastball. The nasty nature of his stuff is still there but the control has been way off with a 59% strike rate. It was evident in his start that he is missing his spots but has managed to pile on the strikeouts because of his sheer stuff rather than combining it with execution. Let's continue to follow this experiment as the weather becomes better in the Pacific Northwest.

Rounding out this Emeralds rundown is Wil Jensen who is off to a terrific start once again pitching as a piggyback starter/bulk relief guy for the Emeralds. Jensen was the most effective pitcher in the first half of last season for San Jose, even better than Kyle Harrison, but has gone off the rails in the second half of last season. Jensen was at his best this week where he threw strikes, executing his pitches very well where he set up a north-south approach with his fastball-curveball combo, and he's making hitters think about his changeup. It's a solid pitch mix that combined with strong control makes him a safe pitching prospect in the system.