Only two games for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates on Monday, as all the A-Ball squads had the day off. But still lots to discuss!
Link to the 2024 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)
All listed positions in the roundup are the positions played in that particular game.
News
A pretty exciting promotion floated through the Giants transactions page: outfielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 42 CPL) has been promoted from the Arizona Complex League to Low-A San Jose. Before I get too excited — I’m about to get too excited — I should note that AAA Sacramento outfielder Ryan McKenna started a rehab assignment in the ACL, so there is a chance that this move is simply to temporarily create a roster spot for McKenna.
But I kind of doubt it. Diaz has ben fantastic, hitting .329/.411/.539, good for a 138 wRC+. And he’s doing something we know the Giants value, as he’s striking out just 16.7% of the time. Everything he’s doing seems a bit too good for the Complex League, but it’s still an aggressive promotion ... Diaz was a late signing last year, so only played 22 games in the DSL in his debut season, and has only played 22 games in the ACL this year. And the right-handed hitter — who primarily played center field last year, but has only played in the corners this year — doesn’t turn 19 for a few more weeks.
Either way, I’m very, very high on Diaz, and this is an exciting move.
Joining Diaz in Low-A San Jose is RHP Ryan Vanderhei, who also was promoted from the ACL. Vanderhei, the team’s 16th-round pick last year, didn’t have great numbers in 8.2 innings this year (his debut season), but did have strong strikeout and groundball numbers.
AAA Sacramento is getting an exciting addition to their staff, as RHP Carson Ragsdale (No. 32 CPL) was promoted following a 10-strikeout affair his last time out. Ragsdale has been having a sensational and, critically, healthy season. He has fantastic strikeout stuff, a large frame, and is Rule 5 eligible, so don’t be surprised if he ends up in San Francisco at some point this year.
A trio of players were promoted from High-A Eugene to AA Richmond: RHP Will Bednar, LHP Seth Lonsway, and outfielder Turner Hill. Bednar, the team’s 1st-round pick in 2021, is healthy for probably the first time in his professional career, and is starting to show off the stuff that made him a mid-1st round pick. The numbers haven’t quite caught up to the stuff, but Giants officials are raving about him. Lonsway, a 6th-round pick in that 2021 draft, has been fantastic in his repeat of the level, and has one of the highest groundball rates in all of Minor League Baseball. And Hill, an undrafted free agent, was seemingly the only hitter in Eugene who was playing well.
And to top it all off, center fielder Jonah Cox and LHP Cesar Perdomo have been promoted from Low-A San Jose to High-A Eugene. Cox, the player the Giants got in the Ross Stripling trade, has been fantastic this year, as an on-base machine, stolen base artist, and defensive stud. Perdomo, a 22 year old, has been absolutely lights out in his debut season of A-Ball.
Congrats to all these players!
ACL Giants (19-19)
ACL Giants lost to the ACL Dodgers 8-4
Box score
As is so often the case, a lot of the ACL excitement was about rehabbing players. Center fielder Wade Meckler (No. 11 CPL) led off and played the whole game, hitting 1-4 with a hit by pitch and a stolen base. Seeing Meckler back on the field is a joy, after he missed so much time to start the season and then had an injury setback. But he’s definitely still looking for a way to wash the rust off: a year after being a hit and on-base machine across 3 levels, Meckler is just 13-66 in his pair of rehab assignments.
Next up was left fielder Ryan McKenna, who kicked off his rehab assignment after about 2 weeks on the injury sidelines. McKenna, who has played in the Majors for the Giants this year, but isn’t on the 40-man roster after being outrighted, hit 2-3 with a walk, before being lifted from the game.
The rehab went less smoothly on the other side of the field, as RHP Liam Simon started and could not find any control with his pitches. Simon faced 7 batters and recorded just 1 out (a strikeout, though!), as he walked 4 batters, hit another, and gave up a single. Obviously, good outings are always preferable, but we’re still at the point where health is the primary thing to pay attention to with Simon. He started his rehab assignment earlier this year, which was his first time pitching in a game since May of 2023.
Now, onto the non-rehabbing players. A kind of funny game for shortstop Walker Martin (No. 7 CPL, 20 years, 2023 2nd-round), who had a lot of good and a lot of bad on Monday. The lefty hit 1-3 with 2 walks and his 1st career stolen base, which is great. He also struck out twice and committed his 8th and 9th errors of the year, which obviously isn’t good, though he was far from the only player to have K issues ... the team struck out 17 times!
First baseman Jack Payton (22 years, 2023 11th-round) and catcher Juan Perez (19 years, 2022 international signing) continued their recent strong play. Payton hit 2-4 with a walk and a stolen base, while Perez hit 2-5, though the former struck out twice and the latter thrice. Over his last 8 games, Payton is hitting 12-30 with 5 doubles, 6 walks, and 7 strikeouts, while Perez is a cool 8-16 over his last 4 games.
Right fielder Rayner Arias (No. 5 CPL, 18 years, 2023 international signing) played in just his 4th game of the year and hit 1-4 with a walk, though he struck out twice and was caught stealing. The Giants are slow-playing Arias post-injury, as he’s yet to play on back-to-back days, but this was his 1st time playing an entire game. Hopefully he’s up to speed physically by the time the ACL season ends in a few weeks, so that he can head to Low-A San Jose to finish the year.
Second baseman Ryan Reckley (No. 44 CPL, 19 years, 2022 international signing) had another tough game as his hot start to the season has cooled down a bit. He hit 0-4 with 3 strikeouts and his 1st error of the year, though he also drew a walk. Reckley is still having a strong season overall, especially compared to his disastrous performance last year, as he’s rocking a .917 OPS and a 141 wRC+. But in his last 3 games he’s 0-9 with 2 walks and 7 strikeouts, which has shot his K rate up to 30.8%.
RHP Alix Hernandez (19 years, 2022 international signing) had a very strong game out of the bullpen, pitching 4 strong innings while allowing just 2 hits, 2 walks, 1 hit batter, and 1 unearned run. Hernandez also struck out 5 batters, which gives him a whopping 41 Ks in just 27.2 ACL innings. Hernandez, who is pitching in just his 2nd professional season, struggled in a smallish sample with Low-A San Jose to start the year, before getting returned to the ACL. So far he’s acing that test — he a 3.25 ERA (albeit with a 4.79 FIP) and a 46.8% groundball rate to go with those 13.34 strikeouts per 9 innings — so we’ll almost surely see him in San Jose again this year. He’s such an exciting arm!
A very nice game for RHP Josh Wolf, who technically isn’t on a rehab assignment but who I’d guess is ticketed for a higher-level affiliate. Wolf, the Mets’ 2nd-round pick in 2019, was recently signed to a Minor League deal. The Giants assigned him to the ACL, where he’s been very strong save for a blowup appearance last week. Monday was a fantastic day for him, as he pitched 1.2 no-hit innings, allowing just 1 walk while striking out 3. He was playing for the Mets High-A affiliate when he was released, and went about a month in between his last game in New York’s organization and his first game in San Francisco’s. So when he’s up to speed, High-A Eugene seems like a logical spot for him.
DSL
DSL Giants Black (13-3) beat the DSL Giants Orange (8-7) 5-1
Box score
Ahh, the dreaded intrasquad game. But it did allow the Giants Black team to get back on track, as they halted the 3-game losing streak that had followed their 12 consecutive victories to open the season.
The star was Giants Black catcher Yohendry Sanchez (17 years, 2024 international signing), who had the best day of his young career. Sanchez, viewed by most as the 2nd-best signing in the Giants latest class, had a pretty perfect day. He hit 2-2 with a home run and a double, and in his 3rd and final plate appearance knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly. Not only is that 3 very successful trips to the plate, but he is responsible for knocking in all 5 of the team’s runs! Baseball isn’t usually a game where a single player can lead you to victory, but that certainly was the case in this game.
It’s only 11 games, but so far Sanchez, a right-handed hitter who turns 18 in November, is acing his test: he’s 7-28 with 4 extra-base hits, 10 walks, and 10 strikeouts, good for a .964 OPS and a 165 wRC+.
Sanchez may be the 2nd-most high-profile player when the signing class was announced, but Giants Black center fielder Oliver Tejada (17 years, 2024 international signing) is making it very clear that he belongs in the discussion for best signing. It was another fabulous day for the righty (who is exactly 1 month younger than Sanchez), as he hit 2-3 with a double, a stolen base, and a strikeout.
My dad used to always tell me that you only get one chance to make a good first impression, and if you need an example of someone doing exactly that, well ... Tejada is that example. The youngster has reached base safely in all 14 games to start his career, and has hit safely in 12 of those 14. He’s hitting for average (.352 batting average) and power (.611 slugging percentage), and has 5 stolen bases (admittedly in 9 attempts). His strikeout and walk numbers aren’t great yet — he has a 25.8% K rate and a 6.5% BB rate — but that’s picking nits for a 17 year old with a 1.014 OPS and a 152 wRC+. Especially when that player is a center fielder, though I should caution against reading too much into positions in the DSL.
Unfortunately, the actual most high-profile player of the class is really struggling at the moment. Shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 38 CPL, 17 years, 2024 international signing) hit 0-3 with 2 strikeouts and, after a hot start to his career, has now gone 0-19 with 9 strikeouts over his last 5 games. A reminder to not read too much into a small sample size in the DSL for a player who turned 17 less than 3 months ago.
A really nice start for Giants Black LHP Ricardo Estrada (22 years, 2021 international signing), who pitched 4 shutout innings with just 3 baserunners allowed and 6 strikeouts. Estrada is on the older side for the level, and in his 4th year in the DSL, but his season is off to a great start, as he has a 1.13 ERA with 21 strikeouts to 7 walks in 16 innings.
Also a great appearance for Giants Black RHP Antonio Millan (21 years, 2021 international signing) who, despite his signing date, is pitching in his debut professional season. Millan struck out 3 batters in 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk. He’s given up just 7 baserunners in 8 innings this season, with 12 strikeouts. Great stuff.
Home run tracker
DSL Yohendry Sanchez (1)
Tuesday schedule
Sacramento: @ Las Vegas, 7:05 p.m. PT
Richmond: vs. Somerset, 3:35 p.m. PT
Eugene: vs. Tri-City, 6:35 p.m. PT
San Jose: vs. Fresno, 6:30 p.m. PT
Reminder that most Minor League games can be watched on MLB TV.
