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[San Francisco Giants]

Vibes are the stat killer

Buster Posey gets dismissed by Hall of Fame baseball writer Jayson Stark in favor of Yadier Molina. Make sense?

This morning for The Athletic, Jayson Stark, one of the greatest baseball writers in human history, published his All-Quarter Century Team, which proudly declared that Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals is the best catcher in baseball through the first 25 years of this century. Why not Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants? Vibes.

Now, Stark states up top that his post is intended to set a tone for this series so that readers are compelled to vote in The Athletic’s polling (vote here). So, it’s plausible that he staked himself to a controversial opinion or two just to stir up the conversation. On the other hand, it’s not like he’s saying something outlandish. The Buster Posey vs. Yadier Molina conversation has been ongoing, and for most of the time it has been firm public sentiment that Yadi is better. They’re even making a movie about Molina’s greatness.

We’re hopelessly biased here because, well, he’s Buster Posey, a no-doubt Hall of Famer, and so it seems impossible that somebody could look at the field from the last 25 years and conclude otherwise. That’s precisely what Stark did, though, and where he occasionally uses stats in his piece to justify some of his selections (obviously, Barry Bonds makes it in as the left fielder for this team), he smashes that vibes button when it comes to Molina.

Indeed, Stark quotes an anonymous scout to back up his feeling and gets this gem:

“It’s Yadi,” he said. “It’s got to be Yadi. End of story. I don’t care about the numbers. Yadi has all the nuanced stuff you can’t measure. Go look at all those Cardinals pitching staffs that got better when he was behind the plate. And the second he left, they have not been the same.

This is basically advocating for the tooth fairy. He’s as good as the scout imagines in his head and that’s better than objective reality. Okay, fair enough. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I don’t know how valuable this scout is if he’s only evaluating players on his imagination but, you know what? I think that’s been a scout’s deal from the start. Glance, spit, and guess about a player. That’s tradition, right?

Now, the same could be said about Buster Posey’s absence before Patrick Bailey’s arrival. What also can be said is that “handling a pitching staff” isn’t really an important measure of a player’s greatness when you’re assembling an all-time great team that will include the best pitchers the sport has ever seen on its staff. How much more coaching up can Yadier Molina provide to Stark’s rotation (Verlander, Kershaw, Halladay, Scherzer, and Randy Johnson)?

I wasn’t personally angered by this article and the online discussion it has already generated and I’m only a little bit annoyed, which I’ll talk about later. There is a vague statistical case to be made for Molina ahead of Posey. Molina played 2,184 games at catcher and threw out 381 (40.3%) of stolen base attempters. He was basically a league average hitter over his career. It would be silly to entirely discount his defense or “managing a pitching staff,” since a player’s reputation absolutely impacts their Hall chances.

Posey, meanwhile, was an elite hitter overall and played 1,093 games at catcher. He threw out 256 stolen base attempters (32.9%). The games played and base stealing numbers represent a meaningful difference for the catcher position. If people just want to hold on to the thought that Molina is better, than so be it. That opinion has been cemented since, like, 2011, and despite Posey’s three championships, I think the Mandela effect of “The Buster Posey Rule” and the “early” retirement work against him across the sport. There’s also the fact that although Posey actually won an MVP (and Rookie of the Year), the MVP was the only time he was a top-5 MVP candidate, while Molina was a top-5 MVP guy twice who won 9 Gold Gloves to Posey’s 1.

Again, I’m biased. I think winning an actual MVP is more valuable than being in the conversation for one. A counter to the 9:1 Gold Gloves ratio is that Posey was so good he was able to encroach on Molina’s territory. A position player who can hit is more valuable than a simply elite defender. But... I’m wrong!

Vibes are real, and the Moneyball battle from the turn of the century was an attempt to counter its overwhelming power. But since Moneyball didn’t totally purge the straw hats from the sport, the Moneyball crowd’s self-inflicted burnout means vibes are back to stay. We have the best possible example in front of us: Buster Posey’s 2025 Giants. That is a vibes-based team from top to bottom, and it’s succeeding in spite of the middling numbers.

So, what I’m annoyed by is the possibility that Yadier Molina will be a first ballot Hall of Famer and Buster Posey will not, which the Jayson Starks of the world might be setting up (albeit unintentionally) by their casual dismissal of Posey’s genuine accomplishments because they just feel so good thinking about the Yadier Molina in their head. We might never understand why Yadier Molina brings such genuine pleasure to so many important baseball people, but he does, and there’s nothing Buster Posey’s career or Giants fans protestations can do about it.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...son-jayson-start-best-players-of-21st-century

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Matt Chapman has rarely been this bad against the fastball

Why are you looking at me like that, Chappy? I’m just looking at the numbers. | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

It’s probably not as big of a problem as you fear. Probably.

Nobody thought that Matt Chapman would repeat his transcendent 2024 season (5.4 fWAR), but he’s had a somewhat anonymous start to his 2025 for the San Francisco Giants. Oh sure, there have been highlights on both sides of the ball, but .217/.338/.411 doesn’t sit quite right. A quick scan of his Statcast data suggests a reason: he’s been tremendously awful against the four-seam fastball this season. Does that mean he’s going to be just good and not great? Not necessarily.

I’ll admit that his .217 average is what continues to stick out to me. When I think of Matt Chapman, I think of a .230/.240 hitter — not all that good, of course, but the on base and power usually make up for it. Right now, he’s got a .750 OPS. Also pretty soft for what he normally is. Given that we’re just a quarter into the season, I’d say that gives him room to grow and that’s an exciting prospect as the weather gets warmer and the Wild Card race tightens. Is there enough information in the data to suggest that rise is coming?

No need to hold your breath. The answer is: yes. Run Value is the main stat I’m looking at in this situation and that is a purely contextual stat. As Baseball Savant (Statcast) defines it:

Run Value Definition: the run impact of an event based on the runners on base, outs, ball and strike count.

Chapman’s -4 Run Value against the 4-seam fastball is 17th-worst in MLB (minimum 50 plate appearances), placing him among a crop of players you’d expect to be doing a lot better against a fundamental baseball pitch. Jung Hoo Lee is outpacing him with a -6 and Anthony Santander is right there with Lee. Tied with Chapman? Mike Yastrzemski.

Statcast has existed for all of Chapman’s career, so we can look at the whole thing and see what’s going on. He hasn’t been this bad against the four-seamer since his rookie season of 2017 (-4 Run Value). Is this a sign that he’s simply nearing the end of his career? That he’s slowing down? I don’t think so.

I think we’re dealing with a slow-ish start to his 2025 in one specific area. While it’s true that his bat speed is down year over year by about 1.5 mph and closer to where it was for his disappointing 2023, the quality of his contact is such that Statcast believes he should be a bit better overall. His actual wOBA is .335 (league average: .314). His expected wOBA is .362. So, the thunder is still in the bat.

This is where it gets tricky, though. His numbers against four-seam fastballs with 95+ mph velocity are bad, generating a wOBA of .214. That does suggest an insurmountable problem, as it simply becomes harder to catch up with the heat. But! The Giants’ “leaderboard” against velocity offers hope:

There you see Mike Yastrzemski with above league average wOBA against velocity when earlier you saw that he had negative run value against the pitch. This means that it’s all a matter of context. Chapman’s struggles against the four seamer (and cutter) could simply be a matter of timing or result of sequencing. Teams have pitched him differently in 2025:

2025 breakdown: 61.1% (+2.4%) fastballs, 28.1% (-4.4%) breaking, 10.8% offspeed (+2%)
2024 breakdown: 58.7% fastballs, 32.5% breaking balls, 8.8% offspeed

Going back to last season, Chapman’s wOBA against 95+ was just .298, so, in terms of room for improvement, there is perhaps not quite as much as I would’ve expected when doing the analysis, but I mean, come on, how many four-seam flamethrowers is he going to face the rest of the season?

::handed note::

Oh, there are about 130 pitchers who average 95+ with their four-seamer? Okay, then.

(Nervous laugh)

No, seriously, there’s not a reason for panic. It’s very hard to hit 95+ consistently, and Chapman’s career reflects that:

So a great player having a good season is no reason to worry or wonder and should the rest of the Giants’ lineup become harder to pitch to Matt Chapman might find it easier to hit.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...ainst-the-fastball-sf-giants-hitting-may-2025

 

[San Francisco Giants]

What a difference a bullpen makes

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Giants v. Nationals: a story told in relief

The goal for the San Francisco Giants offense going into Friday’s series opener against the Nationals was to try and get to the bullpen. By hook, or by crook — just get there, because an evening facing the left-rifle of MacKenzie Gore was going to be unpleasant.

There’s a reason the 26 year old spells his name with a capital-K smack-dab-in-the-middle of it. On his current pace, he’ll top 250+ Ks by season’s end. Coming into tenth start, Gore’s 34.7% Whiff rate was in the league’s 94th percentile, his 35.6% K-rate is in the 97th, while his 32.2% Chase is in the 83rd. He throws two breaking ball types (catering to the batter’s handedness) off his high-velocity four seam with opponents hitting just .178 against them. The slider, which he throws exclusively to lefties, has them hitting just .125 (4 for 32).

The performance by Washington’s starter went as advertised. He struck out 4 his first time through the Giants lineup, 5 over the first three frames, and 9 thru six. 14 swings-and-misses were aided by 11 called strikes. San Francisco’s known struggles against lefties were compounded by their struggles against the straight fastball, Gore relied on his four-seam 53% of the time, and against the righty-heavy line-up, leaned on the curve.

The Giants offense managed just two scratch singles a couple innings apart off of him. Their low hit totals and two double-plays in the 4th and 5th kept Gore’s pitch count manageable.

Things appeared helpless, and the only reason things weren’t completely so was Landen Roupp’s parallel scoreless performance.

It felt like both starters, nursing shutouts and low pitch counts, were in it for the long haul. They had rolled through the first six frames of Friday’s contest...but then they both abruptly left the game: Gore, with some physical discomfort after throwing six of his 7 pitches of the inning to start the inning; and Roupp, after being iced in the dugout by a long top of the frame, gave up a lead-off double and walked the next batter on 8 pitches.

Neither recorded an out in the 7th, and both were forced to put their hard-fought, well-earned shutouts in the care of interlopers.

Well, for Gore, at least. Interlopers is an apt description of the Washington Nationals bullpen, who’ve made an early case for the worst in the National League. Opponent’s are hitting .282 against their relievers, their 4.6 BB/9 is the high mark in the league. Lotta knocks, lotta walks good for a rough 1.62 WHIP. With them on the mound, innings tend to snowball. Batters turn into runners turn into runs — their 6.22 ERA is nearly a run more than the next highest ERA in the NL.

The numbers don’t lie. Gore reluctantly handed the wheel over to the relief corps, who promptly steered the car off a cliff. After managing just 2 hits and a walk against Gore through 6 complete, the Giants worked 4 walks, 5 hits and plated 4 runs in three innings while facing three Nats relievers.

Jackson Rutledge tag-teamed a walk to Chapman with Gore (officially, the BB goes to the starter) to give the Giants their first at-bat with a runner in scoring position. Wilmer Flores nearly murdered the rally by rolling into a 5-4-3 double play, but Willy Adames revived the frame with his RBI single up the middle.

The run in, the lead gained, the rally rescued, the order went on to work three more walks against Rutledge and score another run.

In the 8th, three consecutive singles from Jung Hoo Lee, Chapman and RBI man Flores brought in another; and later, with the bases loaded, their fourth and final run came in on a wild pitch from Andrew Chafin.

San Francisco’s relievers, in the meantime, lived up to their no nonsense billing.

The Giants bullpen is pretty much the statistical opposite of the Nationals’ in every meaningful category. Opponent’s were hitting just .202 against them going into this series, their 1.06 WHIP and 2.66 ERA is not only the best in the National League but best in the Majors.

Washington’s Rutledge took over the 7th and fanned the embers into flame. Randy Rodríguez saw embers and came down hard with his heel. With a 2-on, no-out situation and slim lead to protect, the righty struck out Robert Hassell III on four pitches. Four pitches later, a handsy 98 MPH fastball got José Tena to bounce into an inning-ending double play. In the 8th, Erik Miller got the red-hot James Wood to ground into another inning-ending two-fer, before Camilo Doval breezed through a clean 9th.

But the bullpen has nothing to preserve if not for another solid start by Landen Roupp.

Davey Martinez inked 7 lefties and 2 switch hitters into his lineup to face the righty Roupp. Lefties had slashed .267/ .337/ .382 (86 TBF) so far in the season, and the ploy forced him to rely less on his signature curveball, and ultimately worked in his favor.

Putting his main weapon on the back-burner, Roupp controlled the game rhythm with his tailing sinker and change-up. Both offerings moved away from left-handed swings and helped dictate weak, and often early-count, contact. He needed just 67 pitches to throw 6 complete innings while producing 10 ground ball outs (and just 2 strikeouts). Though he got tagged for a trio of doubles and five hits in total, Roupp kept the lead-off batter from reaching base in six of the seven innings he started.

This was Roupp’s second consecutive scoreless outing and fourth quality start in 10 games. Over 22 innings (4 GS) in the month of May, he’s now posted a 1.64 ERA.

A four-pitcher shutout to cool down a Washington squad who had scored 37 runs in five straight wins. And on top of all that...a win against a lefty??

Not a shabby start to the road trip.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...den-roupp-mackenzie-gore-nationals-mlb-scores

 

[San Francisco Giants]

5/24 Gamethread: Giants @ Nationals

Photo by Bailey Hillesheim/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Kyle Harrison vs. Jake Irvin.

After a delightful 4-0 win on Friday, the San Francisco Giants will look to start their road trip with consecutive victories, and clinch a series win against the Washington Nationals.

It’s a very exciting game for the Giants, because lefty Kyle Harrison will be making his first start of the year. After spending all of 2024 in the rotation, the 23-year old local kid was dealt a dual blow in spring training, as he rehabbed a shoulder injury and suffered a serious illness. As a result, he started the year with AAA Sacramento, while Landen Roupp took the fifth spot in the rotation. Harrison bumped up his velocity, impressed mightily, and returned to the Giants a few weeks ago in a relief role. When Jordan Hicks was removed from the rotation, Hayden Birdsong slid into the spot.

But now it’s Harrison’s turn. With Justin Verlander suffering a mild pectoral injury, Harrison will make a pair of starts in the three-time Cy Young winner’s absence. In four relief appearances this year, Harrison has a 3.38 ERA and a 4.58 FIP, with seven strikeouts and three walks in 5.1 innings. In his six AAA starts before getting called up, he had a 3.463 ERA, a 3.00 FIP, and 38 strikeouts against eight walks in just 26 innings.

He’ll be up against right-hander Jake Irvin, who makes his 11th start of the season. Irvin, a 28 year old who is pitching in his third MLB season, is 3-1 on the year, with a 3.88 ERA, a 4.80 FIP, and 40 strikeouts against 17 walks in 60.1 innings. In his last outing, Irving gave up two runs in 6.1 innings against the Baltimore Orioles.

Enjoy the game! Go Giants!

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Lineups​

Giants

1. Mike Yastrzemski (L) — RF
2. Heliot Ramos (R) — LF
3. Jung Hoo Lee (L) — CF
4. Wilmer Flores (R) — DH
5. Matt Chapman (R) — 3B
6. Willy Adames (R) — SS
7. LaMonte Wade Jr. (L) — 1B
8. Patrick Bailey (S) — C
9. Tyler Fitzgerald (R) — 2B

LHP. Kyle Harrison

Nationals

1. CJ Abrams (L) — SS
2. Amed Rosario (R) — 3B
3. James Wood (L) — DH
4. Nathaniel Lowe (L) — 1B
5. Keibert Ruiz (S) — C
6. Alex Call (R) — LF
7. Luis García Jr. (L) — 2B
8. Daylen Lile (L) — RF
9. Robert Hassell III (L) — CF

RHP. Jake Irvin

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Game #52​

Who: San Francisco Giants (30-21) vs. Washington Nationals (23-28)

Where: Nationals Park, Washington, DC

When: 1:05 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...-to-watch-lineups-tv-kyle-harrison-jake-irvin

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Do-Ray-Mi-Fa-So-La-Ti-Do

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

I’m running out of Robbie Ray name puns

3 runs are more than zero — but it still ain’t a lot. That much became nerve-wrackingly clear with Ryan Walker on the mound in the 9th, when two doubles halved the Giants 3-1 lead and the Nationals came within a hit from tying it up, and homer from stealing the game and the series.

Though Walker danced on the edge of oblivion (Nathaniel Lowe came within a foot of slapping a game-tying double), he got the job done, striking out Lowe with one-out and the tying run on second before Alex Call flew out to right.

The San Francisco Giants aren’t scoring runs…and yet they’re winning more than losing. It’s no secret why. It’s the pitching, bruv. They’ve got the best bullpen in baseball, and one of the better rotations. After losing the first Robbie Ray start of the year against Kansas City last week, the Giants offered up their best apology by not letting another gem go to waste.

May they never do it again.

Sunday’s outing was Ray’s seventh quality start in 11 games, and sixth in a row. He’s now 7-0 with a 2.56 ERA and the Giants are 10 and 1 in his starts. The veteran lefty breezed through 6 innings, allowing just 1 R on 3 hits while striking out 7, the fastball responsible for six of them. It was also Ray’s first game without a walk all season.

The Nationals scratched their only run across in the 3rd after Nasim Nuñez scampered around the bases after a lead-off single with two stolen bases and a wild pitch. Hits against Ray have been few and far between for opponents. Coming into this start, he’s allowing less than 7 hits per 9 innings and held lineups to 3 hits or less in six games now after Sunday’s stingy performance.

Washington went knock-less in just 4 at-bats with runners in scoring position against Ray. Three of them came in the 2nd after a lead-off double from Lowe. An opportunity that quickly fell flat when Ray promptly induced two grounds out and a K.

The Nationals’ next at-bat with a runner in scoring position didn’t come until two-outs in the 6th when Amed Rosario doubled and big man James Wood lumbered up to the plate. For those astute observers, the situation called to mind Saturday’s first inning when Wood followed a Rosario double by with a decisive line-drive homer to right.

Another one of those would’ve meant a whole new ballgame, and the home run haunt has always been a very-real possibility for opposing hitters when facing Ray. The hits come few-and-far between, but free bases followed up by long balls have frequently been used to unravel otherwise solid pitching performances throughout his career.

But that’s been the not-so subtle key to Ray’s success in 2025. He’s still striking out a lot of batters (a little less than usual though), walking the same amount, still getting hit hard — he’s just not giving up homers. His 0.8 HR/9 and 7.9% HR/FB going into game has been his lowest rate since 2015 and are half of what they were in his last full season in 2022 and his Cy Young season in 2021.

Ray has said no more to downer dingers, and he did it again against the Nationals on Sunday.

It was a down-and-in slurve that Wood used to torpedo Harrison’s start yesterday, so Ray, as he did all game, used his hard breaking ball sparingly (21% usage). Four fastballs split the count before he slung the slider, dotted down and away, which Wood fouled off. A great pitch spoiled, but the location and type set-up Ray’s next offering: a 95 MPH, chin-high fastball that Wood couldn’t help but chase.

The strikeout was Ray’s last act on the mound. He’s now gone six starts and more than 40 innings pitched without allowing a baseball to leave the yard.

Speaking of baseballs leaving the yard. The Giants did that! More specifically, Sam Huff did that, and it was about time. Not specifically for Huff (though it’s been a month since he launched his first in Anaheim), but as a team. San Francisco hadn’t had an extra base-hit all series. A drought that had dogged on for twenty innings before Huff said no longer and skipped a Mike Soroka fastball off the top of the wall in right. Mike Yastrzemski followed up the solo shot with a triple, later scoring on Heliot Ramos ground out.

The game plan against Soroka was to attack early due to his extremely low walk rate. It worked in the sense that opportunities were created and runs were scored. It wasn’t a lot, as we discussed earlier, but it was plural!

After plating just one run and managing only 2 at-bats with runners in scoring position against the previous two Washington starters, the Giants scored three times with five at-bats with RISP against Soroka, all within the first three frames! In these lean times, this qualifies as a veritable eruption of offense. Did they get a hit with a runner in scoring position? No! Did they bring in a run on a lucky check-swing roller that traveled maybe sixty feet up the first baseline? Heck yes! Did they manage just one hit over the last six frames? Of course! Is that all fine! Today it was!

Now on to Detroit.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...ap-robbie-ray-washington-nationals-mlb-scores

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Monday BP: Which series are you most interested in this week?

Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images

A new week of Giants baseball has begun. Which series are Giants fans most interested in this week?

Good morning, baseball fans!

The San Francisco Giants are kicking off another week of baseball today. If you’re a fan of baseball games that start while you’re still having breakfast, this is the week for you!

First up, the Giants head to Michigan to start a three-game series against the Detroit Tigers. As of the time this is being written, the Tigers are currently in first place in the AL Central by a pretty healthy margin.

After that, they get a off-day on the road Thursday before heading to Florida to take on the Miami Marlins for the second and final time this season. As of the time this is being written, the Marlins are in last place in the NL East.

Normally, I might pick the Marlins series. A struggling team means a good opportunity to pick up some wins. However, we can’t ignore the Marlins death fog. If you’re unfamiliar, the Marlins death fog is a phenomenon in which the Giants go to Miami in one piece and then leave in various states of injury. It’s not great.

So I think my pick for this week has to be the Tigers. Terrible start times (two 10am starts), but more competitive baseball and no death fog.

Which series are you most interested in this week?​

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...2025-san-francisco-giants-schedule-look-ahead

 

[San Francisco Giants]

5/26 Gamethread: Giants @ Tigers

Photo by Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/Getty Images

Hayden Birdsong vs. Keider Montero.

It’s time for a new series, as the San Francisco Giants are off to Michigan to visit the Detroit Tigers. And the series kicks off with some Memorial Day sunlight baseball.

The Giants are sending right-hander Hayden Birdsong to the mound for his second start of the year. In 12 total appearances this year, Birdsong is 2-0 with a 1.91 ERA, a 4.14 FIP, and 29 strikeouts to 10 walks in 28.1 innings.

For the Tigers, it’s right-hander Keider Montero, who makes his seventh appearance, and fifth start. The second-year pro is 1-1 with a 5.28 ERA, a 5.30 FIP, and 21 strikeouts to 13 walks in 30.2 innings.

Enjoy the game! Go Giants!

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Game #54​

Who: San Francisco Giants (31-22) vs. Detroit Tigers (34-20)

Where: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan

When: 10:10 a.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...ch-tv-schedule-hayden-birdsong-keider-montero

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Tuesday BP: Revisiting the 2012 World Series

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

With the Giants in Detroit this week, I thought we all deserved a bit of a treat. Let’s take a look back at the magical 2012 playoff run!

Good morning, baseball fans!

With the San Francisco Giants recently wrapping up a series against the Kansas City Royals, and now in the middle of a series against the Detroit Tigers, one cannot be blamed for being in the mood for a little bit of nostalgia.

So today I thought we would revisit the 2012 World Series. The Giants were definitely the underdogs (to everyone except one Grant Brisbee, who iconically predicted the outcome). Despite having their backs against the wall in the series leading up to it, the Giants came in and swept the Tigers in four games to clinch their second World Series championship in three seasons.

Personally, this was my favorite of the three. Not necessarily for baseball reasons, it’s just the one that I remember most fondly. I was deathly ill during the 2010 World Series, and had left the Bay Area before 2014, so this was the one that I feel the most tied to. I remember listening in my car on breaks, and eventually my boss sending us home to watch when he realized no one was going to be getting any more work done.

For anyone else who is feeling a little nostalgic, here’s a video from the Giants’ social media team about the entire magical 2012 playoff run.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...-francisco-giants-2012-world-series-revisited

 

[San Francisco Giants]

5/27 Gamethread: Giants @ Tigers

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

Logan Webb vs. Jack Flaherty

The San Francisco Giants continue this three-game road series against the Detroit Tigers this afternoon.

Taking the mound for the Giants will be right-hander Logan Webb, who enters today’s game with a 2.67 ERA, 2.16 FIP, with 74 strikeouts to 16 walks in 67.1 innings pitched over 11 starts. His last start was in the Giants’ 8-4 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday, in which he allowed six runs (three earned) on 10 hits with five strikeouts in four innings.

He’ll be facing off against Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty, who enters today’s game with a 4.39 ERA, 4.42 FIP, with 64 strikeouts to 18 walks in 53.1 innings pitched over 10 starts. His last start was in the Tigers’ 7-0 loss to the Cleveland Guardians, in which he allowed three runs on three hits with eight strikeouts and three walks in six and two thirds innings.

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Lineups​

Giants​

1. Mike Yastrzemski - RF
2. Heliot Ramos - LF
3. Wilmer Flores - DH
4. Jung Hoo Lee - CF
5. Matt Chapman - 3B
6. Willy Adames - SS
7. Casey Schmitt - 1B
8. Patrick Bailey - C
9. Tyler Fitzgerald - 2B

RHP: Logan Webb

Tigers​

1. Kerry Carpenter - RF
2. Gleyber Torres - 2B
3. Colt Keith - DH
4. Riley Greene - LF
5. Spencer Torkelson - 1B
6. Wenceel Pérez - CF
7. Dillon Dingler - C
8. Trey Sweeney - SS
9. Javier Báez - 3B

RHP: Jack Flaherty

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Game #55​

Who: San Francisco Giants (31-23) vs. Detroit Tigers (35-20)

Where: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan

When: 3:40 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...how-to-watch-lineups-logan-webb-jack-flaherty

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Wednesday BP: How are you feeling about the season so far?

Photo by Loren Elliott/MLB Photos via Getty Images

Every few weeks, we like to check in with Giants fans to see how they’re feeling about the team’s performance thus far. Let’s see how everyone is feeling after a fairly mediocre month of play.

Good morning, baseball fans!

Every few weeks, I like to check in with San Francisco Giants fans to see how everyone is feeling about where the team is at right now.

I have to say, I’m a bit more cautious in the cautious optimism I expressed in our last check-in. They’ve essentially been playing .500 baseball for the month of May.

This is being written before Tuesday’s game against the Detroit Tigers, but if they end up losing that game, then they will not only be evenly split at 12 wins and losses for the month of May, but they will also be split 4-4 for series wins and losses.

That’s a lot less exciting than being in first place (as they briefly were the last time we did one of these), and a lot more like the .500 baseball we’ve come to know and expect from this team over the majority of the last decade.

That said, as of the time I’m writing this, they still find themselves competitive in the National League West, with the Los Angeles Dodgers being in first place and having just a two-game lead on both the Giants and San Diego Padres.

So things aren’t really that bad.

Additionally, they did what they needed to do in May for the most part. In the series they really needed to take advantage of (against the Colorado Rockies, Athletics, and Washington Nationals) they did just that, winning all three with a sweep of the A’s to boot.

Unfortunately, they also got swept by the Minnesota Twins and lost a series to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Those series and many of the individual losses within feel very much like they could (if not should) have been wins because of how close they were.

And now we come to the crux of the issue.

They need to score more runs when it counts. I know, genius-level analysis right there, but it’s true. They’ve been within two runs of winning in eight of their losses this month, and within only one run in five of those. Clutch hitting isn’t necessarily a science, but it is absolutely noticeable in its absence.

Moving forward, the Giants will have a few formidable foes in the month of June (including their first series against the Dodgers of the year). But they will also have plenty of opportunities to pick up games against struggling teams, with series against the Miami Marlins (twice), Rockies, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago White Sox.

So I think I will retain my cautious optimism and hope for a better showing in June.

How are you feeling about the season so far?​

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...-francisco-giants-review-schedule-performance

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Minor League roundup, 5/27: Jerar Encarnación homers in his rehab restart

Photo by Jeff Dean/Getty Images

Yesterday’s action on the farm.

Just a trio of games for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates on Tuesday, as Low-A San Jose and the ACL Giants both had the day off. Let’s dive into the action.

Link to the 2025 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the positions played in that particular game.

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News​

Some pretty interesting news! During Wednesday’s game — which will be covered tomorrow, as it’s currently ongoing — AAA Sacramento started Marco Luciano at first base for the first time in his career. This could be an indictment of his development curve in the outfield, but I think it’s more likely that the Giants are intrigued by how well he’s been swinging the bat, and first base is an area of need in the Majors.

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AAA Sacramento (25-27)​

Sacramento River Cats lost to the El Paso Chihuahuas (Padres) 9-5
Box score

The biggest news in Sacramento was that first baseman Jerar Encarnación restarted his rehab assignment. Encarnación, who is eligible to come off the 60-Day IL, is expected to join the Giants within the next few days if everything goes well with his rehab. And on Tuesday, everything went well with his rehab.

The powerful right-hander had a dynamic day, hitting 1-2 with a home run, a walk, and a stolen base, before being replaced halfway through the game. He also committed an error at first.

JERAR STARTS US OFF STRONG pic.twitter.com/rBosrJsdf6

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) May 28, 2025​

That swing sure will look nice back in San Francisco!

A fantastic day for third baseman/first baseman Devin Mann, who hit a perfect 2-2 with a double, 2 walks, and a hit by pitch. Mann, a 28-year old who was recently signed to a Minor League deal, would seem to have taken David Villar’s place as the emergency corner infield depth, though Luciano’s move to first base might be changing that.

And excitingly, right fielder Wade Meckler (No. 13 CPL) made his return to Sacramento! Meckler was injured in the 2nd game of the season, and was sidelined for more than a month and a half. He started a rehab assignment in the ACL a little over a week ago, and on Tuesday he was back in Sacramento’s lineup. We didn’t get to see Meckler’s preternatural contact skills, but we did see his control of the zone, as he went 0-2 with 2 strikeouts but also drew 3 walks. The lefty also committed an error in the grass.

A funny start for RHP Carson Seymour (No. 21 CPL). He showed some power by hitting 99, and was comfortably into the 97s even on his final pitches of the night. That’s exciting! But the rest of the performance was quite poor. The righty went 5 innings and allowed 6 hits — including 2 home runs — while also walking 4 batters and striking out just 4. That tagged him for 8 runs, 6 of which were earned.

After an awesome start to the year, Seymour has really started to hit some obstacles, especially when it comes to limiting free passes. Take a look at his splits:

First 4 starts: 18 innings, 10 hits, 5 walks, 2 earned runs, 22 strikeouts
Next 7 starts: 34.2 innings, 35 hits, 22 walks, 23 earned runs, 37 strikeouts

Certainly something to work on for Seymour, though the raw stuff is still very exciting. He has a 4.27 ERA and a 4.67 FIP on the year.

A nice outing for RHP Sean Hjelle, who tossed 2 scoreless frames with 3 hits and 1 strikeout. It’s a tough path back to the bigs for Hjelle, given that Tristan Beck is pitching well in San Francisco and Justin Verlander is set to return from the IL before long, but the extremely tall righty is staying ready, with a 3.18 ERA, a 2.68 FIP, and 30 strikeouts to 9 walks in 28.1 innings this year.

AA Richmond (13-33)​

Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Harrisburg Senators (Nationals) 3-2 (11 innings)
Box score

Ahhh, the Manfred Man. It makes for some silly baseball. This was a scoreless baseball game after 9 innings, but both teams scored a pair of runs in the 10th inning, before the Senators added the winning run in the 11th. And thanks to some poor defense, neither team allowed an earned run in this game!

The star was the starter, LHP Joe Whitman (No. 9 CPL). After a slow start to the year, Whitman has come alive lately. Following last week’s start in which he struck out 11 batters in just 5 innings, the 2023 compensation round pick went 7 brilliant innings in this one, allowing just 4 hits and 1 walk, while striking out 5 and giving up no runs.

Sunshine in a can, heat on the mound

Soak in these @DrinkSurfside strikeouts! pic.twitter.com/TGvR8Lgfju

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) May 28, 2025​

Ready to see just how much Whitman has improved so far this year? Check it out:

4 April starts: 14.1 innings, 13 hits, 6 walks, 12 earned runs, 8 strikeouts
5 May starts: 29 innings, 18 hits, 10 walks, 5 earned runs, 31 strikeouts

4 of those 5 runs came in 1 start, and 4 of the 10 walks came during last week’s 11-strikeout explosion, when it was pouring rain and a loss of control was to be expected.

Either way, Whitman is starting to put together a high class season. Among the 44 pitchers in the Eastern League with at least 30 innings pitched this season, he ranks 21st in ERA (3.53), 10th in FIP (3.35), 12th in strikeouts per 9 innings (10.2), and 27th in walks per 9 innings (3.3). Not bad for a player in just their 2nd full season, who had a rough start to the year.

RHP Evan Gates also had an awesome game, giving up 2 hits (both singles) in 2 scoreless frames, while striking out 3 batters. Gates, an undrafted free agent from 2021, has quietly been having an awesome season, with a 3.32 ERA, a 3.26 FIP, and a spectacular 27 strikeouts to 4 walks in 21.2 innings. This is his 4th straight year seeing time in Richmond, and last year he spent a fair amount of time in Sacramento but with poor results. I’ll be curious to see if he gets back there soon.

Not a lot doing on offense at all. First baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) had a fine, if uneventful day, hitting 1-4 with a double and an intentional walk, which gives him an .874 OPS and a 154 wRC+. Second baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 16 CPL) hit 0-2 but drew 2 walks and was hit by a pitch. The young switch-hitter is sitting on a .715 OPS and a 115 wRC+.

High-A Eugene (24-22)​

Eugene Emeralds beat the Tri-City Dust Devils (Angels) 8-3
Box score

After a little bump in the road, right fielder James Tibbs III (No. 3 CPL) is certainly off and running again. Last year’s 1st-round pick, known more for his hit tool than his power, once again put the barrel of the bat on the ball, hitting 1-4 with a 2-run home run, a walk, and 2 strikeouts.

Tibbster Tee Time! James Tibbs III launched his eighth home run of the season yesterday against the Dust Devils. He is now third in the Northwest League in home runs. pic.twitter.com/oXXSCXEl3M

— Giant Prospective (@giantprospectiv) May 28, 2025​

With the gorgeous swing, Tibbs now has 8 homers on the year, which is only 1 off the lead in the organization (held by Marco Luciano), and 2 off the lead if you count San Francisco (where Heliot Ramos and Wilmer Flores both have 10).

Tibbs began his debut full season by doing a lot of damage, and then the extra-base knocks entirely avoided him. But now they’re back. It’s been a funny 3-act season for him so far:

First 16 games: 16-57, 2 home runs, 0 triples, 4 doubles, 13 walks, 9 strikeouts
Next 14 games: 5-50, 1 home run, 0 triples, 0 doubles, 12 walks, 10 strikeouts
Last 11 games: 13-40, 5 home runs, 1 triple, 3 doubles, 6 walks, 12 strikeouts

Look at that power! The 22-year old is now up to an .833 OPS and a 132 wRC+, with a strikeout rate exactly half of what it was during his stint in Eugene last year, and an isolated power mark that’s more than doubled. Talk about making rookie adjustments!

Center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 11 CPL) had another nice game, hitting 2-5 with a triple, 3 runs batted in, and a strikeout, boosting his OPS to .904 and his wRC+ to 145. I wonder if we’ll see Davidson and Tibbs in Richmond sometime this summer?

Shortstop Zane Zielinski, who got the aggressive debut assignment in High-A, hit 2-5 and stole a pair of bases. Zielinski has had basically no power this year, but he’s sporting a .254 average and a .357 on-base percentage, and has 12 stolen bases in 15 attempts in 38 games. Not too shabby for someone who skipped 2 levels!

But the game was won on the mound where RHPs Josh Bostick (No. 27 CPL) and Austin Strickland were absolutely dynamic. Bostick hasn’t had the year he was hoping for, but you wouldn’t know it if you only watched on Tuesday. He mowed down batters for 5 strong innings, giving up just 1 hit (which was admittedly a home run), while walking 2 and hitting a batter, all while striking out 9. He technically gave up 3 runs, but since they all occurred following an error, he has a donut in the earned runs column, which lowered his ERA to 4.50, albeit with a 5.84 FIP. Like I said: not the year he was hoping for, but games like this can turn it around in a hurry.

As for Strickland, he was beyond dominant. He pitched 3 shutout innings in which he allowed just 3 baserunners — a single and 2 hit batters — and secured 7 of his 9 outs by way of the strikeout. My goodness. It hasn’t been a great year for the 2023 8th-round pick, who came to the Giants in the Joey Bart trade, but he’s certainly starting to figure things out. In his last 3 appearances, he’s given up just 1 hit in 7.2 innings, with 12 strikeouts (though he’s both walked and hit 4 batters during that time).

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Home run tracker​

AAA Jerar Encarnación (1)
High-A James Tibbs III (8)

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Wednesday schedule​

Sacramento: vs. El Paso, 12:05 p.m. PT (SP: Mason Black)
Richmond: vs. Harrisburg, 3:35 p.m. PT (SP: Nick Sinacola)
Eugene: at Tri-City, 6:30 p.m. PT (SP: Cesar Perdomo)
San Jose: vs. Inland Empire, 1:00 p.m. PT (SP: Niko Mazza)

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...ion-marco-luciano-james-tibbs-iii-joe-whitman

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Thursday BP: Is it time to be concerned about the Giants?

Photo by Darren Yamashita/MLB Photos via Getty Images

After getting swept for the second time this month, are Giants fans starting to get concerned about the team?

Good morning, baseball fans!

As sports fans, we are often guilty of the sin of overreaction. I’m guilty, you’re guilty, your cat is probably even guilty. Since today is an off-day for the San Francisco Giants, let us be guilty together and do a bit of overreacting.

The Giants just got swept by the Detroit Tigers. It sucks, but it’s fine. The Tigers are first in their division and will likely be playoff contenders. Not too much to freak out about there, even if it was frustrating as heck.

They were also swept by the Minnesota Twins earlier in the month. A little less respectable, but it happens. And it adds to the small pile of worry that grows in our heads.

The Giants have officially lost more games than they’ve won in the month of May. Which is not great. Doesn’t feel good. I’m not a fan of it, and it’s got me freaking out just a little bit.

It helps when I look at the standings and see that they’re still only three games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. Could be worse, but also very easily could get worse quickly if they don’t turn it around.

However, speaking of worse, the Colorado Rockies have only won nine games this year. So, you know, at least there’s that. The Giants could probably lose every game for the rest of the season and still not fall below fourth in the division.

So that’s something.

Is it time to worry about the Giants?​

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2025/5/29/24438974/mlb-2025-san-francisco-giants-doom-gloom-panic

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Minor League roundup, 5/28: Another day, another Bryce Eldridge home run

Photo by Matthew Mitrani/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images

Yesterday on the farm.

A busy Wednesday for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates, and it’ll soon get busier: the Dominican Summer League season is right around the corner! For now though, it’s just five teams. Let’s dive into what they did yesterday.

Link to the 2025 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the positions played in that particular game.

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AAA Sacramento (25-28)​

Sacramento River Cats lost to the El Paso Chihuahuas (Padres) 3-1
Box score

A very uninteresting game for the River Cats, save for one fascinating wrinkle that we covered briefly yesterday: Marco Luciano started at first base, the first time in his career that he’d played the position.

NBC Sports Bay Area’s Alex Pavlovic shined some more light on the move during today’s Giants Talk podcast, and it was about what you would expect. The Giants are nearing a point of needing to make a change at first base given how poorly LaMonte Wade Jr. (and, to a lesser extent, Casey Schmitt) has hit. Getting Luciano some familiarity and comfort there would be helpful so that he can be an option, especially with the outfield very much set right now.

When it came to the actual baseball, though, Luciano and his fellow 40-man roster position players were quite awful at the top of the lineup: center fielder Grant McCray went 0-4; designated hitter Jerar Encarnación (in his 2nd game since restarting his rehab) hit 0-4 with a strikeout; left fielder Wade Meckler (No. 13 CPL) went 1-4; and both Luciano and second baseman Brett Wisely hit 0-4 with 2 strikeouts. Hard to score runs like that!

It was, instead, the veteran Minor League free agent signings who provided the little burst of offense for the River Cats: right fielder Daniel Johnson went 1-4 with a double; catcher Max Stassi hit 1-3 with a walk; and third baseman Jake Lamb finished the day 2-3.

The lone standout performance came from RHP Mason Black (No. 7 CPL). It wasn’t an overpowering performance from Black, but it was a strong one, as he tossed 6 innings with just 4 hits, 2 walks, and 1 run allowed, though he only struck out 3 batters.

Black was, somewhat surprisingly, a strong strikeout artist to start the year, with 19 Ks in 12 innings over his 1st 3 appearances. But since then, he has just 29 strikeouts in 37.2 innings. With a 4.35 ERA and a 4.82 FIP, it’s hard to figure out where Black slots in to the organization’s plans and depth chart, but those questions get easier to answer when you pitch well, which he did on Wednesday.

AA Richmond (14-33)​

Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Harrisburg Senators (Nationals) 4-1
Box score

Richmond’s roster is primarily about 1 player, and that player delivered on Wednesday. Yes, first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) went deep with a truly gorgeous 2-run home run, as part of a 1-3 day that also featured a sacrifice fly and 2 strikeouts.

IT’S A HIPPO HOMER FOR BRYCE ELDRIDGE pic.twitter.com/Unv395UP0J

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) May 29, 2025​

Despite an injury keeping him from his season debut until the 16th game of the season, Eldridge has 6 home runs already. Only 12 hitters in the Eastern League have more home runs than he does, even though 75 hitters have more plate appearances. That .893 OPS and 157 wRC+ look mighty tasty!

Not much else to highlight. Center fielder Turner Hill played his 2nd AA game of the year, after missing the start of the season with an injury and then rehabbing in the ACL for a while. He had an awesome day, with half of the team’s hits, and went 3-4 with a double, 2 stolen bases, and a strikeout. What a day!

Turner Hill is...

A) back
B) in a hippo jersey
C) tying the game
D) ALL OF THE ABOVE pic.twitter.com/EoNK7b8RcZ

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) May 28, 2025​

It was a bullpen game, and a trio of arms really stood out: LHP Raymond Burgos, and RHPs Dylan Cumming and Trent Harris (No. 20 CPL). Burgos, who was recently reassigned to AA after started the year in AAA, gave up a hit in 1.1 scoreless innings while striking out 2. Since his demotion, he’s allowed just 3 baserunners in 3.2 shutout innings with 8 strikeouts. That works!

Cumming was lights out in 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk but getting all 5 outs by way of strikes. He only has a 4.58 ERA this year, in large part because he’s walked 10 batters in 17.2 innings, but he has a 3.63 FIP and 21 strikeouts. And Harris? Well, just another dominant day at the office, as he gave up 2 hits in 2 scoreless innings, and struck out 5 batters. Harris, who has a 1.80 ERA and a 1.81 FIP, upped his dreamy strikeout-to-walk ratio to 23-to-3 in just 15 innings.

Lock it down, Trent pic.twitter.com/kajoqQiFCI

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) May 29, 2025​

My goodness! He’s also allowed no earned runs in 11 of his 12 appearances this season. Gotta think he’ll be ticketed for Sacramento at some point this year.

High-A Eugene (24-23)​

Eugene Emeralds lost to the Tri-City Dust Devils (Angels) 5-1
Box score

Not a lot in this game, either. First baseman Charlie Szykowny (No. 43 CPL) provided all the offense, with the lefty hitting 1-4 with a strikeout but smashing a solo home run.

The 2023 9th-round pick hasn’t quite been able to build on last year’s strong campaign, as he has just a .667 OPS and an 86 wRC+. But swings like that one are a reminder as to what he’s capable of.

Another strong day for right fielder James Tibbs III (No. 3 CPL), who has been on fire lately. Tibbs was an on-base machine in this game, hitting 1-2 and drawing 2 walks. That raised his OPS to .841 and his wRC+ to 135, and last year’s 1st-round pick now has drawn 33 walks while striking out just 31 times. Isn’t that a delight!

Really nothing doing on the pitching front. RHPs Tyler Vogel and Elijah Pleasants both had scoreless outings out of the bullpen, though neither had particularly notable numbers.

Low-A San Jose (27-20)​

San Jose Giants beat the Inland Empire 66ers (Angels) 3-1
Box score

The most exciting news in San Jose was that shortstop Maui Ahuna (No. 23 CPL) made his return to A-Ball. Ahuna, the team’s 4th-round pick in 2023 only played 34 games in his debut season last year, and was limited to DH in most of them due to injury. He began this year injured, and recently started rehabbing in the Complex League, where he was mostly DHing.

But on Wednesday he returned to A-Ball, and and also played shortstop. How wonderful that is to see!

Ahuna also played quite well, hitting 1-3 with a walk and a strikeout, while stealing 2 bases. Welcome back, Maui!

His return creates an interesting question at the shortstop position, where he is a tremendous defensive player. With Ahuna out, Walker Martin (No. 14 CPL) was getting the bulk of the reps at shortstop. But now that Ahuna is healthy and playing the field, that’s likely to change.

So what do the Giants do? Scouts have been saying that Martin, the team’s 2nd-round pick in 2023, isn’t a shortstop long term, so maybe the Giants begin the transition to a new position (likely third base). Maybe the two split time between shortstop and designated hitter. Or maybe Martin gets bumped up to High-A sometime soon.

Speaking of which, Martin DH’d in this game and had another strong day, hitting 2-4 with 2 doubles and a strikeout. He still has just a .226 batting average and a 30.2% strikeout rate, plus 10 errors, which might keep him from that aforementioned promotion. But half of his hits this year have gone for extra bases, leading to a .776 OPS and a 105 wRC+.

We're on the board! Walker Martin brings home Dakota Jordan with his second double of the day, and it's all tied up 1-1 in the 5th. pic.twitter.com/PUebAvI5jz

— San Jose Giants (@SJGiants) May 28, 2025​

But the game was won on the mound, where it was a 2-headed monster for the Baby Giants. Kicking things off was RHP Niko Mazza, who was effectively wild. Mazza needed 80 pitches to get through 4 innings, and only half of them were strikes, as he walked 4 and hit 2, while only striking out 3. But he only allowed 3 hits and 1 run, and run prevention is the name of the game. Last year’s 8th-round pick has a brilliant 2.30 ERA on the season, though his 4.20 FIP offers a cautious reminder that he’s walking a whole lot of batters.

The piggybacking starter — and reigning California League Pitcher of the Week — was utterly dominant, as LHP Charlie McDaniel could not be touched. The undrafted free agent, who is in his debut season, was superb on Wednesday, striking out 7 batters over 5 shutout innings. He also gave up less than a baserunner per inning (3 hits and 1 walk), needed just 63 pitches, and threw 40 of them for strikes.

If you want to see a sign of someone putting the pieces together in their 2nd month in the pros, look no further than McDaniel:

4 April appearances: 15.1 innings, 17 hits, 5 walks, 11 runs, 6 earned runs, 12 strikeouts
4 May appearances: 18.1 innings, 12 hits, 4 walks, 0 runs, 0 earned runs, 21 strikeouts

Now that is awesome to see.

Arizona Complex League (12-7)​

ACL Giants beat the ACL Rockies 7-4 (7 innings)
Box score

A very, very excellent game from second baseman Dario Reynoso (20 years, 2023 IFA), who has been spectacular to start the year. The right-handed hitter had himself A Game, hitting 3-4 with both a home run and a double, while also stealing a base (the bad: a strikeout, a caught stealing, and an error). After a mediocre year in his stateside debut in 2024, Reynoso has been tearing the stitches off of the ball this season, with power, walks, and average: he’s slashing .381/.480/.643, good for a 1.123 OPS and a 189 wRC+. Yep, that works! That said, we’ll probably need to see the 32.0% strikeout rate come down before Reynoso starts looking at apartments in San Jose.

Nothing much else on offense. AAA designated hitter Victor Bericoto (No. 24 CPL) continued his rehab but was quiet in this game, hitting 0-3 and striking out twice, though he added a sacrifice fly.

Some really nice pitching. RHP Keyner Martinez (20 years, 2023 IFA) had a strong start, giving up 2 hits and 1 walk in 3 shutout innings, while striking out 3 batters. He’s really impressed to start the year, with a stunning 19 strikeouts against just 3 walks in 12.2 innings, and a 2.13 ERA and 3.34 FIP.

But the star on the mound was RHP Jose Bello (No. 44 CPL, 20 years, 2023 IFA). Bello has been living up to the hype in a big way this year, and Wednesday was another sign of it. He faced 4 batters while earning the save, and none of them put the ball in play, as he issued 1 walk while striking out the side. Bello now has an almost comical 17 strikeouts in 10 innings, with just 2 walks. And he’s also only given up 5 hits and an unearned run during that span.

He sure seems like the real deal.

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Home run tracker​

AA Bryce Eldridge (6)
High-A Charlie Szykowny (4)
ACL Dario Reynoso (1)

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Thursday schedule​

Sacramento: vs. El Paso, 6:45 p.m. PT (SP: Carson Ragsdale)
Richmond: vs. Harrisburg, 3:35 p.m. PT (SP: John Michael Bertrand)
Eugene: at Tri-City, 6:30 p.m. PT (SP: Brayan Palencia)
San Jose: vs. Inland Empire, 1:00 p.m. PT (SP: Jacob Bresnahan)

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...co-luciano-charlie-szykowny-jerar-encarnacion

 

[San Francisco Giants]

5/30 Gamethread: Giants @ Marlins

Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images

Kyle Harrison vs. Cal Quantrill.

It’s time for a new series and, after getting swept in the last one, the San Francisco Giants are hoping that this one goes better. On the bright side, the Miami Marlins are not the Detroit Tigers, so that’s a good starting point.

For the Giants, lefty Kyle Harrison is taking the mound, which is exciting. In five games this year, the electric southpaw is 0-1 with a 3.86 ERA, a 4.47 FIP, and 11 strikeouts to three walks in 9.1 innings. His last outing was his first start of the year, and he gave up two runs in four innings against the Washington Nationals. This might be his last start for a while, as Justin Verlander is likely to return the next pass through the rotation.

He’s up against right-hander Cal Quantrill, someone the Giants have seen a bit of since he’s been on two NL West teams in his career. Quantrill, a 30-year old who is in his seventh MLB season, has made 10 starts this year and is 3-4 with a 6.09 ERA, a 4.52 FIP, and 31 strikeouts to 15 walks in 44.1 innings. Despite the rough numbers, he’s been much better lately, with just one run allowed in each of his last two starts.

Notably, LaMonte Wade Jr. — whose roster spot is in serious jeopardy — is not in the lineup against a right-handed pitcher, though Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle noted that Quantrill is allowing a much higher batting average to right-handed hitters than to left-handed hitters this year. Also notable is that the Giants are facing a debuting player, as Marlins left fielder Heriberto Hernández will take the field for the first time in his career. Congrats to him on an amazing achievement.

Enjoy the game! Go Giants!

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Lineups​

Giants

1. Mike Yastrzemski (L) — RF
2. Heliot Ramos (R) — LF
3. Jung Hoo Lee (L) — CF
4. Wilmer Flores (R) — DH
5. Matt Chapman (R) — 3B
6. Willy Adames (R) — SS
7. Patrick Bailey (S) — C
8. Casey Schmitt (R) — 1B
9. Tyler Fitzgerald (R) — 2B

LHP. Kyle Harrison

Marlins

1. Agustín Ramírez (R) — DH
2. Heriberto Hernández (R) — LF
3. Eric Wagaman (R) — 1B
4. Otto López (R) — SS
5. Dane Myers (R) — CF
6. Connor Norby (R) — 3B
7. Kyle Stowers (L) — RF
8. Javier Sanoja (R) — 2B
9. Nick Fortes (R) — C

RHP. Cal Quantrill

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Game #57​

Who: San Francisco Giants (31-25) vs. Detroit Tigers (22-32)

Where: LoanDepot Park, Miami, Florida

When: 4:10 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...hedule-tv-lineups-kyle-harrison-cal-quantrill

 

[San Francisco Giants]

No runs means no win

Rhona Wise-Imagn Images

This has always been true.

If you’ve remained level-headed coming into Saturday’s game; if you still had a head, as in, it hadn’t exploded yet during the San Francisco Giants’ historic run-drought — it’s definitely gone now.

A 1-0 loss to the Miami Marlins will do that to the best of us. Saints and sinners alike across the Giants’ fan base are swearing under their breath, or probably just over it, devolving into childish tantrums. Hey, as long as you’re safe and you keep other people safe, I’m all for those performative expressions of frustration, like sitting in an uncomfortable wooden chair with your arms crossed over your chest; or arbitrarily pushing a magazine off a coffee table; or saying something like “Harumph!”

The Giants have now gone 13 games without scoring more than four runs in a game, a first since 1988 (8/31/88 - 9/13/88). The good news is these Giants milked one more win out of that stretch than Roger Craig’s crew did…so that’s nice. But I lied — it’s not that nice, nor does knowing that do much to lift our spirits considering the offense handed Robbie Ray his first loss of the season in a game in which he logged his seventh quality start, allowing just 1 run on 2 hits, 3 walks and 9 strikeouts over 7 innings pitched.

The Giants out-hit the Marlins 8 to 3. They worked 4 walks to Miami’s 3, with another runner reaching base on an error and hit-by-pitch. They put a runner on base in every inning but the 9th, yet couldn’t find a way to push one of them across the plate.

I suppose the writing was on the wall from the first frame. Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee both singled off Miami starter Edward Cabrera to start the game. A productive flyout off the bat of Wilmer Flores, a stolen base by Lee and a walk by Matt Chapman loaded the bases with just one out. Cabrera looked flummoxed, flailing on the hook (because Marlins are fish). The Giants seemed destined to do the inconceivable: score a run in the first inning…again!

But that would be ridiculous, of course. No no no said the universe, that’s not how I work. Instead, San Francisco’s momentum came to a screeching halt and then combusted.

Having given up loud contact on his fastball, Cabrera fell back on his freaky mid-90s change-up that is, for most pitchers, just a sinker. He threw three to Willy Adames, each one a tick faster on the radar gun than the previous with the at-bat ending on one shoe-high and 96 MPH that Adames waved helplessly at. It was a terrible at-bat, devoid of any training in the “situational approach”. Cabrera continued to pound the lower part of the zone, eventually K-ing Mike Yastrzemski on a front door sinker.

With that early opportunity squandered, San Francisco said screw-it and played fast and loose. Tyler Fitzgerald was caught stealing second after a lead-off single in the 2nd. Wilmer Flores rolled into an inning-ending double play in the 3rd. Matt Chapman was thrown out trying to stretch a lead-off single into a double in the 4th. They wouldn’t get another at-bat with a runner on second until the 6th inning, eventually stranding 11 on base while going 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.

But what made Saturday’s outcome particularly brutal was that they lost in multiple ways. It wasn’t just that the Giants didn’t score any runs, they squandered opportunities to score runs; nor was it that their bats went completely dead with runners on base, they were victims of tough breaks and incredible defense. They were beating themselves, and they were getting beat by the other team.

In the 4th, after a two-out fielding error by second baseman Jack Winkler, Tyler Fitzgerald skied a 95 MPH fastball to deep left. For a moment, it looked like the script had been flipped, a deficit turned into a lead with one swing, but again, this is not how the world works right now. The fly ball hung up, and left fielder Heiberto Hernandez, twisting and turning below the ball, lept into the wall and snagged it.

Was it a home run robbery? Would it make us feel better if it was, or wasn’t? On Baseball Savant, Fitzgerald’s flyball would’ve been out in 24 of 30 ballparks. Miami’s loanDepot Park was not one of them. Does that mean it actually wasn’t a home run robbery? Or because it did not in fact become a homer in loanDepot, it could not be categorized as a “home run”? A lot of home run robberies — even legitimate ones — get too much defensive credit in my opinion. Though the xBA was high on Fitzgerald’s drive, the catch itself wasn’t anything too special, and far from “amazing” as the clip’s thumbnail proclaims. A not-quite routine fly out that the left fielder would’ve tracked down with ease if not for the small issue of the wall being there. Hernandez squares up under it, a dead giveaway. You can see him plant and leap about a shoe’s length from the base of the fence. After the ball lands in his glove, the arm swings back and collides with the padded railing feeding the illusion. I’m not convinced it would’ve left the park, nor am I convinced it’s making me feel better to be this nit-picky.

Hernandez celebrated as if he rescued the baseball from the depths, getting a tip of the cap from Cabrera, and whether it was desrved or not, that had its intended psychological effect. The long fly-out took the wind out of Fitzgerald’s sails. He was shucked, a shell, drained of fight. In subsequent at-bats with the tying run in scoring position in the 6th and 8th, Fitz struck out feebly both times to end the innings.

The catch Dane Myers made to close out the 7th inning however was incredible and absolutely deserving of the adjective “sensational”. That small issue of the wall became larger and larger as Myers tracked Jung Hoo Lee’s scorched liner to deep center. The baseball wasn’t going to leave the yard, but it seemed destined to be extra bases, and with a two-out jump, the knock would’ve easily scored Heliot Ramos from first and tied the game. But Myers got in the way, leaving earth, throwing his body into the last “N” of the Norwegian Cruise Line ad on the centerfield wall in order to reel in the baseball.

Everyone who witnesses a play like that has to tip their cap. Therein lies the cruelty for the Giants right now — not only are well-struck line drives few-and-far-between, but they’re being robbed by plays that you have to begrudgingly acknowledge.

Fitzgerald “robbed”, Lee robbed, and obviously Ray was robbed too, just not by the party he expected. Instead of celebrating a victorious end to an incredible month of individual performance, Ray had to return to the clubhouse bogged down by a tough-L, struggling to celebrate the overwhelming positives because the few mistakes he made played such an outsized role in the game’s results.

The back-to-back 2-out walks in the 2nd that set-up Miami’s only run will certainly frustrate Ray. That 2-2 change-up to Nick Fortes seemed to scrape the bottom of the strike zone, the fact that it was called a ball will nag for sure. But missed calls and walks, especially for Ray, come with the territory. What might keep him up at night is the curve he threw to Javier Sanoja in 1-2 count. With Ray’s quality of stuff, going with his fourth pitch with count advantage against the number 8 hitter, is just trying to be too cute. From the tight-pants wearing, hard-throwing and hard-grunting southpaw — there’s no room for cuteness in Ray’s game.

What should’ve been a minor footnote with the support of a properly functioning offense, became a bruise that swelled as the innings progressed and outs dwindled. Ray gave up a lead-off walk in the 3rd then retired the final 15 Marlins hitters he faced in order — less of a march of triumph and a tour of regret. Every pitch he threw in that sequence, every batter-faced, every change-up spun a desperate attempt to change the past, to un-do what couldn’t be undone.

Yeah, he absolutely should’ve gone back to the off-speed against Sanoja. He had already got him to swing over one down-and-in for the second strike in the AB. His fourth pitch, a 95 MPH fastball on the outside corner, set-up another. Connor Norby struck out earlier in the frame, flailing over another offspeed. From the start of this outing, it was clear Ray’s Skubal change-up was finally skuballing. He ended up throwing 32 of them in the outing (33%) — his previous game-high was 18 (17%). Before today, Ray had just three strikeouts with the change all year, but the pitch proved to be a finisher like never before, generating 12 whiffs on 20 swings (60%) while delivering five of his nine K’s.

So far this Marlins series is playing out exactly like the one against the Nationals: A trade of two shutouts to set up the finale. Unfortunately things won’t get easier for the Giants with a tough match-up against lefty Ryan Weathers.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...robbie-ray-miami-marlins-no-runs-means-no-win

 

[San Francisco Giants]

6/1 Gamethread: Giants @ Marlins

Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images

Hayden Birdsong vs. Ryan Weathers.

The San Francisco Giants road trip is coming to a merciful end today, as they take on the Miami Marlins for one final game, and a chance to bookend the trip with series wins ... even if it’s been a rough road trip regardless.

Taking the mound on getaway day is righty Hayden Birdsong, who makes his third start and 14th appearance of the year. The youngster is 2-1 on the season, with a 2.48 ERA, a 3.82 FIP, and 35 strikeouts to 12 walks in 32.2 innings. He got roughed up a bit his last time out, giving up three runs in 4.1 innings against the Detroit Tigers.

He’s up against southpaw Ryan Weathers, who makes just his fourth start of the season. The six-year veteran is 1-0 on the year, with a 1.15 ERA, a 3.59 FIP, and 15 strikeouts against four walks in 15.2 innings. He was excellent his last time out, giving up just two unearned runs in 5.2 innings against the San Diego Padres.

Enjoy the game, everyone! Go Giants!

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Game #59​

Who: San Francisco Giants (32-26) vs. Miami Marlins (23-33)

Where: LoanDepot Park, Miami, Florida

When: 10:40 a.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...ns-how-to-watch-hayden-birdsong-ryan-weathers

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Bullpen Trust Power Rankings for May

Photo by Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/Getty Images

It was a dominant month for the bullpen, but which relievers are most trustworthy?

Last month, I brought back this feature started by Doug Bruzzone many years ago and the magic of this power ranking list asserted itself immediately.

Lou Trivino was ranked 8th out of 8 relievers and very quickly found himself off the roster just six days after publication. That he’s given up just 1 run in 6.2 IP with the Dodgers since then is immaterial. The history of the power ranking does not claim to have any special hold on a player once they leave the San Francisco Giants.

What it has been very good at doing in the past is curse the guy who was fortunate enough to be deemed Most Trustworthy Reliever. Usually, the #1 guy crashes out at some point in the month. That didn’t happen in May, though, as Camilo Doval not only went unscored upon, he reclaimed the closer’s role from Ryan Walker.

So, has the curse of the McCovey Chronicles Bullpen Trust Power Rankings been broken – officially? We’ll see! Do keep in mind that relievers are already cursed with inconsistency, unreliability, and fungibility. Major league relievers pitch on a razor’s edge. They are stricken with volatility given the nature of their jobs. Doval might’ve pitched his way back into the closer’s role, but most of us can remember how he lost it.

But the best curse-buster is a plain ol’ fact. Here’s a good one: the Giants have the best bullpen ERA in MLB (2.48). They get lots of groundballs and don’t walk many batters (Erik Miller excepted). If you’re a professional pitcher and you’re in the Giants’ bullpen, chances are that you’re pretty good. But who’s most trustworthy? Talent alone doesn’t satisfy the condition. No, pitchers need to be able to meet the role the team has given them, too. That can be tricky on a team where roles are shifting, but the good news is that even the Giants relievers who get shifted are trustworthy in some situation.

For the purposes of our power rankings, Hayden Birdsong, despite pitching 7.1 innings in relief, is now ineligible because he’s in the rotation. The guy whose spot he’s taking – Jordan Hicks – is eligible. Kyle Harrison is also eligible because his elevation to a rotation spot is supposed to be temporary. Trivino threw 1 inning but since he’s gone he’s not included.

9. Erik Miller | April rank: 6th | May stats: 8.2 IP 2 ER 7 BB 5 K -0.32 WPA​

About a week and a half ago I warned that Miller’s tendency to walk batters would work against his effectiveness over the long-term. In the short-term, he’s having a solid enough season if you’re not paying close attention. A 1.50 ERA in 18 IP overall? Great, right? I guess. For a reliever, that’s solid. A 3.80 FIP, though, is concerning; and, in May it was 4.33.

You’ll note that he had more walks than strikeouts in his appearances, too. He also had 2 blown saves and 3 of the 5 baserunners he inherited wound up scoring. He’s averaging 97 mph with his fastball, though, and his high spin slider gets a lot of swing and miss. Unlike last month’s least trustworthy guy, I expect Miller to stick around. You know the Giants have a great bullpen if he’s the least trustworthy two months into the season. Still, this ranking is based in part on usage, and as the team’s sole lefty reliever for now, a dude who walks guys in high leverage situations is definitionally an untrustworthy reliever.

8. Jordan Hicks | April rank: n/a | May stats (RP): 3 IP 1 ER 1 BB 1 K -0.06 WPA​

There’s an argument to be made that a disgraced starter being relegated to the bullpen should automatically go to the bottom of the list, but I won’t be the one making it. He has 243 relief innings in his major league career already, and even though they aren’t spectacular (3.67 FIP, 2.3 fWAR) they reflect an effective enough reliever. People have been crowing for him to be a reliever (albeit a pricey one) since the moment the ink dried on his 4-year deal and so, once again, Giants fans have complained and gotten exactly what they’ve wanted — will we be happy about it this time?

Jordan Hicks pumping 98+ from the bullpen in the middle innings seems like yet another layer of dominance for an already dominant relief corps, but back in April I wrote about how Hicks’s fastball is anything but dominant. You can imagine him becoming the 6th inning guy with a 2-run lead or behind 2 until he goes on a run of 0-run outings.

Yesterday’s 3-walk debacle certainly proved a setback, but at the same time, he’s a guy who has fallen so far out of favor that landing in a thicket of low expectations can’t be held against him the same way Miller has disappointed. Also, yesterday was June so, really, it was a tough start for next month’s power rankings…

7. Tristan Beck | April rank: n/a | May stats: 5.2 IP 1 ER 2 BB 6 K +0.04 WPA​

I was shocked he didn’t make the team out of Spring Training, but it’s all good now because he’s back and had a strong debut. We’ve seen Tristan Beck already be a dominant reliever, and if Sean Hjelle’s velocity decline continues (and it looks like it will), then it’s safe to say that Beck now has the chance to be the Hjelle of the 2025 squad, which was previously the Jakob Junis role. He’s not there yet, obviously, but as a multi-inning reliever who bails out a starter or pitches with a big lead or deficit late, it’s going to be fun watching him overpower lineups... theoretically.

His appearance in Friday’s game against the Marlins was rough: bad command, lower velocity. He kept looking to the pitcher’s mound and maybe there’s something to it, but yeah, definitely something to keep an eye on and given the small sample, an easy enough ding to lower him on this list.

6. Spencer Bivens | April rank: 7th | May stats: 14.2 IP 6 ER 2 BB 7 K +0.13 WPA​

He led the relief corps in innings pitched for the month, so he must be doing something right in his role as the team’s pain sponge. For the most part (that 8-4 loss to the Royals excepted), he’s managed to stop the bleeding. Again, he might not be the most talented reliever on the roster — Miller and Hicks have better stuff for sure — but he’s been acing his designated role through the first two months of the season.

5. Kyle Harrison | April rank: n/a | May stats: 5.1 IP 2 ER 3 BB 7 K +0.06 WPA​

Harrison has looked dominant as a reliever and to the extent that he probably needs to pitch like a top of the rotation guy if he wants to remove all doubts about his effectiveness as a starter. He offers some tantalizing versatility.

It’s tricky to rank him here because his role is undefined and he’s a starter as of the publish date, but he represents an interesting inflection point. He along with Beck and Hicks represent strong relievers who are borderline starters. Is he destined to remain in the bucket with them, or will he climb free and assert himself? His Friday night start went a long way towards getting him off this list.

4. Ryan Walker | April rank: 5th | May stats: 9.2 IP 5 R (4 ER) 5 BB 7 K +0.09 WPA​

His first 15 innings this season: 6.00 ERA (3.08 FIP) with a 21.7% strikeout rate and 10% walk rate. His last 5.1 innings: 1.69 ERA (2.14 FIP) with a 21% strikeout rate and 0% walk rate. Still, that plummeting strikeout rate and variable walk rate is a good enough reason to move him out of the closer’s role. Pretty clear that Bob Melvin simply didn’t like what he saw coming out of Walker’s hand, but that doesn’t mean in any capacity. He could be on track to steadying his season, but it’s plausible that his ceiling might be more of a 7th inning guy or situational righty. So, I’m giving him this spot because I think he’ll be more trustworthy in a non-closer capacity.

3. Randy Rodríguez | April: 4th | May stats: 13 IP 0 ER* 3 BB 20 K +0.67 WPA​

There’s an argument to be made that he should be #1, and I think it’s a good one. He’s a dominant arm that can be used in any role. Almost certainly the most talented reliever in the bullpen. He’s the #4 reliever in MLB in terms of value (1.0 fWAR). His versatility is a double-edged sword, though, and that’s what you’re seeing reflected in the ranking here.

Last week, he had a two on, no outs situation in Detroit during the 5th inning of that series finale and got the first two outs before giving up a single to a righty that scored both the inherited runners. Earlier in the month, he entered the game in the 6th inning to bail out Jordan Hicks in a two on, no out situation and both of those runners scored.

He is trustworthy enough to have an undefined role, but the undefined role puts two bullets in the chamber of reliever roulette. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, think of Russian roulette and apply it to baseball: whenever you bring a reliever into the game, there’s always a chance that the move doesn’t work out for the manager pulling the trigger.

2. Tyler Rogers | April rank: 2nd | May stats: 10.1 IP 4 ER 0 BB 11 K -0.11 WPA​

So consistent, so dominant (at times). Just don’t ask him to pitch multiple innings in a single appearance. When Camilo Doval is doing well and you can find him near the top on a leaderboard, Tyler Rogers is usually right there with him. Well, Camilo Doval is doing quite well these days and yet he and Rogers have been just as valuable (0.5 fWAR).

1. Camilo Doval | April rank: 1st | May stats: 10.2 IP 0 ER 4 BB 12 K +0.93 WPA​

An unexpected closer battle erupted last month and it led to Bob Melvin announcing that Camilo Doval would take over for Ryan Walker. Except, rather than Doval being declared the winner, Buster Posey has confirmed that the situation is “fluid.” No matter how one contextualizes the situation, it wouldn’t be possible without Doval’s hard work.

Last August, I examined Doval’s fall from grace and it was clear then that this wasn’t a situation where a dude had simple lost his talent. The data suggested an immeasurable mental vector to his lack of performance. Indeed, a week and a half ago, Susan Slusser wrote a Doval profile that talked about his mental adjustments to his game. He’s in a great place right now and the success is hard earned and well deserved.

Camilo Doval's first save since returning to the closer role came in front of his mom, who watched him in the big leagues for the first time: pic.twitter.com/k7Dnjg9C38

— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) May 31, 2025​

He’s allowed just 1 inherited runner to score over his last 19.1 innings but has otherwise been dominant: 6 hits and 4 walks going back to April 12th. In May, he improved the probability of the Giants winning a game by 93%. He’s as trustworthy as a reliever can be.

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...2025-camilo-doval-randy-rodriguez-erik-miller

 

[San Francisco Giants]

6/3 Gamethread: Giants vs. Padres

Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images

Landen Roupp vs. Ryan Bergert

The San Francisco Giants continue this four-game series against the San Diego Padres tonight from Oracle Park.

Taking the mound for the Giants will be right-hander Landen Roupp, who enters tonight’s game with a 3.54 ERA, 3.59 FIP, with 56 strikeouts to 20 walks in 56 innings pitched over 11 starts. His last start was in the Giants’ 4-3 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday, in which he allowed four runs (only one earned) on five hits with seven strikeouts and two walks in four innings.

He’ll be facing off against Padres right-hander Ryan Bergert, making his first major league start. Bergert pitched four innings of relief for the Padres earlier this season, in which he had a 0.00 ERA and 2.83 FIP, having allowed just one hit and striking out two. With the shoulder injury to Michael King, Bergert has been recalled from Triple-A El Paso to start tonight’s game.

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Game #61​

Who: San Francisco Giants (33-27) vs. San Diego Padres (34-24)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

When: 6:45 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...padres-how-to-watch-landen-roupp-ryan-bergert

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Minor League roundup, 6/3: Grant McCray dominates on moving day

Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Yesterday on the farm.

On Tuesday, for the first time this year, all seven of the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates were in action. So we have a lot to talk about! Let’s dive into it.

Link to the 2025 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the positions played in that particular game.

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News​

The big news, as you’ve surely already heard, is that the team’s top prospect is on the move. On Tuesday the Giants announced that first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) was getting promoted from AA Richmond to AAA Sacramento, where he’ll be knocking on the door of the Majors. Joining him on the cross-country move is RHP Trent Harris (No. 20 CPL), who is also getting a promotion after striking out 25 batters in 16 innings, while walking just 4.

Eldridge’s arrival in Sacramento creates a bit of a positional logjam, and one way the Giants are addressing that is through another slugger: first baseman and outfielder Victor Bericoto (No. 24 CPL). Bericoto wrapped up his rehab assignment in the ACL and was assigned to Richmond, where he began the season, rather than to Sacramento, where he was playing at the time of his injury.

There was some other movement as well. To make room for Bericoto, Richmond corner infielder Justin Wishkoski was reassigned to High-A Eugene. RHP Ian Villers, a reliever, joined Wishkoski on the Richmond to Eugene flight. And first baseman Jeremiah Jenkins, who was listed on Low-A San Jose’s roster but was rehabbing in the ACL, finished his rehab but was reassigned to the ACL, so he’ll stay put in Papago for now.

Sacramento is also getting a shakeup from the Major League club, as on Wednesday morning the Giants optioned infielder Christian Koss to AAA, while purchasing the contracts of outfielder Daniel Johnson and catcher Andrew Knizner.

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AAA Sacramento (28-30)​

Sacramento River Cats beat the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Astros) 11-3
Box score

Most notably: Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) did not play in this game, but I’d assume he’ll start on Wednesday.

A nice game for the River Cats, and an absolutely superb performance by center fielder Grant McCray, who was a hit machine. The young lefty filled up the box score by hitting 4-5 with a home run, a stolen base, and a strikeout.

McCRAY TANK

mccray gets his 4th home run of the year to extend the lead 8-1! pic.twitter.com/aQ9K5Uo1i9

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) June 4, 2025​

I’m sure it’s not lost on McCray that he was passed over for Daniel Johnson when the team made moves on Wednesday — no surprise, given that they need offense and McCray hasn’t been hitting all that well — so let’s see if he’s able to audition for a spot now. He’s definitely been hitting better as of late after a cold start to the year, though it’s still just a .698 OPS and an 87 wRC+. But since May 10, McCray is 27-85 with 2 home runs, 2 triples, and 5 doubles. Excellent!

Right fielder Wade Meckler (No. 13 CPL) also had a nice game, hitting 2-5 with a triple, a walk, and a strikeout. He’s looked pretty solid since returning from the IL.

return of the meck

meckler extends the lead 9-3! pic.twitter.com/WloI8zOkYg

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) June 4, 2025​

Also very nice games for second baseman Brett Wisely, who went 2-4 with a double, a stolen base, and a strikeout, and catcher Max Stassi, who hit 2-2 with a double, a walk, and a hit by pitch.

stassi smacks this one dead center for a 2-run double pic.twitter.com/bDd9Hmu4OS

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) June 4, 2025​

Left fielder Marco Luciano continued his recent slump, hitting 1-4 with a walk, a stolen base, and 3 strikeouts. It’s hard to read the recent roster moves as anything other than an indictment of Luciano.

the cats get their 10th run of the night courtesy of mr. luciano! pic.twitter.com/fZONKNVbJ2

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) June 4, 2025​

Things weren’t good on the mound, where RHP Mason Black (No. 7 CPL) could not find the strike zone. Black threw just 43 of 84 pitches for strikes, which resulted in 7 walks and a hit batter in just 3.1 innings. He also gave up 2 hits and 3 runs, while striking out 3. Black had been much better in May than he was in April, but it’s still been a walk-heavy year, with 31 free passes in just 53 innings this season, which has helped lead to a 4.58 ERA and a 5.10 FIP.

LHP Joey Lucchesi and RHP Ryan Watson continued their recent stretch of pitching well. Lucchesi allowed a hit in 2 shutout innings with 2 strikeouts, while Watson pitched a perfect frame with a strikeout. The former now has a 3.62 ERA and a 4.60 FIP, while the latter has a 3.95 ERA and a 3.32 FIP.

AA Richmond (15-37)​

Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Erie SeaWolves (Tigers) 8-3
Box score

The post-Eldridge world for Richmond started with a loss, which shouldn’t be surprising, since they were primarily doing that with Eldridge, too.

The game was lost early, as LHP Joe Whitman (No. 9 CPL) got completely rocked. Whitman had been pitching brilliantly, as he’d allowed just 1 earned run in 19 innings over his last 3 starts. But that came crashing down on Tuesday, when he couldn’t miss bats. The 2023 compensation round pick did a good job of staying in the zone, with 40 of his 65 pitches for strikes and just 1 walk. But he also gave up 8 hits in just 3 innings, including 2 home runs, and that tagged him for 7 runs, 6 of which were earned. It’s not every day you see someone’s ERA rise by nearly a full run in a June game!

RHP Braxton Roxby had an exceptional relief appearances, giving up a hit in 0.2 scoreless innings, but achieving both outs by strikeout. He’s down to a 1.47 ERA and a 1.76 FIP, and has an obscene 30 strikeouts in 18.1 innings, with just 7 walks. Perhaps he’ll be following Trent Harris to Sacramento soon...

A poor offensive performance. First baseman Victor Bericoto (No. 24 CPL) returned, but hit 0-4 with 3 strikeouts. Center fielder Carter Howell also returned from the IL and hit 2-5 with a stolen base and a strikeout. Designated hitter Jairo Pomares (No. 41 CPL) continued to start turning his season around by hitting 2-4 with a double, a stolen base, and a strikeout.

High-A Eugene (26-26)​

Eugene Emeralds lost to the Everett AquaSox (Mariners) 6-5
Box score

With promotion season officially underway, it’s fair to wonder how much longer Eugene’s star outfielders will be at the level. And on Tuesday, center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 11 CPL) made yet another case to move up a level, hitting 2-4 with 2 doubles, a walk, and a strikeout.

Despite being slightly younger than the average player there, Davidson has thoroughly dominated the Northwest League. Among the 41 qualified hitters in the league, the JUCO lefty is 2nd in batting average (.314), 7th in on-base percentage (.402), 2nd in slugging percentage (.533), 2nd in OPS (.935), and 1st in wRC+ (155). What a season!

Left fielder Scott Bandura also had a nice game at the plate, hitting 2-4 with a triple. It’s been a very successful year for the 2023 7th-round pick, who has an .835 OPS and a 135 wRC+. Catcher Onil Perez (No. 37 CPL) also hit 2-4, which was his 3rd straight multi-hit game. Repeating the level has helped the 22-year old backstop, as he’s raised his OPS from .637 to .756, and his wRC+ from 88 to 126. Love to see that improvement!

An uninteresting day on the mound. LHP Cesar Perdomo got the start but didn’t really have it, giving up 7 hits, 2 walks, and 4 runs in 4.1 innings, while striking out 5. LHP C.J. Widger, RHP Elijah Pleasants, and RHP Nicholas Herold all had no-hit, no-run outings in relief, which was a welcome sight as all 3 have bloated ERAs at the moment.

Low-A San Jose (31-21)​

San Jose Giants beat the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Dodgers) 5-2
Box score

Finally, some more home runs! Most notably, shortstop Maui Ahuna (No. 23 CPL) went deep in this game, his 1st A-ball bomb after a lengthy rehab stint in the ACL. It was a solo shot in the 1st inning for the 2023 4th-round pick, who hit 1-3 with a walk, a hit by pitch, and a stolen base, though he also had a strikeout and an error. It’s mostly just great to see Ahuna healthy enough to be back in A-ball and playing in the field, though the home run sure is nice, too!

Also getting in on the home run party was first baseman Robert Hipwell (No. 25 CPL), who blasted a 3-run shot in the 2nd inning, though he finished the day just 1-4 with 2 strikeouts.

Hipwell has shown some good power this year, and it’s propelled him to a .775 OPS and a 117 wRC+. But there are certainly some concerns with his profile, as the 2024 6th-round pick has just a .220 batting average and a 29.7% strikeout rate.

Designated hitter Walker Martin (No. 14 CPL) continues to struggle with getting hits, but went 0-1 with 3 walks, a hit by pitch, and a stolen base. Despite just a .203 batting average, Martin has a .726 OPS and a 96 wRC+ thanks to a .223 isolated slugging and an 11.8% walk rate.

RHP Hunter Dryden had a very nice start, pitching 5 innings while allowing just 4 hits, 1 walk, 1 hit batter, and 1 run, and striking out 8. Tremendous! Dryden, last year’s 17th-round pick, has been brilliant lately, and in his last 4 starts has allowed just 2 earned runs (though he does have 9 walks during that span). A 1.32 ERA and a 3.48 FIP are certainly happy stats for a starter in his debut season.

Arizona Complex League (17-7)​

ACL Giants beat the ACL Dodgers 8-3 (7 innings)
Box score

Pitching was the star in this one, and it began with a rehab appearance from LHP Nick Zwack, who has been untouchable in that role so far. Zwack pitched 2.1 shutout innings to start the game, allowing 2 hits and striking out 2 batters. The 26-year old southpaw, who didn’t pitch at all in 2024, is now 4 appearances and 7.1 innings into his rehab assignment, and has yet to allow a run or a walk (and just 4 hits, for that matter).

Then it was RHP Keyner Martinez (20 years, 2023 IFA) who pitched 3.2 awesome innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 run, while striking out 6 batters. If you want to see a case of a player making improvements, look no further than Martinez, who made his debut last year (also in the ACL) and had 23 strikeouts against 16 walks in 32.2 innings. This year? He’s got 25 strikeouts against just 3 walks, in a mere 16.1 innings. Awesome stuff.

#SFGiants RHP Keyner Martinez was very intriguing last night. Solid command of a mid-90s FB and sweeper slider. Check him out. pic.twitter.com/Cm2EmD2n4I

— Josh Norris (@jnorris427) June 4, 2025​

Not much on offense. Catcher Santiago Camacho (18 years, 2024 IFA) had the only extra-base hit for the team, going 1-3 with a double, a strikeout, and 2 runs batted in. The switch-hitter has just a .644 OPS and a 69 wRC+ this year, but he also has just a 16.4% strikeout rate ... and is a catcher who turned 18 just 4 months ago.

Second baseman Dario Reyonoso (20 years, 2023 IFA) continued his exceptional 2nd pass through the ACL, hitting 1-2 with 2 walks and a stolen base.

Dominican Summer League Black (1-1)​

DSL Giants Black beat the DSL NYY Yankees 7-3
Box score

The 2nd career game for shortstop Josuar González (No. 5 CPL, 17 years, 2025 IFA), and it went quite well, just like the 1st. The young switch-hitter went 1-3 on the day, drew 2 walks, stole a base, and knocked in a run. So far, so good to start his career!

Also nice games for third baseman Keiberg Camacaro (18 years, 2023 IFA), who hit 1-2 with a double, 2 walks, and a stolen base; right fielder Luis Frias (20 years, 2021 IFA), who hit 2-4 with a triple and a stolen base; and catcher Carlos Martinez (17 years, 2025 IFA), who hit 2-4 with a double in his professional debut.

RHP Mario Gonzalez (18 years, 2024 IFA) had a funny start. It was Gonzalez’s professional debut, as he was signed late in 2024, and he tossed 3 no-hit innings with 3 strikeouts. But he had a very hard time finding the strike zone, with just 20 of 43 pitches for strikes, and 3 walks. Still, mostly good stuff!

RHP Jeremiah Jones (17 years, 2025 IFA) also made his professional debut and was awesome out of the bullpen, striking out 2 batters in a perfect inning.

Dominican Summer League Orange (2-0)​

DSL Giants Orange beat the DSL White Sox 21-5 (7 innings)
Box score

21 runs on “just” 13 hits, with 0 home runs. You don’t see that every day!

Despite the offensive explosion, not a ton of standout days. But it was a special day at the office for third baseman Juan Colorado (18 years, 2024 IFA), who hit 3-4 and smacked a pair of doubles, while also stealing a base. It’s only 2 games, but he’s off to a brilliant start after a subpar 2024 debut season.

The DSL Orange team got a whole lot of production from second base. Yulian Barreto (17 years, 2025 IFA) started the game there and hit 1-1 while drawing 3 walks, before being replaced by Franco Willias (20 years, 2023 IFA), who had 2 at-bats and knocked a double and a single. First baseman Diego Villegas (21 years, 2021 IFA) also had a fun game, hitting 1-1 with 4 walks. That’s one way to bump up your OBP!

Nothing of note on the pitching front. Lots of decent performances but no standout games.

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Home run tracker​

AAA Grant McCray (4)
Low-A Robert Hipwell (4)
Low-A Maui Ahuna (3 total, 1 in Low-A)

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Wednesday schedule​

Sacramento: at Sugar Land, 5:05 p.m. PT (SP: Carson Ragsdale)
Richmond: at Erie, 3:05 p.m. PT (SP: John Michael Bertrand)
Eugene: vs. Everett, 6:35 p.m. PT (SP: Brayan Palencia)
San Jose: at Rancho Cucamonga, 6:30 p.m. PT (SP: Niko Mazza)

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2...ws-scores-updates-bryce-eldridge-grant-mccray

 

[San Francisco Giants]

Giants - Braves Series Preview

Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The Braves have been knocked down...will the Giants let them get back up again?

On Thursday afternoon, the Atlanta Braves reliever Scott Blewett took the mound in the 9th inning to finalize a 10-4 victory over the Diamondbacks and…blew it.

The surname is a terrible one for a reliever — he’s a walking headline, low-hanging fruit for us wordsmiths. To be fair to Blewett though, he wasn’t the only one to blow it. Atlanta is a family of Blewetts blowing it. The meltdown was a tandem affair with closer Raisel Iglesias in which both pitchers surrendered a total of 8 runs on 7 hits over the last two innings, sticking the Braves’ at the business-end of a three-game sweep. Imagine being in that Braves dugout watching Arizona’s rally bloom. Imagine sitting in the cabin of the subsequent flight out west. A five hour travel time — and no one said a word.

Take solace in the fact that there’s always someone out there with worse problems than your own.

Atlanta is now 27-34 seven-games below .500 and a dozen games out of first place in the NL East. The San Francisco Giants have been scuffling, but they just rescued a series split against their most direct division competitor, are still a handful of games above .500 and (somehow) only a handful of games out of first. TBD how long that proximity lasts, but at least there’s some measurable volume of hope. Early June, with the way the Mets and Phillies have been playing — the Braves don’t even have that. Their playoff odds after Thursday’s loss sit at 10% (Baseball Ref), the sixth lowest in the National League.

But, yeah, I agree: play-off odds, shmay-off odds. It’s only the first week of June and though the Braves are a long way from their championship in 2021 and the back-to-back 100 win seasons in ‘22 and ‘23, their line-up still boasts some familiar punches. Freddie Freeman, Dansby Swanson, Jorge Soler, pearl-adorned Joc, Ehire Adrianza — are not those names. They’re all gone, but Marcell Ozuna, Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies remain with Matt Olson and Sean Murphy added on too. In the not so distant past, these bats have powered 100 win offenses. Maybe their results don’t reflect this now, but the potential for pop is still there.

Atlanta’s slow start could probably be best over-generalized as a sustained hangover from the 2024 season, the first year since 2017 that they surrendered the NL East title. It doesn’t take much scratching-and-sniffing to discern the source of that stink. 20-game winner Spencer Strider damaged his UCL in his second start of 2024 and had season-ending surgery. Reigning MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. tore his ACL a month and a half later, and the lineup has been headless without him in the year since.

Despite the 2024 calendar torn from the wall and buried in the trash, or most likely burned, the 2024 problems have kept cropping up in 2025. Free agent signing Jurickson Profar is currently serving an 80-game PED suspension. Chris Sale took the month of April to find his Cy Young form. Injuries and uncharacteristic starts from stalwart bats have extended the nightmare.

But on May 23rd, the Braves soul returned. Acuña is back, and he’s still good at baseball apparently. In his first at-bat, he launched a homer off Padres starter Nick Pivetta 467 feet.

In 11 games, he’s hitting .333 with a 1.056 OPS. Get ready to sweat through 12-plus plate appearances of his this weekend. Strider will probably still be good at baseball again but hasn’t quite found his stride yet. He’s already dealt with a hamstring strain and hasn’t been very effective on the mound in four starts, which means he’ll probably do just fine against the Giants on Sunday. The perfect opponent to steady his shaky legs.

But that Spencer isn’t the Spencer to stress about. Projected Friday starter Spencer Schwellenbach is the ascendent Spencer on the Braves. The 25 year old right-hander has K’ed 11 hitters in back-to-back starts (vs. Padres, Red Sox), and is riding the wave of a scoreless outing (6.1 IP, 5 H) in his most recent appearance. He throws a bevy of periphery off a zippy 4-seam fastball, but his finishing pitch is a splitter. The 4-seam rides high and the split falls away. It has a RV/100 of 2.5, generating a lot of chase, a lot of whiff, and a lot of ground balls. Opponents are hitting .143 off of it. They’re slugging .163. Friday might be ugly.

But we also have Dom Smith…so only beautiful things happen when the Giants hit now.

Despite the robust bat of Smith bolstering the San Francisco lineup, this series will probably play like the recent rest. Low offense, tough pitching, tight contests. The arms keep the Giants in games...and their bats keep their opponents in games too. The Braves pitching staff is pretty average. They’re middle of the pack in a lot of categories, but the middle of the pack is more than enough when it comes to facing this offense. Like I said before, Atlanta’s batting order is running mostly off historical reputation (with notable production from 24 year old Drake Baldwin, who slaps righties and is making a play for more starts behind the plate). The team’s numbers fall somewhere in the gut of the league, even with Acuña back in the box.

There also appears to be some prevailing winds filling the Giants sails for this upcoming weekend. Not only do they have a bit more momentum, but seemingly more favorable splits. The Braves are 10 - 20 in away games (which they’ll be), and 14 - 23 against teams better than .500 (which the Giants are). In one-run games, both teams have played 25, but Atlanta is 9 - 16 while San Francisco is 13 - 12. And of course, the Braves’ most recent one-run game was more of spiritual gutting than a loss.

Let’s hope the Giants kick ‘em while they’re down.

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Series Overview​

Atlanta Braves​

27 - 34, L4, Last 10: 2 - 8

Away: 10 - 20, RS - RA: 250 - 244

San Francisco Giants​

35 - 28, W2, Last 10: 4 - 6

Home: 19 - 11, RS - RA: 259 - 217

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Schedule & Projected Starters​

Friday, June 6th, 7:15 PM PT​

RHP Hayden Birdsong - 2.45 ERA (3 GS, 14.2 IP)

v. RHP Spencer Schwellenbach - 3.13 (12 GS, 74.2 IP)

Saturday, June 7th, 1:05 PM PT​

RHP Logan Webb - 2.55 ERA (13 GS, 81.1 IP)

v. RHP Bryce Elder - 4.56 ERA (9 GS, 49.1 IP)

Sunday, June 8th, 1:05 PM PT​

RHP Landen Roupp - 3.18 ERA (12 GS, 62.1 IP)

v. RHP Spencer Strider - 5.68 (4 GS, 19.0 IP)

Source: https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2025/6/6/24444092/giants-braves-series-preview-june-2025-mlb