Roster-ing

The Giants cut the roster in camp from 42 down to 36 players. LH reliever Sam Selman, who I thought was a lock to open the season with the Giants, was optioned to the minors (presumably AAA). Infielder Jason Vosler, who seems to be the kind of versatile player FZ and Kap love, joins Selman. It's good to have quality backups in the system, and I should note that both players have options remaining.

Roster Resource shows veteran Wandy Peralta as the next LH reliever on the depth chart. They also like NRIs Shun Yamaguchi and Nick Tropeano as RH swingmen behind Tyler Rogers, Matt Wisler, and Reyes Moronta. Both Yamaguchi and Tropeano have starting experience. Southpaws Jake McGee, Jarlin García, and José Álvarez will likely make up the rest of the 'pen.

Kevin Gausman gets the nod to open the season in Seattle (Thursday, April 1st) with Johnny Cueto slotting in the next day. The first game at home isn't until the 9th (Rockies) and it looks like Cueto will get the ball then as its game #7. I expect Gausman will pitch game #6 in San Diego. At this point Anthony DeSclafani and Logan Webb will get the next two spots. Alex Wood is still uncertain and that probably means Aaron Sanchez will be the 5th starter.

The other four players cut were NRIs and will be re-assigned, those are pitchers Silvino Bracho, Rico Garcia (who needs surgery), Phil Pfeifer, and OF Joe McCarthy.

If you were counting, that's 14 pitchers (5 starters and 9 relievers) leaving room for only 12 position players. MLB is allowing 14 pitchers this season instead of capping the 26-man at 13--that's a holdover from last season. Only 12 position players makes it hard for someone like LaMonte Wade, Jr. or Steven Duggar to crack the roster. Much will depend on the health and readiness of Evan Longoria and Brandon Belt. Only one week until real baseball!

--M.C.

Updates

'Tis the season, so it's churn, churn, churn, with apologies to the Bard of Duluth. I've come to appreciate the churn, actually, as baseball is a war of attrition and you have to have the most guys still standing at the end of the season.

Rule V pick RH reliever Dedniel Nuñez, who had a good shot at making the team, needs Tommy John surgery. Ah, that pesky ulnar collateral ligament! Perhaps we should replace them earlier, say in utero, and then these fellows will be better prepared for their pitching careers. Alas, I don't mean to make fun. Here's wishing our FNG a successful procedure and a speedy recovery. I'm not sure what happens to him, with his Rule V status, as the final rosters get set. I'm assuming that decision will come up after the 60-day IL stint expires.

Southpaw starter Alex Wood, expected to be one of the Starting Five, may not be ready for the opening of the season. He's had a history of back injuries and has missed time the last two years. No one expected him to log 30 games, but his track record suggests he's still very effective and can give the team a number of quality outings, so let's hope he gets back soon. It creates an opening for young Logan Webb, and Webb has two options remaining, and that's something the brass likes. Something else the brass likes? How about 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 W, 10 K (22 TBF) this spring!

The Giants picked up another lefty reliever, this time Phil Pfeiffer, a Vanderbilt teammate of Mike Yastrzemski and Tyler Beede. (Walker Buehler was also on that team.) He's 28 and has no ML-time but has over 300 IP in the minors, mostly in the Atlanta Braves system. The Giants have a solid group of lefty bullpen guys, with Jake McGee, Jarlin García, Sam Selman, and the recently acquired José Álvarez. There are also three other NRI southpaws in camp: Scott Kazmir, Sam Long, and Anthony Banda. Hollister's own Conner Menez, LHP, is slated for AAA but he's on the 40-man roster.

It's a good thing they are putting names on the home jerseys this year!

--M.C.

Dee-fense!

These charts are from an article by Travis Sawchick on FanGraphs back in 2018. It's preliminary stuff and not definitive, and raises a lot of questions, but is interesting nonetheless. Is baseball better or worse for this trend of fewer chances by fielders? I don't know, but it points out that the game is certainly different than before and is constantly changing.

 

 

 

 

The whole article is worth a read. And there are some good points raised by readers in the comments section. I've been looking for more on this and would like to find some fresher references than a three-year old column, but I think this is fascinating stuff regardless.

--M.C.

Kevin Gausman

The Giants are hoping for a lot from Kevin Gausman. If he can perform close to his projections, there's a good chance they'll make him a multi-year offer. The team has learned a lesson or two about long-term contracts, so I suspect the 30-year old righty would get something like three years, not five. But in today's market three years is a long time. The only new Giants player with a three-year deal is Tommy La Stella, for example. Even Trevor Bauer signed a three-year deal, and he has a CYA on his shelf.

Gausman made his spring debut today and pitched two uneventful innings. The Giants have over 40 pitchers in camp and we've seen an inning, it seems, from every one of them! Now that they are getting closer to the opener the projected starters are getting scheduled for some game time. (Scott Kazmir also pitched today.)

It will be all about the results for Gausman. He's said publicly that he'd like to stay in San Francisco, and I think the Giants feel similarly. The former first-round draft pick (#4 in 2012) has some strong seasons behind him but injury and ineffectiveness pushed him into baseball limbo. Last year he changed his pitch mix and increased his velocity and saw the payoff with a career-high strikeout rate and a career-low FIP. Walk and homer rates edged below career averages, too. It's hard to know how that will translate to a 30-start season rather than a 10-start one, but the Giants like his attitude and work ethic. They'd like to see him be the ace they can match up with Kershaw and Buehler and Snell and Darvish and the rest.

He may not be quite at their level, but he has a good chance to be very close. Close enough to give the team a fair chance against them. Projections tend to give Gausman about 30 starts (~170 IP) with solid peripherals, around a 3.65 FIP and 3+ WAR. The Giants would be happy with that, as would I. What the 2021 team needs is some solid, consistent pitchers. They need a starter they can count on every turn through the rotation. (Johnny Cueto, can you be that guy, too?) And if Kevin Gausman turns into the second coming of Jason Schmidt that could make the year very interesting indeed.

--M.C.

Heliot hit two homers!

21-year old outfielder Heliot Ramos was the Giants 1st-round pick (#19 overall) in the 2017 June draft. He hit two homers today to help the Giants clobber the Reds 9-4. Let's hope he continues to rake. Three other Giants--Steven Duggar, LaMonte Wade, and Joey Bart--also hit homers, making it five overall. Better still, seven Giants pitchers allowed zero homers by the Reds. Giants errors led to two late runs but their 14-hit attack was enough. Youngsters Hunter Bishop and Marco Luciano each had a hit, as did roster dark horse Jason Vosler who also drove in a run. Vosler, who has been impressive this spring, may get a chance to stick on the big club if Evan Longoria goes to the IL. Word is Longo is dealing with plantar fasciitis. Vosler played left field yesterday and second base today although he is primarily a third baseman. He was excellent for the Padres AAA-El Paso club in 2019 and at age 27 should be hitting his peak. I hope he gets a chance to show his stuff. Speaking of stuff, southpaw Sam Long had three whiffs in his inning of relief, he's been a standout so far. Long is from Fair Oaks and starred at Sac State so he's everyone's favorite story this spring. He's mostly been a starter but has yet to pitch above A-level. Speaking of starters, new free agent righty Anthony DeSclafani made his debut and went two innings, allowing one hit and one run.

--M.C.

A Spring Win

The Giants prevailed 3-1 (in seven innings) over the Chicago White Sox in Scottsdale to notch their first win of the Cactus League. They have a loss and two ties as well. The highlights included scoreless innings from Alex Wood and Jake McGee, two lefty free agents who will likely be key pieces of the pitching staff. NRI Yunior Marte impressed with a scoreless frame against the heart of the ChiSox order. Giants pitchers allowed five hits and three walks. On the hitting side homers by Joe McCarthy and Darin Ruf took care of the scoring. Heliot Ramos had two hits and Marco Luciano reached base on a walk. Luis Basabe got a hit and scored a run and made a good catch in the outfield. Steven Duggar made a nice grab, too. Brandon Crawford made his spring debut and got a hit. Shun Yamaguchi was credited with the win, he pitched a scoreless top of the 5th and the Giants got their runs in the bottom half.

They face the Padres tomorrow in Peoria at 5:40 Pacific.

--M.C.

Here Comes the Shun

The Giants picked up RHP Shun Yamaguchi who was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays after a disastrous 2020 season, his MLB debut. Yamaguchi, who turns 34 in July, logged 14 NPB seasons with the Yokohama BayStars and Yomiuri Giants. He signed a two-year deal with Toronto and they still owe him about three million bucks so it is another, I hate to say it, "low-risk" move by FZ & Co.

Yamaguchi features a splitter/forkball, was primarily a reliever in Japan, and had no starts in 17 appearances with Toronto. I imagine that many Giants fans are tired of the "dumpster-diving" and see this move as just another chunk in the churn. He is of course just another chunk in the churn, but I can't see a downside. No one in the Giants system is being blocked. If someone pitches well they will get a job with the big club even if a veteran is in front of them. And if they don't it means the guy in that spot is performing even better. Having hungry, quality arms in the minors is just what you want! Pitching depth is crucial for any team, but particularly crucial for the Giants in the 2021 NL West. Take a look at the Dodgers and the Padres--they have star-studded, talent-rich pitching staffs. The Giants need every tool in the toolbox to compete!

I don't know yet if this move has roster implications. I'll update this post when I see the details. I have a feeling the Jays are going to regret this move, at least a little bit. I think this guy will find his footing in MLB and be an effective pitcher. Spring Training keeps getting more interesting!

--M.C.

 

update: Susan Slusser tweets that it is a "split" contract, minors/majors. I'm not sure what that means but it must be legal. His guaranteed money from Toronto probably only kicks in if he's on a 26-man roster or something. I don't know, I suspect we'll find out. Either way he's an almost free arm for the Giants.

update (again): Andrew Baggarly tweets "The Giants made the Shun Yamaguchi signing official. It's a minor league contract. Toronto is on the hook for his guaranteed salary so he'd make the prorated major league minimum if added to the roster."