A round up of the San Francisco Giants Minor League affiliates.
Monday was a very slow day on the San Francisco Giants farm, as the AA, High-A, and Low-A affiliates all had a scheduled off day, while both Dominican Summer League teams had their games canceled.
So just three games. Let’s jump in.
Link to the 2021 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)
AAA Sacramento (38-51)
Sacramento River Cats lost to the Salt Lake Bees (Angels) 6-0
Box score
Well, there aren’t many games to recap here and the River Cats are getting us started on the very wrong foot. Sacramento had the roughest of games, coming within 4 outs of getting no-hit. They were saved from ignominy by the glory of an infield single with 2 outs in the 8th inning, courtesy of shortstop Mauricio Dubón. Center fielder Bryce Johnson would later add a single, giving the River Cats a whopping 2 hits on the day. They drew 0 walks, though they struck out 12 times, with right fielder Jaylin Davis (No. 20 CPL), second baseman Thairo Estrada, first baseman Jason Krizan, and designated hitter Joe McCarthy all registering 2 Ks.
Davis and Estrada at least had some highlight plays on defense.
Do social media admin a favor by just admiring the catch and ignoring the scoreboard plz and thx ☺️ @Jay_Dave23 | #ClawsUp pic.twitter.com/yL4Wfdxj35
— rivercats (@RiverCats) August 17, 2021
Now showing: The Thairo Toss™ #ClawsUp pic.twitter.com/CTxPjT6mCg
— rivercats (@RiverCats) August 17, 2021
The pitching was better — hard to be worse — but not exactly good. LHP Scott Kazmir returned and made his first start since the Olympics, giving up 3 hits, 3 walks, and 4 earned runs in 4.1 innings, with 4 strikeouts. LHP Caleb Baragar had another rough game — 2 hits, 2 walks, and 2 earned runs in 1 inning — but RHP Kervin Castro (No. 25 CPL) pitched 2 perfect innings to lower his ERA to 3.23.
ACL Orange (19-16)
ACL Giants Orange beat the Cubs 8-1
Box score
Hey, this game looks better already. The Giants Orange squad had 10 hits and 11 walks so at least someone is playing offense around these parts.
First baseman Garrett Frechette (No. 27 CPL, 20, 2019 5th round) reached base 4 times, with a pair of singles and a pair of walks to raise his OPS to .884. Left fielder Edison Mora (21, 2018 7th round) drew 3 walks, raising his OPS to .763, and catcher Adrian Sugastey (19, 2019 J2) hit 2-5 with a double to bump his OPS to .826.
Shortstop Aeverson Arteaga (No. 28 CPL, 18, 2019 J2), who has been struggling mightily in August after a blistering hot start to the season, drew a walk and hit a triple. Even with a rough month (he has a .688 OPS in August), Arteaga has a .968 OPS on the year.
LHP Sonny Vargas (20, 2017 J2) got the start and set the tone, giving up just 2 hits, 2 walks, and 1 earned run in 5 innings, with 5 strikeouts. Vargas is starting to find his form after a rough patch: He had a 9.64 ERA in July, with 24 strikeouts to 13 walks in 18.2 innings, but has started August with a 1.69 ERA, and 19 strikeouts to 2 walks in 16 innings.
LHP Jesus Gomez (20, 2017 J2) struck out 4 in 2 perfect innings.
ACL Black (18-17)
ACL Giants Black lost to the Rockies 6-3 (7 innings)
Box score
The Giants Black team lost, but it was still an awesome day for center fielder Alexander Suarez (19, 2018 J2), who hit 2-3 with a triple, a double, and a walk. That bumped Suarez’s OPS up to .954, and kept his hot August going — he’s rocking a 1.173 OPS for the month.
Shortstop Diego Velasquez (17, 2020 J2) also had a nice game, with a double and a walk. His OPS is just .574, but he’s finding his form lately with a .844 OPS in August. He’s just 17 and playing his first season of professional ball, so some time to get acclimated should be expected.
Right fielder Richgelon Juliana (21, 2017 J2) made his season debut and had a single, and left fielder Hunter Bishop (No. 4 CPL, 23. 2019 1st round) had a single as he continues to rehab.
LHP Esmerlin Vinicio (18, 2019 J2), who has had a very strong season, had his worst start of the year, giving up 5 hits, 1 walk, and 4 earned runs in 4.2 innings with 6 strikeouts. Even so he still has a 2.61 ERA and 46 strikeouts to 22 walks in 38 innings. Not bad for a debut season.
Home runs
The Giants affiliates did not have any home runs on Monday.
News
Outfielder Jairo Pomares (No. 14 CPL), who has absolutely dominated Low-A this year, received a promotion. He’ll join Marco Luciano in High-A.
Tuesday schedule
Sacramento: @ Salt Lake Bees, 5:35 p.m. PT
Richmond: vs. Erie SeaWolves, 3:35 p.m. PT
Eugene: vs. Everett AquaSox, 7:05 p.m. PT
San Jose: @ Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, 6:30 p.m. PT
ACL Orange: vs. Athletics
ACL Black: vs. D-backs
DSL Orange: vs. Brewers2
DSL Black: vs. Phillies White