SF Giants call up pitching prospect Tristan Beck, place Alex Wood on IL
The SF Giants announced prior to Wednesday's game against the Miami Marlins that the team recalled right-handed pitcher Tristan Beck (Giants #19 prospect) from Triple-A Sacramento and placed Alex Wood on the 15-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle first reported that Beck was with the team. Bay Area News Group's Evan Webeck first reported that Wood would be placed on the injured list.
The move is not entirely unexpected since Wood was forced to leave his outing in Tuesday's 4-2 loss after tweaking his hamstring fielding a bunt. Wood has been very effective this season with San Francisco, recording a 1.80 ERA in 10 innings pitched with 11 strikeouts and six walks. Wood is currently in the second season of a two-year, $25 million contract extension he signed with the team following the 2019 campaign.
Beck was acquired by the Giants in a trade at the 2019 MLB trade deadling with Atlanta for veteran reliever Mark Melancon. Beck had once been considered a potential top-10 pick in the draft after starring at Stanford, but major back surgery led his stock to fall. Atlanta decided to bet on his upside in the fourth round of the 2018 MLB Draft.
Beck was finally healthy enough to throw more than 100 innings last season, and was quickly promoted to Triple-A. While he finished the year with Sacramento with an underwhelming 5.64 ERA in 97.1 innings pitched (20 appearances), it's worth contextualizing them in the Pacific Coast League where the average pitcher had a 5.39 ERA. Moreover, he made vast improvements over the last two months of the season, and probably would have received a late-season callup if not for a flare up in his back.
Beck has previously showcased a four-pitch starter's arsenal, but the righty has paired things down this season. This spring, Beck posted a 4.61 ERA with 13 strikeouts and three walks in 13.2 innings pitched in big-league camp. Back in Sacramento by Opening Day, Beck has a 3.38 ERA with nine strikeouts and seven walks in 13.1 innings pitched across three starts. He is almost entirely relying on his low-to-mid 90s four-seam fastball and a hard slider.
While Tristan Beck has been developed as a starting pitcher, the SF Giants will likely turn to more veteran options like Jakob Junis, Ross Stripling, or even Sean Hjelle to replace Alex Wood's spot in the rotation. Still, Beck will likely make his big-league debut in the coming days.
