The SF Giants battle for a second bullpen lefty has a clear frontrunner, but there's a catch

Erik Miller is firmly entrenched as the top SF Giants left-handed pitcher in the bullpen. A couple of non-roster lefties remain in camp with Joey Lucchesi emerging as the clear frontrunner at this point.

The SF Giants battle for a second bullpen lefty has a clear frontrunner, but there's a catch

The Giants started spring training by handing out non-roster invites to eight left-handed pitchers, many of whom have thrown primarily in the minors. Lucchesi along with Enny Romero were a few exceptions, as each pitcher has quite a bit of experience in the majors.

Lucchesi has appeared in parts of six seasons in the majors. He pitched briefly for the New York Mets at the end of last year, allowing six earned runs in 10.1 frames. Despite working primarily as a starter, the Giants are using him as a reliever this spring with the potential to cover multiple innings.

On the other hand, Romero's pro career began with the Tampa Bay Rays as a 17-year-old pitcher back in 2008. He appeared in five seasons in the mid-2010's, but his last appearance on a major league mound was in 2018. His last full season as a pro was with the Chiba Lotte Marines in 2022. Since then, he has appeared in winter ball. Romero has yielded two earned runs in six Cactus League innings this spring.

Lucchesi is the clear frontrunner in this camp battle. He has completed seven scoreless innings with four strikeouts and one walk. The southpaw pitcher does not fit the typical profile of a hard-throwing reliever in today's game. His sinker hovers around 90 MPH, but his curveball has often been a tough pitch to hit. Plus, Lucchesi hides the ball well with a three-quarters arm slot.

While Lucchesi would be the second lefty in the bullpen, there is no given that the Giants even plan to carry two lefty relievers to start the year. The fact that they started with eight non-roster lefties does suggest that this was an area they were targeting for competition.

However, Bob Melvin has not firmly committed to carrying two left-handed relievers. That would be an odd look and put a lot of pressure on Miller to stay healthy and perform. For what it is worth, he did perform well as a leverage lefty last season, limiting same-sided hitters to a .163 batting average in 92 at-bats.

While the Giants seemingly have a need for a second lefty, it becomes a numbers game at this point. Lou Trivino is likely locked into a roster spot at this point. Adding another non-roster player would require a second move on the 40-man roster, and it could push someone like Spencer Bivens to the minors.

Any reliever with options without a solidified role could be a candidate to start the year with the Sacramento River Cats if the Giants plan to add more than one non-roster player to the Opening Day roster. This will become clear in the next few days, but for now, the Giants have not tipped their hand.