Webb to stay in camp

Logan Webb had committed to playing in the World Baseball Classic this spring but recently changed his mind. Here's a quote from the Maria Guardado article:

“It would have been really cool to represent the country and play with a lot of those guys, but the main thing for me was to be here with these guys,” Webb said. “We’ve got big goals this year. I want to be a part of that effort. Being here was important to me.”

The 2023 Giants are a team without a star. At least that's what everyone has been saying! But that overlooks Webb, I think. He's certainly the team's ace and he has been one of the best pitchers in baseball over the last two seasons (26-12, 2.97 ERA, 2.90 FIP, 8.2 fWAR). He's a local boy (Rocklin) and has two brilliant post-season starts against the Dodgers on his résumé. A healthy Logan Webb will be the face of this year's club.

Joc Pederson is still listed with Team Israel and Camilo Doval will represent the Dominican Republic. The WBC runs from 3/8 to 3/21.

--M.C.

NRIs

 

¡Bienvenidos Roberto Pérez!

A backup backstop is a pretty important fellow. I don't know if our FNG catcher is going to be that guy, but I suspect there is a good chance he will be on the 26-man roster come Opening Day.

Roberto Pérez is from Puerto Rico and was drafted by the Cleveland then-Indians-now-Guardians in the 33rd round of the 2008 draft from Florida Gateway College.

 

He wears no. 55 which of course our own Tim Lincecum made famous. Pérez made his MLB debut in 2014 at age 25. He's played in 511 games (501 at catcher) with 1752 PA across nine seasons. He's known as a glove-first guy and has consistently rated highly on defensive metrics. His career slash line is .201/.298/.360 which comes out to a .289 wOBA and a 77 wRC+ or in more familiar terms a 75 OPS+. Suffice to say he hits like a backup catcher! ZiPS projects him to hit close to his career averages in 2023 but to deliver 1.8 WAR. ZiPS anticipates that he will remain an elite fielder and that he will log significant time behind the plate.

Pérez did the bulk of the post-season catching for the 2016 AL pennant-winning Cleveland squad. He hit two homers in Game One of the World Series against the eventual-winners Chicago Cubs. His best season was 2019 when he hit 24 HR in 119 G. He was cut loose after the 2021 season and he played 2022 as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Injuries limited him to 21 G and only 69 PA.

Joey Bart is still the main man in the Giants plans. But he will need a savvy veteran to help share the load. The team still has Austin Wynns in the fold as well as youngster Blake Sabol. The emerging catching corps will be something to watch this spring.

--M.C.

 

p.s. I stole the image from the SF Chronicle story (https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/giants/article/giants-sign-veteran-catcher-roberto-perez-17750090.php).  It is credited to Keith Srakocic (STF/AP).