San Francisco Giants’ Prospects Shine in All-Star Games

A few San Francisco Giants’ prospects earned their chance to shine in their respective league’s All-Star Games on Tuesday night.

As the Major League season rolls on, some minor leagues are holding their All-Star Games. On Tuesday, San Francisco Giants’ prospects participated in the California League (High-A San Jose) and South Atlantic, aka the Sally League, (A Augusta) All-Star Games.

The San Jose Giants sent five players to Lancaster, California for the Cal League All-Star Game: second baseman Jalen Miller; third baseman Wander Franco; outfielder Johneshwy Fargas; right-handed pitcher Logan Webb; and left-handed pitcher Sandro Cabrera.

Jalen Miller was the North Division’s second baseman, and went 1-5 as the North beat South 8-1. Miller’s lone hit was an RBI double in the fourth inning, which made the North’s lead 5-0.

Miller, the Giants’ third-round pick in 2015, has been a breakout star in his second season with San Jose. In 64 games, he’s hitting .305/.347/.466 with 18 doubles and 36 RBI. His seven home runs are already a career-high. Miller has jumped on to MLB Pipeline’s list of the top-30 prospects in the Giants’ organization as other players have shed prospect status.

Wander Franco started at third base, but went 0-3 with a couple strikeouts. He was signed as a minor league free agent this past offseason, and is playing well in his first season as a Giants’ farmhand. He’s hitting .294/.310/.394, and despite hitting just one home run, leads the team with 22 doubles in 64 games.

Johneshwy Fargas entered as a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning, but didn’t waste any time making his presence felt. He singled in the seventh, then stole second base. Two wild pitches later, he was crossing home plate. He stayed in the game as the center fielder and got another at-bat, singling again in the ninth inning. This time, he stole second and third before scoring on a sacrifice fly.

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As evidenced by his stolen bases on Tuesday, Fargas is one of the fastest players in the organization. The 2013 11th-round pick is having his best year with the bat this year, hitting .266/.331/.359. His 18 stolen bases are seventh-most in the Cal League.

On the pitching side, big righty Logan Webb was the first guy out of the bullpen for the North side, and he threw a scoreless second inning, allowing a hit and striking a batter out. The 2014 fourth-rounder with a big fastball has been excellent in his first season with San Jose. Working mostly as a starter, Webb owns a 2.30 ERA and 1.302 WHIP.

His teammate Sandro Cabrera pitched the fourth, and struck out a pair in a perfect inning of work. The southpaw, signed as an international free agent in 2015, owns a 3.49 ERA in 14 games (seven starts), and has struck out 58 batters in 67 innings.

Over on the other side of the country in Greensboro, North Carolina, three prospects represented the Augusta GreenJackets in the Sally League All-Star Game. Shortstop Manuel Geraldo and left-handed pitchers Joey Marciano and John Gavin got the nod, and helped the South Division to a 9-5 win over the North side.

Geraldo started at shortstop and had a big game. He picked up three hits in five at-bats. After a pair of singles, the switch-hitter bashed a home run as a lefty in the seventh, extending the South’s lead to 8-3.

On a team with big prospects like Heliot Ramos and Jacob Gonzalez, the 21-year-old international signing Geraldo has been the consistent offensive star in Augusta. He’s hitting .284/.339/.424 with seven doubles, eight home runs, and 32 RBI in his first-full season in A-ball.

Gavin was first out of the bullpen for the South, but didn’t have the best results. In his one inning of work, the 22-year-old gave up three hits that led to a run. However, he was the winning pitcher after his team’s lineup exploded for four runs in the top of the third, giving them a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Gavin was taken in the eighth-round in last year’s amateur draft, and has been stellar for Augusta in his first full professional season. In 12 games, all starts, Gavin owns a 1.94 ERA and 0.988 WHIP. He’s struck out 64 batters in 55.2 innings (10.3 K/9), and has held his opponents to a .185 batting average.

Marciano fared a bit better than his teammate Gavin. Marciano pitched the fifth, and worked around a one-out single to pitch a scoreless inning, striking out a batter in the process. Marciano has been a surprising stud for Augusta, considering he was a 36th-round draft pick last season. He’s pitched to a 2.33 ERA and 1.112 WHIP with 59 strikeouts and 15 walks in 65.2 innings this year.

Next: 3 Up, 3 Down: Leaving LA

This isn’t the end of All-Star season. The Triple-A All-Star game takes place on July 11th in Columbus, Ohio, and the Eastern League (Double-A) All-Star Game occurs on the same day in Trenton, New Jersey. And of course, the MLB All-Star game happens on July 17th in the nation’s capital.