San Francisco Giants Minor League Major Performers: July 4th, 2018
The San Francisco Giants had another disappointing day on Wednesday, but there were some mighty encouraging developments within the system.
It was another pretty rough day for the San Francisco Giants and the higher levels of the farm system, particularly on the offensive side. While the Giants were shut out on three hits at Coors Field, AAA Sacramento scored five runs but did so on just four hits. AA Richmond managed one hit, and High-A San Jose could only muster two hits.
However, the farm system overall went 4-4 on the day, a record buoyed by the lower level teams. Three of the four short-season clubs were victorious, and Single-A Augusta held on in a close one.
Let’s look at some of the big performers on the day.
21-year-old righty Aaron Phillips had one of the best nights of his career on Wednesday, taking the mound for the Single-A Augusta GreenJackets. As Augusta won a tight, 4-3 ballgame against the Charleston Riverdogs, Phillips threw five sterling innings. He allowed just three hits, though two of them left the yard, and struck out nine while not issuing a walk.
The 6’5”, 215-pound hurler started his day by striking out seven of the first 11 batters he faced, then ran into some trouble in the fourth. He allowed two of his three hits, and one of his two home runs during the frame, but was able to limit the damage to just one run to preserve a 3-2 lead. He finished his day with a clean fifth inning, striking out a pair in the process. His nine strikeouts represents a career-high, surpassing the eight he recorded on May 23rd.
More from Golden Gate Sports
- Raiders: Rookie stock report following Week 3 performance
- 49ers sign new long snapper amidst a flurry of roster moves
- Oakland Athletics win Game 2 of Wild Card round with late-inning drama
- 49ers: George Kittle and Deebo Samuel cleared to return to practice
- 49ers expected to place DE Dee Ford on injured reserve
Phillips was the Giants’ ninth-round pick in 2017 out of the St. Bonaventure University, and is trying to become the first major leaguer from the school since left-handed pitcher Danny McDevitt, who made his last MLB appearance in 1962.
Wednesday was a big day for the number two overall pick from this year’s draft. Catcher Joey Bart received a promotion, heading from the Arizona League up to short-season A ball, and was the cleanup hitter for his debut with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes. He played a big part in the on-field fireworks display as the Volcanoes stomped the Hillsboro Hops, 15-1.
The 21-year-old catcher drove in a run on a fielder’s choice in the first inning, putting Salem-Keizer ahead 2-1 early. In the third inning, he reached a big milestone. He launched a home run to left field, a two-run blast to give his squad a 4-1 edge, for his first home run as a professional. His second hit was a single in the fourth inning that nearly drove in another run, but Diego Rincones was gunned down at the plate.
After a groundout in the fifth inning, Bart really wowed with his at-bat in the eighth inning. He crushed his second home run of the day, going way out of the park to the highway out beyond the right field wall. That’s no easy feat for a right-handed hitter.
Bart played just six games in rookie ball before getting moved up, and with the pedigree that follows this young man from Georgia Tech, the team will certainly want to try to move him along quickly in the system.
Arizona League Orange pitcher Seth Corry ranks as one of the Giants’ best prospects (17th overall on MLB Pipeline), and has pitched like it in the early goings of the 2018 season. He kept his strong run going on Wednesday, throwing a gem against the Brewers rookie team. He hurled five shutout innings, allowing just two singles while striking out six.
Corry allowed both of his hits in the second inning, but kept the Brewers off the board by striking out the side. He retired each of the last 10 batters he faced, including three strikeouts in the last five batters of his day. Corry completed five innings for the second straight start after not having done so in his first 12 starts. He also didn’t walk a batter for just the third time in 17 career appearances.
The Utah-native has been a bit of a frustrating case since the Giants made him a third-round pick in the 2017 amateur draft. The then-18-year-old came to the Giants with plenty of stuff in his lively left arm, but like so many other young pitchers, struggled terribly with his command. He walked 22 batters in 24.1 innings last year, and had walked seven in his first 12.2 innings this year. Starts like Wednesday’s are a reminder of how much promise this youngster has when he gets everything working together.
Next: Minor League Major Performers 7-3-18
Others of Note:
Tyler Rogers (SAC): 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
Chris Shaw (SAC): 2-4, 2B (16), HR (17), 2 RBI (46), 2 R
Logan Webb (SJ): 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K
Kyle McPherson (SK): 3-4, 2B (3), 3B (1), HR (2), 4 RBI (10), 4 R
Kevin Rivera (SK): 2-3, 2B (2), 2 RBI (5), 2 R, BB
Fabian Pena (AZL O): 2-3, 2B (1), RBI (2)
Sean Roby (AZL B): 1-3, HR (1), 2 RBI (4), R, HBP
Luis Toribio (DSL): 2-4, HR (5), RBI (21), R
Rodolfo Bone (DSL): 2-3, 3 RBI (5), 2 R, BB
Freddery Paulino (DSL): 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K