San Francisco Giants Minor League Major Performers: Squirrels Fly High
With the San Francisco Giants’ offensive woes continuing, let’s look at some minor leaguers who are grabbing attention, particularly in AA Richmond.
The San Francisco Giants fell flat again on Saturday, and so did most of their full-season minor league affiliates. AAA Sacramento lost for the fourth time in five games, but AA Richmond snapped a six-game skid with a win. High-A San Jose was blown out for their season-high seventh consecutive loss, and short-season A dropped their third straight.
However, the rookie league teams continue to play well. The Dominican Summer League team won their third straight and for the seventh time in nine games, keeping tied for first in the Northeast division. The AZL Orange team won for the fifth time in six games, and the AZL Black came away victorious for the third time in four tries.
Some of the big performers from the day:
Richmond first baseman Jerry Sands becomes the first repeater on Minor League Major Performers, and he does so by continuing what has been a strong stretch of hitting with the Flying Squirrels. In Saturday’s win over the Akron RubberDucks, Sands picked up three more hits, falling a triple short of the cycle, and drove in a pair of runs.
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After an infield single in the first inning, Sands hit one a bit farther. He launched his 13th home run of the season, a solo shot to the opposite field that put the Squirrels up 3-0. After Akron scored twice, Sands was back at it again, lining a double to left field that drove in another run. He came around to score when Eastern League All-Star Ryan Howard followed with a double of his own. Sands had the chance to complete the cycle in the seventh inning, but flew out to right field.
Sands, who was part of this list on July 3rd, just keeps on hitting for Richmond. He started slow but has been Richmond’s biggest threat over his last 43 games. Sands is slashing .317/.390/.628 over his last 43 games, and overall on the year, he leads the Eastern League with 24 doubles. With the constant reshuffling of rosters lately, he could be a candidate for promotion to AAA in the near future.
On the pitching side in Richmond, it was 23-year-old southpaw Conner Menez that made the start. The Squirrels’ lead stood thanks to a great effort from the starter, going seven innings and allowing just two runs on five hits and a walk to go with five strikeouts.
As Menez progressed through his longest start with Richmond, he was what can be called effectively wild. He hit a batter in both the first and second innings then walked one in the third, but didn’t allow his first hit until the fourth. That was the inning he struggled in the most, giving up three hits and both of his runs, but he held on to the lead. He finished strong, retiring 11 of the last 13 batters he faced to earn the win.
This season has been anything but typical for Menez. The Giants’ 14th-round pick out of the Master’s College in 2016 began the year with the High-A Giants, then was promoted to Sacramento for one game before going back to San Jose. He was brought back to AAA for another spot start on May 31st, and he was fantastic.
Menez threw seven shutout innings in his second career AAA start, allowing just a hit and a walk while striking out eight. For his efforts, he was named the PCL’s Pitcher of the Week, but was promptly sent back to San Jose. The lefty has now seems to have found a home in Richmond’s rotation, where he’s made five starts.
As the AZL Giants Black team won for the third time in their last four outings, they got by with early and late contributions from within their lineup. Chief among the contributors was left fielder Frankie Tostado, who picked up three hits, drove in a pair of runs, and scored a pair more.
Tostado got the party started early, lining an RBI double into center field to tie the game at one. He later scored on a single, putting the Giants ahead by a run. His second RBI came in the fifth, when a two-out single up the middle brought a run home to make it 3-1. Tostado’s third hit was a one-out single in the seventh, and he came around to score a much-needed insurance run to put the Giants ahead by three.
The Giants 19th-round pick last year out of Oxnard College, Tostado is playing well in his first pro action. The left-handed hitter is slashing .373/.400/.510 through 13 games, and Saturday marked his second consecutive three-hit game. Tostado has hit safely in all 13 games so far this year.
Next: Minor League Major Performers 7-6-18
Others of Note:
Ryan Howard (RICH): 1-2, 2B (22), RBI (35), 2 BB
Ali Castillo (RICH): 2-3, 2B (7), 3B (2), 2 RBI (16), R
Brandon Van Horn (SJ): 2-4, HR (7), 2 RBI (32), R
Mikey Edie (SK): 4-5, 2B (3), RBI (3), SB (3)
David Villar (SK): 2-5, HR (4), RBI (9), R
Patrick Hilson (AZL O): 2-4, 2B (1), HR (2), 2 RBI (6), 3 R, BB
Hector Santiago (AZLO): 3-5, 2B (1), 2 RBI (4), R
Richgelon Juliana (DSL): 3-4, HR (3), 3 RBI (21), R
Sonny Vargas (DSL): 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K