Minor League roundup, June 20: Cole Foster, David Villar start heating up (2024)

The San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates played 5 games on Thursday, as the DSL Orange squad got the day off while AA Richmond was rained out. Let’s dive into the action.

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

If you’re closely perusing the Minor League box scores, you might notice some players that didn’t play. That’s because the Giants included their Minor Leaguers in the Rickwood Field game on Thursday that honored the Negro Leagues. Here’s what The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly reported:

The Giants’ inclusion efforts trickled down to their minor-league system as well. The organization invited every player at all levels who claimed any African-American heritage to take leave from their affiliates and travel at the Giants’ expense to Birmingham to attend the game. Nearly a dozen players, including 2022 first-round pick Reggie Crawford and talented outfield prospect Grant McCray, took up the team on its offer.

A very good move by the Giants.

With the MLB Draft creeping up on us, the time is fast approaching where the Giants will have to make difficult decisions and have difficult conversations with prospects, as we’ll see a wave of players released in the coming month. The got started a little early on Thursday, releasing ACL outfield Jediael Maduro. A 20-year old left-handed hitter, Maduro was struggling in his 3rd attempt at the ACL, with a .600 OPS and a 65 wRC+.

AAA Sacramento (42-30)

Sacramento River Cats lost to the Round Rock Express (Rangers) 5-3
Box score

The River Cats are still on pace for their best season in a very long time, but they’ve been struggling quite a bit lately. This is now 6 consecutive losses for Sacramento!

Most of note is that center fielder Luis Matos, who hit 1-3 with a stolen base, was pulled from the game at the start of the 5th inning. I would guess it’s not a coincidence that Matos was pulled early on the same day that Mike Yastrzemski left the Giants’ game early, and don’t be surprised if Matos is on a flight to St. Louis to at least be on the taxi squad for when the Giants resume play on Saturday.

No real performances of note from the hitters, though. Left fielder/center fielder Hunter Bishop hit 1-3 with a double, a walk, and a strikeout. Pacific Coast League stats always need grains of salt, but Bishop has now been in Sacramento long enough (he’s at 137 plate appearances) to feel like his success at the level is not a fluke. He hit a little bit of a wall after his hot start but has recovered nicely, and is sitting at a very solid .855 OPS and 111 wRC+. The Giants will certainly want to see the 31.4% strikeout rate come down, though.

It’s easy to look at Bishop as a player who will turn 26 next week and dismiss some of his prospect pedigree, but it’s probably more accurate to think of him as a player who entered the season with just 562 total plate appearances in his Minor League career. He’s still a baby from a development standpoint!

The big hit belonged to third baseman David Villar, who hit 1-4 with a 3-run home run and 2 strikeouts.

With the homer, Villar broke out of a tie with Low-A San Jose first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 3 CPL) for the most home runs in the system this year. It hasn’t been the year that Villar has envisioned, but he’s quietly been playing fantastic baseball as of late. He’s only played in 9 games this month, but has hit safely in all of them ... in total, he has a 10-game hit streak going, during which time he’s 16-41 with 4 home runs, 4 doubles, 15 RBI, 6 walks, and 8 strikeouts. He doesn’t have a clear path back to the Majors, but the path always gets clearer the more you play like this!

Shortstop Marco Luciano (No. 2 CPL) hit 1-3 with a walk and a strikeout. He’s now 4-26 with 4 walks and 13 strikeouts since returning from injury.

Another tough start for RHP Mason Black (No. 9 CPL), who has seen his fantastic season go downhill in a hurry. Black struggled all around on Thursday, pitching 3 innings and allowing 3 hits (all extra-base hits), 4 walks, 1 hit batter, and 4 runs, with 3 strikeouts.

Perhaps it’s just variance, or perhaps getting rocked in his initial taste of the Majors did something to Black’s confidence, because he’s been a completely different pitcher since his stint in San Francisco. Check out these splits!

6 games before MLB debut: 26.2 innings, 16 hits, 8 walks, 3 earned runs, 29 strikeouts
5 games since MLB debut: 14.1 innings, 27 hits, 12 walks, 19 earned runs, 20 strikeouts

Yikes! But at least there are strikeouts!

Another great relief appearance from LHP Raymond Burgos, who gave up just 1 hit in 3 shutout innings, with 3 strikeouts. In addition to a 0.82 WHIP, Burgos has a glistening 23 strikeouts to 2 walks in 22 innings with Sacramento this year, good for a 1.64 ERA, albeit with a 4.29 FIP. Burgos has 0.82 walks per 9 innings, which is completely obscene in the PCL, and also a 53.6% groundball rate.

RHP Evan Gates made his AAA debut after a recent promotion. He gave up 3 hits and 1 run in 2 innings of work, with 3 strikeouts. Welcome to Sacramento, Evan!

High-A Eugene (33-32)

Eugene Emeralds lost to Spokane (Rockies) 9-3
Box score

A fairly uninteresting game. A pair of hitters of note, starting with second baseman Quinn McDaniel, who hit 1-4 with a home run.

It’s been a quality season for the 21-year old 2023 5th-round pick, who has a .750 OPS and a 122 wRC+. He has a delightful 16.0% walk rate, though with 2 more strikeouts on Thursday his strikeout rate sits at a slightly-concerning 30.9%. It was good to see him homer, as his power has dropped off a bit following his short-season debut last year: after having 6 home runs and 9 extra-base hits in 125 plate appearances across the ACL and Low-A last year, McDaniel has just 5 home runs and 15 extra-base hits in 256 plate appearances in High-A.

But what remains most curious to me is the stolen bases, which I bring up because he was caught stealing on Thursday. Through the 1st 16 games of the year, McDaniel attempted 16 stolen bases, and was successful 13 times. In the next 17 games he attempted just 6 thefts, and was successful only 3 times. And in the 22 games since? Well he is first baseman-esque 1-for-2 stealing bases.

What has happened? I’m very curious.

The other strong offensive game belonged to catcher Zach Morgan, who hit 2-3 with a double and a walk. It’s been a fairly quiet season for Morgan, the team’s 7th-round pick in 2022, but his walk-to-strikeout ratio remains as good as advertised: he’s struck out just 30 times against 26 walks in 178 plate appearances this year.

Not much on the pitching front, either. LHP Seth Lonsway lowered his ERA by only allowing 2 earned runs (plus 1 unearned run) in 6 innings, but he gave up 10 baserunners and had just 5 strikeouts. Still and all, he’s recovered well from a tough May, as he has a 2.95 ERA in June, with 21 strikeouts to 5 walks in 21.1 innings. The 2021 6th-round pick now has a 3.86 ERA and a 3.30 FIP in his 2nd pass through Eugene, so it’s been a very solid season for him. Of most note, however, is the 63.9% groundball rate, which is 2nd among 355 Minor League pitchers with at least 50 innings thrown this year. We know how the Giants feel about groundball pitchers!

RHP Nick Morreale got rocked, which led to RHP Hunter Dula entering the game to clean up an inning, and he struck out the only batter he faced. It was Dula’s 7th consecutive outing without allowing a run, and in that time he’s pitched 9 innings while allowing just 2 hits and 0 walks, with 9 strikeouts. Hello, Hunter!!

Low-A San Jose (37-28)

San Jose Giants beat the Modesto Nuts (Mariners) 11-8
Box score

There was a lot of hype about the Giants young middle infielders after they used their 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th round picks in the 2023 Draft on such players. Excitement abounded entering the season!

But it’s fair to label the season a disappointment thus far for that potential-filled quartet. McDaniel, the 5th-round pick, has been having a good season in High-A Eugene, but it hasn’t been electric or devoid of red flags. Maui Ahuna (No. 27 CPL), the 4th-round pick, struggled mightily with Low-A San Jose, and then suffered an injury. And Walker Martin (No. 7 CPL) was assigned to the Complex League, started the year injured, and has mostly been struggling (more on him later).

The team’s 3rd-round pick, shortstop Cole Foster (No. 30 CPL) was assigned to Low-A San Jose, where has had a very quiet season. But Thursday was anything but quiet. The 22-year old switch-hitter from Texas flashed all his potential on Thursday, hitting 3-6 with a grand slam, 2 doubles, and 6 runs batted in. It’s safe to say that 8 bases in a day is a good time at the yard!

It was a much-needed good game for Foster, who was 5-49 with 15 strikeouts in the month entering the contest. He’ll need more games like that to really take off — he has a .710 OPS and a 96 wRC+ — but there’s a lot to like. Most notably, Foster has just a 19.5% strikeout rate and a likely-unsustainably-low .297 BABIP. If he can tap into his power potential more consistently — he has just 3 home runs and 17 extra-base hits in 220 plate appearances this year — then he could really start to take off.

And if he does, the Baby Giants will have quite a punch in the middle of the order between him and first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 3 CPL), who hit 1-5 with a double and 2 strikeouts on Thursday.

Another fun game for center fielder Jonah Cox, who hit 1-3 with a triple, 2 walks, and a hit by pitch. Cox’s bat has cooled off a bit this month — he has just a .196 average in June after being at .306 in April and .363 in May — but he’s still an on-base machine, still playing a quality center field, and still seemingly the only player in the system inclined to steal bases. And he still has an .809 OPS and a 130 wRC+. And he still was acquired in a trade for Ross Stripling. A lot to like here.

Good games for catcher Luke Shliger, who hit 0-2 with a strikeout but drew 3 walks, bumping his OPS to .631 and his wRC+ to 90, and second baseman Justin Bench, who hit 2-4 with a double and a walk (albeit with 2 errors), raising his OPS to .791 and his wRC+ to 127.

A bad pitching day, with the pair of pitchers — LHP Dylan Carmouche and RHP Cole Hillier — both getting rocked. We can move on.

ACL Giants (18-17)

ACL Giants lost to the ACL Rockies 17-4
Box score

The biggest news in this game was the return of center fielder Wade Meckler (No. 11 CPL). It’s been a tough-luck season for Meckler, who was injured in Spring Training and missed a few months. He began a rehab assignment in the Complex League in mid-May, and moved to Low-A San Jose in late-May. He struggled relative to what we’ve grown accustomed to, and suffered an injury setback ... after playing on June 4 we didn’t see him again for weeks, and he was no longer listed as being on a rehab assignment.

Now the rehab assignment is back! Meckler played on Thursday for the 1st time since that June 4 game, and he played well, hitting 1-2 with 2 walks before being removed from the game, as is customary for players returning from injuries.

Speaking of players returning from injuries, right fielder Rayner Arias (No. 5 CPL, 18 years, 2023 international signing) played in his 2nd game of the year, which is so, so exciting. It didn’t go well for Arias, who hit 0-4 with 3 strikeouts (though he did record an outfield assist), before leaving the game. But my goodness it’s awesome that he’s out on the field at last!

Remember when I said more on shortstop Walker Martin (No. 7 CPL, 20 years, 2023 2nd-round) later? Well, now is later. Martin hasn’t been having a very fruitful season, but Thursday was one of his better games, as he hit 3-4 with a walk. Any game without a strikeout is huge for Martin, as he’s sporting a terrifying 43.0% K rate. That has, not surprisingly, made his numbers fairly ugly: he has a .225 batting average, a .698 OPS, and an 86 wRC+. But he’s capable of putting up crooked numbers quickly, so here’s hoping those sorts of days are on the way.

Catcher Jack Payton had a super solid game in a rehab assignment, hitting 1-4 with a double, a walk, and a stolen base. He’s doing really well in his rehab assignment after struggling with High-A Eugene.

And more games getting on base for a pair of the team’s on-base machines: left fielder/right fielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 42 CPL, 18 years, 2023 international signing) hit 2-5 and now has a .993 OPS and a 147 wRC+, while second baseman/center fielder Ryan Reckley (No. 44 CPL, 19 years, 2022 international signing) hit 0-2 but drew a walk and was hit by a pitch, giving him a 1.076 OPS and a 176 wRC+.

Not surprisingly, the pitching was bad. The bulk of the damage came against a pair of very inexperienced pitchers, LHP Jose Rengel (18 years, 2023 international signing), who allowed 11 runs and 8 earned runs in 3.1 innings, and RHP Ryan Vanderhei (23 years, 2023 10th-round) who gave up 4 runs in 1 inning of work.

RHP Spencer Miles made his 4th rehab appearance and gave up 4 baserunners and 2 runs in 1.1 innings, with a strikeout. He has 9 strikeouts to 2 walks in 5.1 rehab innings, but mostly just great seeing him healthy.

LHP Carlos Molina (19 years, 2023 international signing) made just his 2nd appearance of the year and was dominant, giving up 1 hit in a scoreless inning, while striking out the side.

DSL Black (12-1)

DSL Giants Black lost to the DSL Angels 3-2
Box score

All good things come to an end. After 12 consecutive victories to open the year, the DSL Giants Black squad has finally lost a game.

An excellent game in an excellent season for third baseman Dennys Riera (19 years, 2022 international signing), as he hit 2-4 with a pair of doubles. Riera was one of the highest-profile players in the Giants 2022 class, along with Ryan Reckley and Juan Perez, but his prospect pedigree dropped a bit after 2 years struggling in the DSL. So far the 3rd attempt is going significantly better, as he has a 1.064 OPS and a 172 wRC+, albeit in just 7 games.

Center fielder Oliver Tejada (17 years, 2024 international signing) only hit 1-4 with 2 strikeouts, but he did double, which gave him an extra-base hit for the 4th consecutive game. He has a 1.064 OPS, a 164 wRC+, and a .277 isolated slugging percentage ... damn good numbers for an up-the-middle player who doesn’t turn 18 until December.

A very nice start for RHP Brayan Narvaez (19 years, 2023 international signing), who dealt 4 scoreless frames with just 3 hits and 3 strikeouts. It was his 4th appearance of the year, and easily his best.

RHP Jan Caraballo (20 years, 2021 international signing) struck out 4 batters in 2 shutout innings, with just 1 hit allowed. Caraballo is likely feeling pressure to perform, since it’s his 4th year in the DSL, but so far he’s proven up to the task: in 11.2 innings he’s allowed just 6 baserunners and 0 runs.

Home run tracker

AAA David Villar (11)
High-A Quinn McDaniel (5)
Low-A Cole Foster (3)

Friday schedule

Sacramento: vs. Round Rock, 6:45 p.m. PT
Richmond: @ Portland, 1:00 p.m. PT (doubleheader)
Eugene: @ Spokane, 7:05 p.m. PT
San Jose: @ Modesto, 7:05 p.m. PT

Reminder that most Minor League games can be watched on MLB TV.