Minor League roundup, 7/1: Trevor McDonald dominates

Yesterday’s action on the farm.

Not all of the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates were in action on Tuesday; and not all of the affiliates who were in action were in prolonged action. The ACL team had the day off, while AA Richmond made it to the 3rd inning of their game before weather postponed it. They’ll finish that game today as part of a semi-doubleheader. A one-and-a-half-header, if you will.

Now let’s dive into the action from an otherwise busy day!

Link to the 2025 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the positions played in that particular game.

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News

Just some small bits of news. Most excitingly, RHP Braxton Roxby was promoted from AA Richmond to AAA Sacramento. Roxby, whom the Giants acquired in the Taylor Rogers trade, had been dominant in AA, so it will be fun to see what he does at the next level.

RHPs Shane Rademacher and Cameron Pferrer, who had been filling in on emergency duty in Sacramento (where neither played), were returned to High-A Eugene.

And Eugene outfielder Scott Bandura, who is having a breakout campaign, was named the Northwest League Player of the Week. Congrats!

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AAA Sacramento (39-43)

Sacramento River Cats beat the Reno Aces (D-Backs) 9-0
Box score

Well, playing the Diamondbacks went much better for the AAA affiliate than for the Major League team on Tuesday, that’s for damn sure.

This was a fantastic all-around game for the River Cats, but no one shined as brightly as their starting pitcher, RHP Trevor McDonald (No. 15 CPL). McDonald has become something of a forgotten player among the team’s pitching options. Everyone’s waiting for LHP Carson Whisenhunt (No. 2 CPL), while Carson Seymour (No. 21 CPL) just got called up, and Carson Ragsdale (No. 19 CPL) looks like he might be waiting in the wings, to make no mention of Mason Black (No. 7 CPL).

But on Tuesday, McDonald put forth one of the best pitching performances of the season for Sacramento, tossing 7 brilliant, shutout innings, and allowing just 3 hits, plus a walk and a hit batter, while striking out 5. It wasn’t the most economical, strike-filled outing, but he wasn’t poor in that area either, throwing 94 pitches and finding the zone 65 times. McDonald only has a 4.93 ERA and a 5.45 FIP on the season, so he’s perhaps not on the Giants radar as a player who is knocking on the door, especially since this start came after 2 consecutive games in which he got destroyed. But if he puts together a few more starts like this one, he could be back in the Majors, where he’s spent exactly 1 day so far in his career.

Rounding out the shutout was RHP Sean Hjelle, who tossed 2 scoreless frames in his return to Sacramento following a recent optioning. Despite only giving up 2 baserunners, Hjelle needed 40 pitches to get through his 2 innings.

It was a balanced attack on offense. Prior to the game, the Giants called up outfielder Luis Matos to replace infielder Christian Koss, who landed on the 10-Day IL. I openly found it a little odd that the Giants opted for an outfielder rather than placing one of their infielders on the 40-man roster (which, admittedly, would have meant cutting someone from the 40); apparently those infielders also found it odd, as they all had good days. Second baseman Osleivis Basabe hit 3-5 with a pair of doubles, shortstop Sergio Alcántara hit 1-3 with a double and a walk, and third baseman Devin Mann hit 1-4 with a double and a strikeout. Hell hath no fury like an infielder scorned, or something like that.

But the bulk of the damage came by way of the big fly, and the River Cats had a trio of hitters go deep. Most notable was left fielder Marco Luciano, who went 2-5 and bopped a solo home run.

With James Tibbs III (No. 3 CPL) traded, and Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) injured, Luciano sits alone atop the home run leaderboard for Giants prospects this year, with 13, though this one was a welcome sight, as it was his 1st in 2 weeks. It’s been a delight seeing Luciano access his power again: he’s hitting the ball significantly harder than he did last year, and his .187 isolated slugging is miles ahead of where it was in 2024, when it was a mild .130. But he has just a .222 batting average and a 30.4% strikeout rate, and that’s how the organization’s home run leader has just a .737 OPS and a 93 wRC+. Still, with how power starved the Giants are, you wonder if Luci might get a look here at some point.

Speaking of players who might get looks, designated hitter Hunter Bishop (No. 34 CPL) hit 1-3 with a 3-run blast and a walk.

Bishop started to turn his season around in a hurry with a great June, and now he’s starting July in the same manner. After hitting just 14-62 with 0 home runs and 2 doubles in May, the 2019 1st-round pick has gone 17-56 since, with 2 home runs, 2 triples, and 5 doubles. He’s not on the 40-man roster, but I could see him getting a cup of coffee later this year, the way Daniel Johnson currently is getting one.

And finally, catcher Logan Porter reminded us all that he’s ready to step in should something happen to Patrick Bailey or Andrew Knizner, as he went 1-3 with a home run, a walk, and 2 strikeouts.

High-A Eugene (39-36)

Eugene Emeralds beat the Hillsboro Hops (D-Backs) 7-2
Box score

Another affiliate beating up on the Diamondbacks. If you can’t get them where it matters most, at least you can get them somewhere!

Would you believe me if I told you that catcher Drew Cavanaugh homered again? The lefty, who went 1-4 with a strikeout on the day, smashed a 3-run big fly, marking his 3rd straight game with a home run.

Cavanaugh, the team’s 17th-round pick in 2023, remains one of the best stories on the farm this year. After mild-mannered 2023 and 2024s, Cavanaugh has exploded this year. He had a 1.006 OPS and a 173 wRC+ with Low-A San Jose before his recent promotion, and so far has a 1.233 OPS and a 225 wRC+ in 8 games with Eugene. He also has filled in as emergency depth in Sacramento for 14 games, and while his offensive numbers there are justifiably ugly, he’s impressed nonetheless. After just 2 home runs, total, in his 1st 2 years (253 plate appearances), Cavanaugh has already bopped 11 dingers in just 223 plate appearances this season. Add in some quality work behind the dish, and he’s suddenly a name to keep an eye on.

Shortstop Zane Zielinski had the same day that Cavanaugh had, hitting 1-4 with a home run and a strikeout. The 2024 9th-round pick is still trying to find his footing in Eugene, which is understandable given that this is his debut season and the Giants sent him straight to the Northwest League with nary a stop in Arizona nor San Jose. Seen through that lens, a .616 OPS and a 76 wRC+ for a middle infielder seems pretty nice.

Center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 11 CPL) hit 2-4 with a strikeout, which marks his 24th multi-hit game this year, in 62 games. He also has a 9-game hitting streak, and his OPS and wRC+ remain blissfully high, as they have all season (.939 and 154, respectively). It’s almost staggering how consistent Davidson’s numbers have been even as he’s moved up a level. Last year, which he split between the ACL and Low-A, the undrafted lefty hit .327/.437/.605, with a 14.4% walk rate and a 24.7% strikeout rate. This year, spent solely in High-A, he’s hit .320/.418/.520, with a 14.3% walk rate and a 22.3% strikeout rate. I would assume that a promotion isn’t far away!

A pretty nice start for RHP Josh Bostick (No. 27 CPL), who gave up just 1 run in 5 innings of work. Bostick wasn’t missing a ton of bats — he gave up 7 hits and only struck out 3 — but he avoided big mistakes. He didn’t walk or hit any batters, and 6 of the 7 hits he allowed were singles. It’s been a bit of a disappointing year for the 2023 8th-round pick, who has a 4.82 ERA, a 5.59 FIP, and hasn’t looked as electric as many had hoped. But after 3 consecutive outings of giving up 5 runs, he’s now settled in with back-to-back nice starts. Here’s hoping it continues.

A funny outing for RHP Cameron Pferrer, who accomplished something rare: he recorded more outs (5) than batters faced (4). Pferrer entered in the 7th inning with 1 out and a runner 2nd, and proceeded to get a popout and then a rare 2nd-base pickoff. He followed it up by striking out all 3 batters that he faced in the 8th inning to cap a performance that was as dominant as it was uncommon. Pferrer has a 3.26 ERA since getting promoted, though he has just a 5.51 FIP and 19 strikeouts to 7 walks in 19.1 innings.

RHP Ben Peterson, an undrafted free agent in his debut season, made his 3rd appearance for Eugene following a recent promotion, and pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. He’s retired all 7 batters that he’s faced since his promotion, which I’m told is good.

Low-A San Jose (50-26)

San Jose Giants beat the Stockton Ports (A’s) 3-2
Box score

The power surge continues for center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 8 CPL), who went 1-4 with a 2-run home run, his 2nd dinger and 4th extra-base hit in the last 2 games. Is there anything better than a no-doubt opposite-field home run?

I’ve already written a million words on how Jordan, last year’s 4th-round pick, has flipped the script on his profile this year, for better and for worse, so I won’t bore you with the details again. I’ll just say that I’m always far more excited about prospects who find their success through addressing their weaknesses, even if their strengths go on hiatus, than I am about prospects who find their success through doubling down on their strengths while their weaknesses continue to lurk in the corner.

Jordan found his early season success by doing the former, and now we’re starting to see why it excites me so much. The power has started to show up over the last month, but it hasn’t come at the expense of the contact improvements that he’s made. In May, Jordan hit .310; in June, that number was a nearly-identical .311. In May, he struck out 24 times in 100 at-bats; in June, 27 times in 106 at-bats.

But the difference? In May, his slugging percentage was .370; in June, it was .557. He made some adjustments, and now he’s adding the power back into the equation. The results could be tantalizing!

Speaking of players making adjustments, left fielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 17 CPL) hit 1-4 with 2 strikeouts, but bopped his 6th homer of the year. It’s been a fairly quiet offensive year for Diaz, who has a .681 OPS and an 87 wRC+, though I feel compelled to remind you that he’s still a teenager. And also importantly, he’s been turning things around lately. The righty with a cannon for an arm has a 5-game hitting streak, during which time he’s gone 10-23 with 3 home runs, a double, a walk, and just 3 strikeouts. After hitting just .194/.256/.269 in May, Diaz went .280/.320/.430 in June, and is starting July on the right foot.

Right fielder Rayner Arias (No. 4 CPL) made his 1st appearance for San Jose this year after a recent promotion. Arias was promoted despite struggling in the ACL, so it’s probably not too surprising that he struggled in this game, going 0-4 with 3 strikeouts. He seemingly was rushed up early due to an injury to Carlos Gutierrez who, while not appearing on the IL, hasn’t played since June 25.

RHP Cade Vernon shined out of the bullpen, tossing 3.1 no-hit innings with 3 strikeouts, while allowing just a walk. Vernon, a 10th-round pick a year ago who is in his debut season, has now gone 7 straight appearances without allowing an earned run, which covers all 6 of his June games, plus this outing. During that time he’s pitched 15.2 innings and allowed just 6 hits, 3 walks, and 3 unearned runs, though he has just 9 strikeouts. He has a 1.93 ERA on the year, though the lack of strikeouts gives him just a 4.79 FIP.

RHP Hunter Dryden had a funny start. He gave up no earned runs in 3 innings, but allowed 6 baserunners and an unearned run, with just 1 strikeout. It’s been a great year for him, though, even if this was not his smoothest game.

Dominican Summer League

DSL Giants Orange (16-5) beat the DSL Giants Black (17-5) 6-2 (7 innings)
Box score

I hate intra-organization games! Hate them! But they persist.

Not a lot of interesting performances. On offense, a player to highlight on each team: for the Giants Orange squad, first baseman Franco Willias (20 years, 2023 IFA) hit 1-2 with a walk and 2 stolen bases. He’s been dominant in his 2nd pass through the level, with a 1.002 OPS, a 149 wRC+, 7 stolen bases, and just a 9.3% strikeout rate. For the Giants Black team, left fielder Yoxander Benitez (18 years, 2024 IFA) had a perfect game, hitting 2-2 with a walk and 2 stolen bases. He’s also having a blissful pass through the DSL on his 2nd attempt, sporting a .824 OPS and a 123 wRC+, with 10 stolen bases and just an 8.3% strikeout rate.

A lot of decent but not dominant pitching performances, so let’s just focus on the best one: LHP Leandro Rodriguez (19 years, 2025 IFA) was a strikeout machine, K’ing 6 batters in just 2.2 shutout innings, while allowing just 1 hit. Rodriguez’s debut season has been one filled with strikeouts: he has 21 of them in 14.1 innings, while allowing 6 walks and 5 hits.

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Home run tracker

AAA Marco Luciano (13)
AAA Hunter Bishop (6)
AAA Logan Porter (3)
High-A Drew Cavanaugh (11) [4 in High-A]
High-A Zane Zielinski (2)
Low-A Dakota Jordan (7)
Low-A Lisbel Diaz (6)

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Wednesday schedule

Sacramento: vs. Reno, 6:45 p.m. PT (SP: Mason Black)
Richmond: doubleheader vs. Chesapeake, 2:30 p.m. PT
Eugene: vs. Hillsboro, 6:35 p.m. PT (SP: Cesar Perdomo)
San Jose: at Stockton, 7:05 p.m. PT (SP: Niko Mazza)