Ryan Murphy is Just Perfect!

SF Giants Minor Lines, June 28, 2023

The looooong weekend over, it’s time to leap back into action. And what action! We got long awaited returns from both the first AND third round picks of the 2017 draft yesterday — and both in the same lineup (the second round draft pick from that year is spending his time playing for Altoona these days).

There are also honors of several varieties rolling in this week. As you saw on Tuesday, Kyle Harrison and Carson Whisenhunt will be representing the Giants at the Futures Game in Seattle on Saturday, July 8. (I won’t be representing the Giants, but I’ll be there too, and hope to get a chance to talk with the lefties, though it’s something of a whirlwind weekend, so we’ll see what their availability is). Harrison and Whisenhunt are also the alpha and omega of a solid Giants’ contingent on the most recent MLB Top 100 prospect list, just released this week. It’s a four-man group, topped by Harrison at #13 (the fourth highest pitcher overall and highest LHP), and followed by Marco Luciano, #17, Luis Matos #72, and Whisenhunt just sneaking into the last spot at #100. And, who knows, maybe Mason Black has a future Top 100 spot coming some day — he’s #6 on this week’s Baseball America Hotsheet.

And finally, I hope you saw my Draft Primer yesterday. Interestingly, after I had published this post, I was listening to a Baseball America podcast in which the hosts went through the top 10 picks from last year and came up with six or seven instances in which they believed the team would opt for a “do over” on the player they chose just one year later — starting with the second pick! Not an exact science, is it? Don’t cling too tightly to your draft crushes, folks. I’ve seen enough of C.J. Abrams this year to remember that lesson! One of the players I highlighted in that primer, high school shortstop Arun Nimmala, is the subject of an excellent profile on ESPN today, charting his unique journey from cricket to baseball. So check that out, too.

HITTER of the NIGHT: Victor Bericoto (Eug), 2 for 5, HR (15), 2 R, 2 RBI
PITCHER of the NIGHT: Ryan Murphy (Ric), 4.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K

Reggie Crawford didn’t appear in a game last night, but he did appear in this outstanding video work from the Giants, leading a guided tour of the tremendous Papago Park facility. This is a great look inside the state of the art facility — and you get to spend 10 minutes with Crawford’s twenty watt smile! Take a little timeout and enjoy it all. Don’t worry, I won’t go anywhere until you’re back!