Scouting notes on SF Giants prospects Harrison, Schmitt, Bailey, Hjelle, more
This weekend, I visited Sutter Health Park, home of the SF Giants Triple-A affiliate, to catch a pair of Sacramento River Cats games and take stock of the organization's minor-league depth chart. I saw a pair of River Cats victories over the Las Vegas Aviators. They outscored the Oakland Athletics Triple-A affiliate 15-6 in the two days I was there.
The star of the weekend was Giants' top prospect Kyle Harrison, who spoke to me after an excellent outing on Saturday. However, he was far from the only prospect of note. Before getting into my notes, make sure to check out our preseason organization prospect rankings to familiarize yourself further with the farm system if you haven't already.
SF Giants prospects notes:
Kyle Harrison, LHP (Giants #1 prospect)
Review: Untouchable. There hasn't been a Giants pitcher who was this good at making hitters look this bad since prime Tim Lincecum. Harrison only threw four innings this outing, but not for any lack of results - it only took him 50 pitches to retire all 12 hitters he faced. He had five strikeouts through the first two innings, and seven in total. His final line was 4.0 IP, 7 K, 0 BB, 1H, 0 ER on 50 pitches (34 strikes). After a rough start to the season that seemed tied to the implementation of a strict ABS strike zone, Harrison has allowed just 3 ER in his last five starts (17 innings total). Other than the artificially low inning total, there's nothing he really has left to prove. It looked on Saturday like he's figured this league out.
Casey Schmitt, SS (Giants #3 prospect)
Review: Solid. Schmitt had a promising pair of games this weekend, producing consistently and making plus plays at shortstop. He didn't show off much raw power, but he had the kind of high-effort, high-IQ play style that kept him constantly finding ways to create value. Schmitt seems to have a good eye for what he can do damage on, but he's got a Belt-like tendency to spit on well-placed third strikes. That'll frustrate some, but to his credit, that's a big reason why it felt like he was always starting rallies with his bat and ending them with his glove. Is he ready for the big leagues? Probably not quite yet. Later this year? Almost certainly.
NOTE: The Giants obviously think they've seen enough from Schmitt in the minors, though, calling him up for his big-league debut on Tuesday.
Heliot Ramos, LF (Giants # 17 prospect)
Review: Still feeling powerless. Ramos was a bit quieter than most of the other big names this weekend, even if his defense was as solid as ever. His biggest moment came in the 9th inning on Friday, when he started a potential game-winning rally with a walk. In that sequence, he... 1. threw his bat all the way to the outfield on a swing and miss (partly due to wet conditions) 2. nearly got hit by a pitch, his reaction to which ended up summoning the trainer and manager, and 3. chucked his bat twenty feet behind him on ball 4 before heading to first. It was an odd sequence all the way around, one that seemed indicative of a frustratingly unimpressive season thus far.
Tyler Fitzgerald, 2B (Giants #20 prospect)
Review: Fast...but raw. Fitzgerald gets an honorable mention here, as someone who made an outsized impact on the games I saw compared to my expectations. On Friday, he drove in three of the Cats' six runs, his first RBIs at the AAA level. He turned some beautiful defensive plays and can really fly around the base paths, but he seems pretty mortal against Triple-A pitching. I can see him breaking out as a Kelby Tomlinson type.
Patrick Bailey, C (Giants #21 prospect)
Review: Showed up, not showed out. That's not meant to be a knock on Bailey, who had a good game on Saturday: he put the ball in play multiple times, knocked an early RBI single, and his lone strikeout came after working a count long enough that a passed ball scored Darin Ruf. He also caught Harrison's splendid outing, which is a massive merit on his part. But it still might be a little while before he's seasoned enough to make the jump to the majors. He has just 22 games above High-A ball and it shows. With Bart and Sabol both flashing solid production at the plate, there shouldn't be much reason to rush him. That's a good thing, especially when his switch-hitting from the right side is lagging nearly .200 OPS points behind his left.
Sean Hjelle, RHP (Giants # 28 prospect)
Review: Still has starting potential. Hjelle's rough April makes his return to Sacramento a bit unsurprising, especially as a younger guy with options. But I don't think whatever struggles he's working through are going to keep him in Sacramento forever. On Friday, he pitched three innings of scoreless baseball, allowing just one hit and no walks. He was excellent in that outing, and I have to think that he'll perform better in a starting role, especially considering he only moved to the bullpen once he reached the majors. Seeing whether a Harrison-Hjelle tandem can be sustained at the major league level might serve everyone better than continuing to stick Hjelle into a long relief role.
Will Wilson, SS (Just missed the list)
Review: Getting there. Remember Wilson? The Giants picked him up in 2020 as compensation for absorbing a bad contract from Anaheim LA. He put up decent numbers at Double-A Richmond last year, but has faced his share of struggles since being promoted to Sacramento. He had a quietly productive weekend, though, drawing a pinch-hit walk on Friday and knocking two hits, including an RBI single, on Saturday. I saw him playing third (presumably to make room for Schmitt at second base), which isn't his most natural position, but he made a pair of solid plays there and used his speed to steal a run on the basepaths. If he can get comfortable at the Triple-A level, he might earn a September call-up before being a consideration in 2024.
Melvin Adón, RHP
Review: Rough. The toughest outing of the weekend undoubtedly goes to Adón. The talented Dominican reliever has been knocking on the door to the big leagues for a few years now, but hasn't quite put things together. That seemed like the status quo on Friday, when Adón entered the 9th inning to try to preserve a 3-1 lead. Adón regularly got ahead of hitters, but had trouble putting them away, getting to full counts against the first three batters of the inning. He got himself one out away from ending things when he got ambushed for a two-run home run that tied things up. He just didn't seem to have a kill pitch that he could rely on when things got tough, though it's possible the wet conditions gave him trouble.ttop
Rehab Assignments
Darin Ruf, 1B
Review: Stiff. The thought that jumped out to me as I watched Ruf this weekend was that his value is tied almost exclusively to his ability to hit the ball hard, especially relative to a corner infield position. He drove the ball a couple times, but almost all of his contact came as either grounders or low liners. Given that he has approximately 'none speed', the launch angle on that hard contact needs to get noticeably higher. The swing-and-miss I saw was also a bit concerning. Given that, it's not surprising that he was designated for assignment on Tuesday to clear a 40-man roster spot for Schmitt.
Bryce Johnson, CF
Review: Elite. Of all the position players I watched this weekend, Johnson came up with the strongest performance by far. He led off Saturday's game with a double off the left-center field wall, finessed a HBP into steals of second and third, and contributed a sac fly later in the game. Even his lone strikeout came after he worked the count full. He's attacking pitchers with a plan, making smart decisions on the field, and using his speed as a weapon on both offense and defense. After what happened to Mac Williamson, I don't ever want to pound the table to get a guy suffering from a concussion back onto the field. But he looks ready to come back. For everyone's sake, I hope he is.
NOTE: Johnson was activated and optioned to Triple-A on Monday.
