Giants Baseball Insider

SF Giants prospects win Player of the Month Awards at Single-A and High-A

A pair of recently-promoted SF Giants prospects were each named the Player of the Month for the Northwest and California League, respectively.
Marc Delucchi|
SF Giants prospects win Player of the Month Awards at Single-A and High-A
SF Giants prospects win Player of the Month Awards at Single-A and High-A

In this story:

San Francisco Giants

The SF Giants recently promoted left-handed pitching prospect Carson Whisenhunt (Giants #9 prospect) to Double-A Richmond and outfielder Carter Howell to High-A Eugene. On Monday, they were named a May Player of the Month for their previous leagues. Howell, was named the position Player of the Month in the Single-A California League while Whisenhunt was named the Pitcher of the Month for the High-A Northwest League.

Whisenhunt, the Giants 2022 second-round pick out of East Carolina, has rapidly ascended through the minor league ranks. After starting the season at Single-A San Jose, Whisenhunt has already been promoted twice and reached the upper minors. On the season, Whisenhunt has a 2.08 ERA across 10 starts (39 innings pitched) with 56 strikeouts and 12 walks. In May, Whisenhunt did not allow a run in three of his five appearances, racking up 30 strikeouts in 21.1 innings pitched with a 1.69 ERA.

Howell has been exceptional this season. After hitting .310/.412/.379 in nine Rookie League games last year, Howell has hit the ground running this season in full-season ball. Howell hit .337/.398/.500 in 39 games at Single-A prior to his promotion, and has an OPS north of 1.000 through his first week at High-A. In May, Howell posted a .372/.454/.574 triple-slash, leading the league in batting average, hits, and runs alongside a second-place finish in total bases and on-base percentage.

Unlike Whisenhunt, Howell came with far less fanfare as a part of the Giants 2022 class. Howell was signed as a non-drafted free agent last July out of Augustana University, a Division-II school in South Dakota. A three-year starter at Augustana, Howell dominated the college competition. Over his final two college seasons, he posted an OPS north of 1.100 over that span with 23 doubles, seven triples, 27 home runs, 51 stolen bases (56 attempts), 36 walks, and 42 strikeouts in 496 plate appearances.

Several players throughout the SF Giants farm system have gotten off to great starts this season. Outfielder Carter Howell and starting pitcher Carson Whisenhunt stood above the rest in May and were selected as the best players in their leagues prior to recent promotions.

Published
Marc Delucchi
MARC DELUCCHI

Marc Delucchi (he/they/she) serves as the Managing Editor at Giants Baseball Insider, leading their SF Giants coverage. As a freelance journalist, he has previously covered the San Francisco Giants at Around the Foghorn and McCovey Chronicles. He also currently contributes to Niners Nation, Golden State of Mind, and Baseball Prospectus. He has previously been featured in several other publications, including SFGate, ProFootballRumors, Niners Wire, GrandStand Central, Call to the Pen, and Just Baseball. Over his journalistic career, Marc has conducted investigations into how one prep baseball player lost a college opportunity during the pandemic (Baseball Prospectus) and the rampant mistreatment of players at the University of Hawaii football program under former head coach Todd Graham (SFGate). He has also broken dozens of news stories around professional baseball, primarily around the SF Giants organization, including the draft signing of Kyle Harrison, injuries and promotions to top prospects like Heliot Ramos, and trade details in the Kris Bryant deal. Marc received a Bachelor's degree from Kenyon College with a major in economics and a minor in Spanish. During his time in college, he conducted a summer research project attempting to predict the future minor-league performance of NCAA hitters, worked as a data analyst for the school's Women's basketball team, and worked as a play-by-play announcer/color commentator for the basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. He also worked as an amateur baseball scout with the Collegiate Baseball Scouting Network (later renamed Evolution Metrix), scouting high school and college players for three draft cycles. For tips and inquiries, feel free to reach out to Marc directly on Twitter or via email (delucchimarc@gmail.com).

Share on XFollow maddelucchi
Home/San Francisco Giants News