Minor League round up, June 27

Recapping Monday’s action from the Giants Minor League affiliates.

No AAA, AA, High-A, or Low-A games for the San Francisco Giants affiliates on Monday, but both ACL and DSL teams were in action.

Let’s get into it.

Link to the 2022 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions are the positions played in that game.

ACL Orange (4-12)

ACL Giants Orange beat the ACL Dodgers 3-2
Box score

Beating the Dodgers is the best thing a baseball team can do, even if it’s in the Arizona Complex League. And that’s what the Giants Orange team did.

The Giants got it done with the long ball, which is a fairly rare strategy in rookie leagues. But 2 home runs did a lot of damage in this one, thanks to good pitching.

One came off the bat of catcher Rajean Anza (19, 2019 J2), who also drew a walk, raising his OPS to .515 and his wRC+ to 49. The other came courtesy of third baseman Irvin Murr III (19, 2021 19th round), who also singled, which bumped his OPS to .536 and his wRC+ to 45. Not particularly strong seasons for either, but homers help!

Also a nice day for second baseman Gustavo Cardozo (18, 2020 J2), who hit 3-4 and stole a base, in the process raising his OPS to .595 and his wRC+ to 64.

The pitchers were strikeout happy, which is always a delight. Starting RHP Gerelmi Maldonado (18, 2020 J2) wasn’t fantastic, as he allowed 3 hits, 2 walks, and 2 runs in 4 innings, but he struck out 6 batters, and has 13 strikeouts to 4 walks in 10.2 innings, to accompany a 3.38 ERA (albeit a 5.77 FIP).

But the bullpen was where the magic happened. RHP Brayan Palencia (19, 2020 J2) gave up just 2 hits in 3 scoreless innings, with 6 strikeouts. He’s sitting on a 3.29 ERA, a 3.33 FIP, and a glistening 20 strikeouts to 3 walks in 13.2 innings.

Finishing it off was RHP Ofelky Peralta (25, 2013 J2, 2022 free agent signing), who allowed just 1 walk in 2 innings, and struck out 5 batters. That dipped his ERA to 1.23 and his FIP to 2.60, and gave him 12 strikeouts to 2 walks in 7.1 innings. Given that he was playing for the Baltimore Orioles AAA affiliate before joining the Giants, I doubt he’s long for the ACL.

ACL Black (11-3)

ACL Giants Black lost to the ACL Brewers Blue 7-1 (7 innings)
Box score

Well, not the best game. The offense only had 4 hits, with the lone run coming courtesy of a solo blast by center fielder P.J. Hilson (21, 2018 6th round), who bumped his OPS to .762 and his wRC+ to 106.

Designated hitter Javier Francisco (19, 2019 J2), who’s certainly an interesting prospect, had his 1st hit in his 3rd ACL game, after getting a quick promotion from the DSL.

Some fun relief work from RHP Kanoa Pagan (23, 2019 19th round), who allowed a run in 2 innings, but recorded all 6 outs by way of strikes. He has 16 strikeouts to 1 walk in 7.2 innings this year. Time for some A-ball!

DSL Orange (7-10)

DSL Giants Orange lost to the DSL LAD Mega 9-5 (7 innings)
Box score

Well, this game had nothing exciting. The offense mustered very little, with just 6 hits (all singles) and 1 walk (though they only struck out 3 times). Only 2 players reached base multiple times. One was the team’s 2nd-biggest international free agent of this signing period, catcher Juan Perez (17, 2021 J2), who hit 2-4, raising his OPS to .653 and his wRC+ to 86.

The other was shortstop Yeison Lemos (19, 2019 J2), who hit 1-3 and was hit by a pitch. Lemos also stole a base, which is the good. The bad is that he committed 3 errors, giving him 7 in 17 games this year.

The pitching was bad. They gave up 10 hits and 6 walks, with just 3 strikeouts, and none of the performances were worth talking about.

DSL Black (8-9)

DSL Giants Black beat the DSL Tigers 2, 5-3 (7 innings)
Box score

Much more interesting pitching performances for the Giants Black team. RHP Mauricio Estrella (18, 2021 J2) gave up 6 baserunners in 3.2 innings, and 2 runs (though just 1 earned), but struck out 6 hitters. He has 22 strikeouts to 8 walks in 17 innings this season, and a 3.18 ERA and 3.77 FIP.

RHP Anderson Azor (18, 2020 J2) followed it up with 2 strikeouts in 2.1 scoreless innings, allowing only a walk. He has a 1.80 ERA but a 5.51 FIP, probably because he has only 5 strikeouts in 10 innings (albeit with just 4 hits and 4 walks).

Offensively the team, like the DSL Giants Orange squad, struck out just 3 times. First baseman Guillermo Williamson (18, 2021 J2) was the star, hitting 2-3 with both of his hits being doubles. That gives him an .820 OPS and a 111 wRC+.

The only other player with multiple hits is one of the team’s hottest batters: left fielder Saul Bautista (18, 2020 J2), who hit 2-3, raising his OPS to .890 and his wRC+ to 140.

Home runs

ACL Irvin Murr III (2)
ACL P.J. Hilson (2)
ACL Rajean Anza (1)

News

The Giants made a series of promotions and demotions with their prospects. Most notable (other than RHP R.J. Dabovich [No. 16 CPL] getting promoted to AAA, which was mentioned in yesterday’s article but made official today), is RHP Ryan Murphy (No. 13 CPL) getting promoted to AA, and RHP Keaton Winn getting promoted to High-A.

Tuesday schedule

Sacramento: @ Reno Aces (Diamondbacks)
Richmond: @ Bowie Baysox (Orioles)
Eugene: vs. Everett AquaSox (Mariners)
San Jose: vs. Modesto Nuts (Rockies)
ACL Orange: vs. ACL Mariners
ACL Black: vs. ACL Athletics
DSL Orange: vs. DSL NYY Yankees
DSL Black: vs. DSL Nationals