Weekend Minor League roundup: And then there was one

The latest action on the farm.

The Minor League season rapidly winding down. The San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates had just two teams still playing when the weekend began … and now that the weekend is over, only one team’s season continues. So this is the last Minor League roundup of the year that will feature more than just AAA Sacramento.

And with that, let’s get 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.

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AAA Sacramento (77-67)

Saturday: Sacramento River Cats lost to the Round Rock Express (Rangers) 7-2 [box score]
Sunday: Sacramento River Cats beat the Round Rock Express 11-6 [box score]

Sacramento was an extremely exciting affiliate when the year began, but between some of the team’s exciting prospects getting the call to the Majors, and others working through some struggles, the River Cats haven’t been the most stacked or exciting team the last few months.

But Friday’s news that first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 3 CPL) was getting promoted from AA Richmond to Sacramento certainly changed that, and made the River Cats as exciting as they’ve been all year.

Eldridge made his AAA debut on Saturday and hit 1-4 with a strikeout. On Sunday, he hit 1-5 with a walk and 2 strikeouts. Getting hits in debuts? That’s worth celebrating any day of the week.

The rise for Eldridge, who started the year in Low-A San Jose, has been sensational, and we’ll get to keep tabs on him in the coming weeks and months. The Giants are expected to send Eldridge to the Arizona Fall League, and he’ll most certainly be a non-roster invitee to Spring Training, where he might even have a chance to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster, though that would certainly be a long shot.

Shortstop Christian Koss had a fantastic weekend, providing offense in 2 very different ways. On Saturday it was all about the power, as Koss hit 2-3 with both a home run and a double. On Sunday it was all about getting on base, as he went 0-2 but drew 2 walks and was hit by a pitch.

Koss’ debut season in the Giants organization has been a smashing success, and it wouldn’t be entirely surprising if he supplants Brett Wisely or Casey Schmitt next year in the “depth all across the dirt” role for the Giants.

Speaking of players chasing a chance at Major League roles in 2025, center fielder/right fielder Hunter Bishop continues to end the year on a high note. He only went 1-4 on Saturday, but then went 4-6 on Sunday. Bishop has responded beautifully following a fairly brutal summer: in his last 21 games, the 2019 1st-round pick has hit 30-84 with 1 home run, 5 doubles, and 3 walks. Perhaps most impressively is how much he’s cut back on the strikeouts … he has just 3 of them in his last 42 at-bats.

Also a nice weekend for left fielder/first baseman Trenton Brooks, who hit 4-9 with a double and a walk.

Nothing too special on the mound, but stuff worth talking about nonetheless. Saturday was another start for RHP Trevor McDonald (No. 20 CPL), who is crucially ending the season in opposite fashion to how he began it. Which is to say, he’s emphatically healthy!

McDonald gave up 4 earned runs in 5 innings, though he allowed just 6 baserunners and struck out 5. He has just a 5.18 ERA and 4.58 FIP in Sacramento, but that’s still impressive for someone who began the year on the IL, and having never pitched in AA, let alone AAA. And crucially, McDonald’s command has been excellent: his 2.59 walks per 9 innings in Sacramento rank 13th out of 115 Pacific Coast League pitchers with at least 40 innings thrown this year.

But mostly it’s just great to see him healthy and pitching deep into games. He’ll almost surely make his MLB debut next year, health permitting.

On Sunday it was LHP John Michael Bertrand, who made his AAA debut after a late-season promotion. It was a so-so outing, as Bertrand threw 4 innings and allowed 4 hits, 3 walks, 4 runs, and 2 earned runs, with 3 strikeouts. Making it to AAA certainly constitutes a successful season for Bertrand, who will have a chance to pitch a full year there in 2025, and try to make his way onto the MLB roster.

RHP Clay Helvey and LHP Raymond Burgos both had very strong relief outings on Sunday as they start to wrap up their solid seasons.

AA Richmond (64-74)

Saturday: Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Altoona Curve (Pirates) 7-2 [box score]
Sunday: Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Altoona Curve 5-1 [box score]

And with that, Richmond’s season comes to an end. It wasn’t the most exciting year for the Flying Squirrels, but given that the Giants don’t like to keep their top prospects in AA for very long, you could argue that it was a successful year for Richmond, as they were able to quickly send prospects like Bryce Eldridge (No. 3 CPL), Reggie Crawford (No. 8 CPL), Hayden Birdsong (No. 9 CPL), and Grant McCray (No. 12 CPL) to Sacramento.

Richmond still has some exciting prospects, but it did feel fitting that the end of the season happened quite quietly. It did at least feature a long ball, as first baseman/left fielder Matt Higgins hit 3-9 over the weekend, with a solo home run in Saturday’s contest, which was his 1st since a late-July promotion. The 25-year old lefty, who was an undrafted free agent in 2022, ends the year with a .669 OPS and a 97 wRC+ in Richmond, as well as a .761 OPS and a 121 wRC+ in High-A Eugene. Would seem like he’ll be back in Richmond to start 2025.

I’m less sure where we see second baseman/shortstop Diego Velasquez (No. 21 CPL) when next year kicks off. The switch-hitter — who is still just 20 — capped off his delightful season by hitting 3-7 with a double and a walk, though he also committed an error.

It was nothing short of another fantastic year for Velasquez, who followed up a .746 OPS/112 wRC+ first half in High-A Eugene with a .763 OPS/125 wRC+ second half in AA. Those are pretty sensational numbers for such a young player at an up-the-middle position, even if it comes with the caveat that he’s not hitting for much power at all.

While the Giants have promoted many of their top hitting prospects out of Richmond very quickly, they’ve made others stick around longer to work on certain issues (you might remember Tyler Fitzgerald being asked to start 2023 in Richmond after spending all of 2022 there). Velasquez doesn’t have any red flags at the moment, but it wouldn’t be shocking if the Giants have him start next year in Richmond to try and work on his power and defense, since he only spent 42 games there this year. That said, if I had to guess, I’d say he’s in AAA Sacramento when the 2025 season kicks off.

LHP Jack Choate (No. 31 CPL) made his final start of the year on Sunday, tossing 4.1 innings and allowing 4 hits, 1 walk, and 3 runs, while striking out 6 batters. Choate’s numbers weren’t great following a late-season promotion to Richmond — he had a 5.82 ERA and a 4..41 FIP in 8 starts — but he was absolutely phenomenal with High-A Eugene this year. He looks like a very exciting pitcher to keep your eye on next year.

RHP Wil Jensen started Saturday’s game and was phenomenal, giving up just 2 hits, 0 walks, and 1 unearned run in 4 innings of work, with 6 strikeouts. He ends the year with a glistening 3.43 ERA and a 3.14 FIP in Richmond, with 10.6 strikeouts against 2.9 walks per 9 innings. A fantastic year, though he is 27 years old and more of a long reliever than a starter.

Scoreless relief outings from a pair of pitchers who had dynamic years: RHP Trent Harris and Cameron Cotter. Both players were thoroughly dominant with High-A Eugene and took a little time to find their traction in Richmond, but they’re worth paying close attention to next year.

Also scoreless relief outings for a pair of former top prospects who are trying to get their careers back on track: LHP Seth Corry and RHP Will Bednar. Neither player finished the year with good numbers, but both are healthy for the first time in a long time, and Bednar seems to have found some of his lost electricity.

Until next year, Squirrels!

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Home run tracker

AAA Christian Koss (9 total, 5 in AAA)
AA Matt Higgins (5 total, 1 in AA)