The Giants are short on players.
San Francisco is currently missing six players, including three leadoff hitters.
Every time someone returns, the Giants seem to lose two more. On Saturday, the Giants returned Patrick Bailey to the lineup after a week-long stay on the concussion list, only to see Michael Conforto pull his hamstring in the hat game and see Jung Hoo Lee separate l shoulder during the first round on Sunday.
Both injuries are bad news for a Giants team that can’t hit with both players. What happens now that they’re sidelined – and in Lee’s case, perhaps for a long time?
I will tell you:
Giants fans should get what they want.
Over the past few weeks, I’ve heard countless Giants fans clamoring to call someone, anyone from Triple-A Sacramento to mix up the mediocre (at best) monotony of this Giants lineup. Giants.
Well, these things often take care of themselves. Ask and you will receive. With Dave Groeschner’s training room full to capacity, it’s time to create a youth movement in San Francisco.
Ready or Not.
But as intimidating as it may be to trust the kids — the Giants remain in a hole, four games under .500 as of Monday morning — it could turn out to be the best thing for the organization.
For a team that hasn’t won anything in a while, the Giants were certainly incongruous heading into the season.
The Giants have the third-oldest roster in baseball this season and, as if to emphasize that fact, this team has marginal power and is slower than the line at the craft beer stands at Oracle Park.
Pair that with a distinct lack of star power – Lee, Jorge Soler and Matt Chapman have been below average at the plate and I heard the TV show touting Bailey’s “greatness” last week (I thought they were talking about someone else; he’s a solid player, but let’s be serious) – and the Giants have a no man’s land roster.
And despite the front office’s best efforts to leave the team’s young players in Sacramento, they are coming now. San Francisco has no choice but to play with the children.
It all started with Heliot Ramos, who was recalled on May 8 after Soler was placed on the injured list. Ramos hit eight homers with a .957 OPS in 30 games with Triple-A Sacramento – he was the right choice to be the first man up.
And he’s made an impact since his return to the big leagues. Ramos had five hits in five games, scoring four runs and driving in two. He laces the ball while playing a skilled outfield in the process. His at-bats, while far from perfect, are worth watching for more than just the novelty factor. The child has juice.
But it’s more than Ramos. Luis Matos is also up – called into action after Conforto and Austin Slater were sidelined this weekend. Matos will also likely see serious action, with Lee now out of the lineup.
Matos wasn’t able to duplicate his excellent spring training when the Giants sent him to Sacramento, but that strong performance in Arizona can’t be ignored either.
Although the Giants front office probably feels vindicated for not starting Matos in right field on MLB Opening Day, they now need Matos for spring training.
Casey Schmitt, who hit well in Sacramento (.768 OPS), is also back on the big league roster. He delivered a game-winning double in extra innings on Sunday – the culmination of several solid at-bats in the game. His swing looks flatter and more competitive, and when you have his glove, it’s enough to stay at the bottom of the order, with some positive power surges along the way.
Brett Wisely, who thrived at Triple-A (.890 OPS), is also on the rise. And San Francisco is one more twisted ankle or oblique away from calling on shortstop Marco Luciano, who is doing exactly what was expected in Sacramento at the plate. (This whole shortstop thing remains a work in progress — but, frankly, I’ve never been optimistic about him at the position.)
That’s already two 25-year-olds, one 24-year-old and one 22-year-old on the list. Another 22-year-old is on the sidelines.
Throw them all into the mix and the Giants lineup will have a very different look and a very different energy level.
Will it be better than what the Giants were trotting before (emphasis on trotting)?
Probably not.
But maybe.
Let’s be real: What do the Giants lose by throwing kids out there?
I don’t expect these call-ups to constitute a future core, but at least there’s promise in a roster that, if given the chance to play, could be one of the youngest in baseball.
Ultimately, I’m just waiting — no, hoping — that one of these players performs well enough when called up to stick around for the rest of the season.
If it’s Ramos or Matos (or Luciano), the Giants might have something fundamental.
Yes, basic, as in the kind of piece that seemingly every baseball team has.
But regardless of whether the drives are considered hot shots or deep plays, the Giants, desperate for a spark, are now in a position to find one.
And maybe that spark can help pull this organization out of the malaise it’s been stuck in year after year since Farhan Zaidi took over.
The future is now for the Giants. And while he may have arrived abruptly, he may have arrived just in time.
California Daily Newspapers
