Roger, Hunter Bishop seems to be really heating up in the last few weeks. Does he have any chance of a shot with the Giants or is he playing for a trade chip or Rule 5 pick?
Hi Roger. Whats your tjoughts on the Giants catching depth? Bailey's been up for a couple of years now and we still don't seem to have a strong contender for backup. Jack Payton for instance was a top 10 draft pick (I think) yet seems to have played more in other positions than catcher
As usual I've got another 'heavy hitting' question. The San Jose games have something called a 'Beer Batter'. It gets mentioned but somehow never explained in the broadcasts I've seen. Regardless, are the players themselves aware of it and do the battery-mates adjust what they throw accordingly?
How much has the promotion of Damon Minor adversely affected the Triple-A club this year? Without looking into the year-by-year numbers too heavily, it feels like this is the weakest the Sacramento offense has been since the mid-2010s.
Hi Roger, I so appreciate what you do. I have a question about how “option years” work.
First, I understand that Marco Luciano is in his final option year. He has not, as yet, spent any time this year on the Giants active roster. If that holds all year, would that mean that no option had been exercised, and he’d get another option year in ‘26?
Second part of the question: If Luci’s final option year is exhausted, what is the practical impact of that? He becomes a free agent, able to sign with whom he chooses? If that does happen, what are the chances he sticks with the Giants for another year? And regardless of where he signs, would the same “out of options” rules apply, where he’d have to clear waivers if he is removed from an active roster?
Obviously this applies to Luis Matos as well, although he has spent time on the ‘25 active roster. Who else is in this bucket?
I missed the cutoff last time, so I’m reposting this one:
I know a big part of Bryce Eldridge’s growth right now rests on getting reps and strengthening his defensive prowess at first base. My question is: why first base? I remember reading somewhere toward the end of last season that all the work at first base was really taking a toll in terms of fatigue. Having to constantly bend down every at bat to be in an athletically ready position at first would be hard on that tall frame, I would think. And being a former two way player, I’d imagine he has a great arm, which would get very little use at first. I know he’s not known for base stealing, but some cursory research suggests he’s pretty fast for his size. My armchair expert brain sees him ranging in right, gunning guys down at the plate a la Ankiel. I’m sure there is a ton that goes into determining what position a player like him should be converted into, but what do you think the determining factors are for Eldridge? How much of it do you think has to do with organizational depth; trying to mold players into a position where the team has a weakness?
Piggybacking off of this because I also wanted to ask about Bryce's defense. I'm assuming from the speed with which they gave up the outfield experiment that it was... not great, and reading the tea leaves 1B has not necessarily been a smooth transition (maybe I'm over-indexing, but to the extent the Keith Laws of the world have talked about Eldridge, they have not been generous in describing his work at first). Looking into your crystal ball for 2026 and beyond, and assuming Eldridge is on the roster, who do you see as our primary DH and who is holding down 1B?
I just finished listening to your interview with Joe Rizzo on the podcast which was phenomenal by the way. When you were talking about Dakota Jordan, I couldn't help but draw a comparison to a young Mike Cameron. Do you think I'm completely off-base? The skill sets and the flaws seem to match up fairly well.
Roger, Hunter Bishop seems to be really heating up in the last few weeks. Does he have any chance of a shot with the Giants or is he playing for a trade chip or Rule 5 pick?
Thanks again, John
You may have answered this when you commented on his strikeout percentage.
Hi Roger. Whats your tjoughts on the Giants catching depth? Bailey's been up for a couple of years now and we still don't seem to have a strong contender for backup. Jack Payton for instance was a top 10 draft pick (I think) yet seems to have played more in other positions than catcher
As usual I've got another 'heavy hitting' question. The San Jose games have something called a 'Beer Batter'. It gets mentioned but somehow never explained in the broadcasts I've seen. Regardless, are the players themselves aware of it and do the battery-mates adjust what they throw accordingly?
How much has the promotion of Damon Minor adversely affected the Triple-A club this year? Without looking into the year-by-year numbers too heavily, it feels like this is the weakest the Sacramento offense has been since the mid-2010s.
If you were to re-rank the prospects here at the half-way mark, how much higher would you rank Jacob Bresnahan? Thanks!
Hi Roger, I so appreciate what you do. I have a question about how “option years” work.
First, I understand that Marco Luciano is in his final option year. He has not, as yet, spent any time this year on the Giants active roster. If that holds all year, would that mean that no option had been exercised, and he’d get another option year in ‘26?
Second part of the question: If Luci’s final option year is exhausted, what is the practical impact of that? He becomes a free agent, able to sign with whom he chooses? If that does happen, what are the chances he sticks with the Giants for another year? And regardless of where he signs, would the same “out of options” rules apply, where he’d have to clear waivers if he is removed from an active roster?
Obviously this applies to Luis Matos as well, although he has spent time on the ‘25 active roster. Who else is in this bucket?
I missed the cutoff last time, so I’m reposting this one:
I know a big part of Bryce Eldridge’s growth right now rests on getting reps and strengthening his defensive prowess at first base. My question is: why first base? I remember reading somewhere toward the end of last season that all the work at first base was really taking a toll in terms of fatigue. Having to constantly bend down every at bat to be in an athletically ready position at first would be hard on that tall frame, I would think. And being a former two way player, I’d imagine he has a great arm, which would get very little use at first. I know he’s not known for base stealing, but some cursory research suggests he’s pretty fast for his size. My armchair expert brain sees him ranging in right, gunning guys down at the plate a la Ankiel. I’m sure there is a ton that goes into determining what position a player like him should be converted into, but what do you think the determining factors are for Eldridge? How much of it do you think has to do with organizational depth; trying to mold players into a position where the team has a weakness?
Piggybacking off of this because I also wanted to ask about Bryce's defense. I'm assuming from the speed with which they gave up the outfield experiment that it was... not great, and reading the tea leaves 1B has not necessarily been a smooth transition (maybe I'm over-indexing, but to the extent the Keith Laws of the world have talked about Eldridge, they have not been generous in describing his work at first). Looking into your crystal ball for 2026 and beyond, and assuming Eldridge is on the roster, who do you see as our primary DH and who is holding down 1B?
As always thank you for the excellent coverage.
I just finished listening to your interview with Joe Rizzo on the podcast which was phenomenal by the way. When you were talking about Dakota Jordan, I couldn't help but draw a comparison to a young Mike Cameron. Do you think I'm completely off-base? The skill sets and the flaws seem to match up fairly well.