Minor League roundup, May 1: Carson Whisenhunt, Shane Rademacher lead a great pitching day

Yesterday’s action on the farm.

Another day, and another four games for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates. Let’s dive into the action!

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

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

---

News

A few transactions were made. With Brett Wisely being called up to the Majors, Low-A San Jose infielder Jose Ramos was moved to AAA Sacramento as an emergency depth move. I’ll be curious to see what the Giants do there long-term … perhaps they’ll just hold tight until Tyler Fitzgerald and/or Casey Schmitt return to health, or maybe they’ll give Diego Velasquez (No. 16 CPL) a promotion.

Sacramento also placed flame-throwing RHP reliever Joel Peguero on the 7-Day IL. Hopefully he’s OK.

The big news, though, is that the Arizona Complex League team released their roster, as their season starts tomorrow. It’s very notable that the Giants are bringing over a lot of players from the DSL. It would seem that they’re bringing over far more than they usually do: RHPs Argenis Cayama (No. 28 CPL), Jan Caraballo, Marlon Franco, and Alexander Fuentes; LHPs Luis De La Torre and Ricardo Estrada; catchers Jesus Alexander and Santiago Camacho; shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 6 CPL); and outfielders Oliver Tejada (No. 39 CPL) and Angel Guzman.

---

AAA Sacramento (14-16)

Sacramento River Cats lost to the Reno Aces (D-Backs) 3-2 (10 innings)
Box score

Really just a trio of players worth highlighting in this one. On the mound, it was a wonderful bounce-back performance for LHP Carson Whisenhunt (No. 2 CPL), who was nothing short of brilliant. Whisenhunt has struggled at times with finding the strike zone this year, but not on Thursday, when he threw 61 of 80 pitches for strikes, and didn’t issue a walk or a hit batter.

As a result of throwing so many strikes, Whisenhunt was able to be highly efficient, throwing 7 innings on those 80 pitches, while also striking out 7 batters. The only stain on his great day was that 2 of the 6 hits he gave up cleared the fence, though they were both solo shots, so he only allowed 2 runs.

Whisenhunt has been hot and cold this year (he’s given up 13 earned runs in 11 innings in 3 of his starts, and just 2 earned runs in 19 innings in his other 3 starts), but the Giants should be highly encouraged by his ability to limit walks, even on the days where he’s not finding the strike zone as easily. The 24-year old southpaw, who has a 4.50 ERA and a 4.05 FIP on the season, is issuing just 1.50 walks per 9 innings, which is tied for 3rd-best out of 41 Pacific Coast League pitchers with at least 20 innings thrown.

After Whisenhunt came RHP Sean Hjelle, whose dynamic season following a surprising optioning continues. Hjelle needed just 25 pitches (18 of which were strikes) to cruise through 2 scoreless, no-hit innings, while giving up 1 walk and striking out 4. Some players take the news of being optioned hard, and struggle back in the Minors. Some take the news hard and use it to put in the work to make some improvements. Hjelle seems to be the latter, as he has a 1.04 ERA, a 2.51 FIP, and 20 strikeouts to 6 walks in 17.1 innings. Since a tough outing in his 2nd appearance of the year, Hjelle has been lights out over 8 games, pitching 13.1 innings and giving up just 6 hits, 6 walks, and 0 runs, with 16 strikeouts. I wouldn’t be too surprised if he replaces Lou Trivino at some point.

The other strong performance came in the batter’s box, where center fielder Grant McCray had himself an absolutely delightful game, hitting 2-4 with both a home run and a double, while also striking out once.

That swing is a reminder of how much power is in McCray’s bat, even though it’s been relatively absent this year: even after this big game, his isolated slugging percentage, which was .199 in Sacramento last year and .177 in his MLB debut, sits at just .101 this season. As a result, it’s just a .661 OPS and a 79 wRC+ for McCray right now, but he can turn things on in a hurry. Hopefully more days like this are in his immediate future, and he can start to make a play for a return to the Majors.

AA Richmond (6-18)

Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Somerset Patriots (Yankees) 5-1
Box score

Hey, a Richmond win! We don’t get to see those very often!

It wasn’t a super high-scoring game, but there were still some delightful offensive performances. The best day belonged to shortstop Aeverson Arteaga (No. 12 CPL), and it sure was nice to see him have a good game, as those have eluded him most of the year. But a good game it most certainly was for the young righty, who hit 2-3 with a triple, a double, and a walk.

Arteaga’s numbers this year are fairly brutal, as he has just a .527 OPS and a 54 wRC+, with a 34.7% strikeout rate. But it’s certainly worth remembering that he lost nearly all of 2024 due to an injury … and not just any injury, but thoracic outlet syndrome. A little time to wipe away the rust is necessary for all players returning from injury, but, I would argue, especially for players coming back from that injury, as they really have to re-learn how to use their arm a bit. Arteaga, who only just turned 22 and is thus still quite young for the level, is already showing some of that recovery … even though the numbers still don’t stand out, he’s been improving:

First 8 games: 2-26, 0 extra-base hits, 0 walks, 11 strikeouts
Next 16 games: 13-51, 4 extra-base hits, 5 walks, 19 strikeouts

Still a lot of work to do, but trending in the right direction.

Designated hitter Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) also had a nice game which, it goes without saying, was a nice sight. Eldridge has been fairly mediocre since a majestic homer in his season debut, but on Thursday hit 3-4 with a double and a strikeout. While he hasn’t been exactly lighting things up, the consensus top prospect in the system does have a 4-game hitting streak going, and has a delightful .859 OPS and 151 wRC+ through 7 games this year, albeit with a 37.9% strikeout rate.

Center fielder Carter Howell and catcher Adrián Sugastey, who are both trying to find a rhythm after slowish starts, had nice games, with Howell hitting 2-5 with a double and 2 strikeouts, and Sugastey hitting 2-4 with a double. The former has 5 hits and 2 extra-base hits over his last 3 games, while the latter has 4 hits and 2 extra-base hits over his last 2 games.

Second baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 16 CPL) continued his awesome season by hitting 1-4 with a walk and 2 stolen bases. The switch-hitter now has a .799 OPS, a 137 wRC+, 4 stolen bases in 5 attempts, and just a 10.0% strikeout rate … not bad at all for a middle infielder who won’t turn 22 until after the season ends. Left fielder Vaun Brown also stole a pair of bases, and went 1-4 with a strikeout.

But the biggest reason for victory came on the mound, as LHP Jack Choate (No. 29 CPL) shut down Somerset’s hitters for 5 brilliant innings in which he gave up just 1 hit and no runs. Choate didn’t have the best control, as he walked 3 batters and threw just 46 of 76 pitches for strikes, but still a sensational day for the tall southpaw, who was a 9th-round pick in 2022.

Choate’s control has struggled a bit in Richmond after being a strength in A-Ball: he issued 4.8 walks per 9 innings during his 8-game stint in AA last year, and has given up 5.1 so far this year. But he’s also striking out batters like never before, with a whopping 14.0 per 9 innings, a number that ranks 2nd among the 42 Giants prospects who have thrown at least 10 innings this year, trailing only Sacramento RHP Kai-Wei Teng, a player with MLB experience. As a result, Choate has a 2.79 ERA and a 3.11 FIP this year, delightful numbers that could have him in line for a promotion should Sacramento lose any of their pitchers.

High-A Eugene (14-10)

Eugene Emeralds beat the Everett AquaSox (Mariners) 6-5
Box score

It might look, from the final score, that it wasn’t a great pitching day for the Emeralds. But it was a fantastic pitching day until the late innings, when RHPs Austin Strickland and Ian Villers really struggled.

But until then it was a delight, due to one of the most dominant pitchers in the Minor Leagues so far this year: RHP Shane Rademacher. No one has figured out Rademacher this year, and the only knock on his early season excellence had been that he wasn’t really striking people out.

That changed on Thursday. The 24-year old undrafted righty overwhelmed hitters, striking out 10 batters in 5 shutout innings, while allowing just 4 hits and 0 walks. That is … well, that is one hell of a performance.

Rademacher had a nice season debut, but what he’s done since then has been downright comical:

Last 4 games: 20 innings, 8 hits, 1 walk, 0 hit batters, 0 runs, 21 strikeouts

Excuse me???

There are 271 Minor League pitchers who have thrown at least 20 innings this year. Rademacher is 4th in ERA (0.38), 2nd in walks per 9 innings (0.38), 1st in WHIP (0.50), and 17th in FIP (2.49). Just an utterly spectacular start to the year.

He was followed up by RHP Cameron Pferrer, who made his High-A debut in style, allowing just a walk in a shutout inning, with a strikeout.

On offense, the star was right fielder Scott Bandura, who had a nearly perfect day as his spectacular season continues. Bandura hit a perfect 3-3, smacked a double, was hit by a pitch, and stole 2 bases. The left-handed hitter has a 12-game hitting streak going, and has hit safely in 19 out of 21 games this year, giving him a .903 OPS and a 159 wRC+. A 7th-round pick in 2023, Bandura hasn’t been hitting for power, but who needs power when you have a .347 batting average, a 16.5% walk rate, a 19.8% strikeout rate, and 7 stolen bases in 8 attempts?

First baseman Charlie Szykowny (No. 43 CPL) also showed out, hitting 3-4 with a double and a hit by pitch. The 2023 9th-round pick hasn’t had a great year after a breakout 2024, as he has a .764 OPS and a 105 wRC+, but he’s holding his own and has been hitting quite well lately: in his last 8 games, he’s gone 11-34 with 1 home run, 3 doubles, and just 4 strikeouts.

And it was a day that ends in “Y,” so it was another multi-hit game for center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 11 CPL), who went 2-5 with a triple and a strikeout. Injuries have limited Davidson to just 16 games this year, but he’s had a Meckler-esque 9 multi-hit games already, and in his last 9 games is a staggering 17-40 with 5 extra-base hits, 4 walks, and just 6 strikeouts. On the year, the 22-year old lefty has a .974 OPS and a 163 wRC+. He’s picked up where he left off last year and that is tremendously exciting.

Low-A San Jose (15-9)

San Jose Giants beat the Modesto Nuts (Mariners) 10-9
Box score

Kind of a funny game for the Baby Giants, who managed to scored 10 runs off of 10 hits (with no home runs) and no errors … though 6 walks certainly help there.

Center fielder/right fielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 17 CPL), first baseman Jakob Christian (No. 30 CPL), and designated hitter Robert Hipwell (No. 25 CPL) all hand standout offensive days.

Diaz went 2-4 with a triple, a hit by pitch, and a stolen base, as he continues to put together a nice run here. The 19-year old is up to an .806 OPS and a 116 wRC+, with a tidy 18.1% strikeout rate and 7 stolen bases in 9 attempts. After a slow (by his standards) 5-game start to the year, Diaz has gone 25-76 with 8 extra-base hits, 5 walks, and just 13 strikeouts over the last 18 games. What a fun player he is.

Christian went 3-4 with a triple and 2 stolen bases, though he also had a strikeout and committed an error. Last year’s 5th-round pick has been quietly having a spectacular debut full season, and is sporting a .940 OPS and a 140 wRC+, with 5 stolen bases in as many attempts.

Unlike Diaz and Christian, Hipwell has been struggling this year, but he sure didn’t on Thursday, when he had a pretty funny game, hitting 1-1 with a double and 4 walks, though he was also caught stealing. Last year’s 6th-round pick has just a .633 OPS and an 87 wRC+, but he certainly has breakout potential.

Some potentially concerning news: right fielder Carlos Gutierrez, who hit 1-2 with a walk, was replaced in the 6th inning, which usually signals an injury. Hopefully that’s not the case. He was replaced by center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 8 CPL) who hit 1-3 without a strikeout, as he continues to improve his contact skills.

Not a very good game on the mound, as starting RHP Drake George really got roughed up, as did fellow RHP Cade Vernon. But RHPs Ryan Slater and Ben Peterson had tremendous games in relief. Slater tossed 2.2 no-hit innings, giving up just 1 walk while striking out 3, which lowered his ERA to 0.84 and his FIP to 2.72. It’s been a brilliant debut season for last year’s 18th-round pick. Peterson only faced 2 batters, but he struck both of them out. The undrafted righty hasn’t had the sharpest debut season, but can’t do much better than what he did on Thursday!

---

Home run tracker

AAA Grant McCray (2)

---

Friday schedule

Sacramento: vs. Reno, 6:45 p.m. PT (SP: Trevor McDonald)
Richmond: vs. Somerset, 3:35 p.m. PT (SP: Seth Lonsway)
Eugene: vs. Everett, 6:35 p.m. PT (SP: Cale Lansville)
San Jose: at Modesto, 6:40 p.m. PT (SP: Greg Farone)

Reminder that most MiLB games can be watched on MLB TV.