I actually have a good number still left over from last week’s over-stuffed bag — but I also suspect you all may have things you want to ask about this week!There R Giants is a reader-supported publication.
Hi Roger - wanted to piggyback off of a question from last week about Luciano's bat speed metrics and how they seem to go against what he's been known for as a prospect. I was reading a great article in Fangraphs (https://blogs.fangraphs.com/maybe-the-launch-angle-revolution-wasnt-really-about-launch-angle/) about how bat speed, launch angle and spray angle are intertwined. Since Statcast measures bat speed at the point of contact, the players with the highest bat speed all hit the ball out in front, because that's the point in the swing where the bat is moving the fastest. He found that "every single player has a higher swing speed to the pull side than to the opposite field."
It made me think about Luciano's MLB hit spray chart, and how essentially every hit this year has been to the opposite field. His complete lack of pulling the ball could explain why his average EV and bat speed are so low, since he's letting the ball travel so far before swinging (presumably to cut down on his K rate), so he's not able to generate the level of bat speed he would if he were catching the ball out in front and hitting it when his bat is moving at its fastest. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this, because if it's a conscious approach, it seems like an unsustainable way to more or less fake having a lower K rate at the cost of his natural power. Thanks!
I get why they’re doing it (kinda), but it feels pretty irresponsible for the Giants to keep forcing Luciano and Matos to play positions that they clearly are not suited for at this time. Do you think it has hurt their development? This and the rushed promotions you’ve mentioned feel like a Farhan Hail-Mary to save his job.
If you had to bet your house on one position player currently in the upper minors (who hasn't debuted) to have a 3-WAR season at some point in the future, who is deciding the fate of your house?
What's it like to be an injured player in the Giants system? If they are higher level players do they go to SF or Scottsdale to work and rehab at the facilities there? What if they are in Richmond or Eugene? I sometimes see players on the injured list in uniform. What are the rules about them being in the dugout, clubhouse, etc.? For MLB pitchers it seems like the rehab progression is soft toss, flat mound throwing, throwing off a normal mound, bullpen session, live hitter batting practice simulation, minor league appearance, and then back to the bigs. Is that right?
Saw someone joke in the wake of the McCray promotion that “the Giants sure seem to want their top hitting prospects to spend as little time in Richmond as possible.”It was said in jest, but it got me seriously thinking.
We’ve heard a lot about how the quality of pitching in Triple A has declined precipitously. Has that created any sort of a flattening effect on the previously vaunted jump from Double A to Triple? Is there any chance that the Giants now just view Sacramento as a more favorable environment for hitter development and not that much of a jump in difficulty? Especially with the ABS in place. I know we’ve all realized it’s led to fake walk rates, but that’s because it rewards hitters for taking more, and we know that’s something the Giants value and have been trying to teach a lot of their hitters to do anyway. I wonder if that’s part of the calculus for why they’ve seemed to want to promote their top hitters out of the Diamond as soon as they wrap up their first sustained hot streak. Or, more cynically, do you think it’s just because they think the AAA hitting environment is better for preserving the prospect status of guys like Bishop and McCray?
Tagging on to the McCray promotion questions, i wondered if because of the injuries at the major league level, they want a "true" centerfielder closer to home, so to speak. Getting some reps at a higher level in case new injuries lead them to need someone who can really play center at a high level, even if the bat is perhaps not ready?
I’m curious about your opinion on how the shift effected the hitting development of some of our prospects , particularly Bart and Ramos. There seemed to b such an emphasis on home runs and 3 true outcomes during that time because of the shift taking away so many line drive and ground ball hits
Bonus Q: The Oakland Ballers have already lost 3 players to MLB organizations in their short existence, most recently to the Giants. Do you ever scout the Indy leagues?
How do you see the Giants approaching this year's draft? With 100 picks between their first and 'second' picks do you think they'll perhaps try an under-slot deal in R1 and hope they can then spread more around, or do you think they'll just go as high as possible? 'Near-Giant' Vance Honeycutt keeps getting linked as he has dropped down the ranks but would the Giants risk his K-rate?
I'm glad you wrote about Wade Meckler having a potential rehab setback; I was going to ask if you'd heard anything.
What's your impression of the DSL graduates who are in SJ right now? Thinking of Flores, Mejias, Perdomo, Cassiani, Francisco, Quintas, Rayo, Sio esp. These are guys that didn't sign for enormous bonuses, who aren't expected to rocket through the levels, and who are experiencing their first full non-complex season. Do you think any of them have one carrying tool or some combination of factors that could get them up to the upper minors? In other words, do you see a potential Ismael Munguia (non-heralded guy who nonetheless rose up through the ranks) in this group?
Why are so many pitchers being developed as starters throughout the minor leagues when only a sliver of them have even a prayer of being a No. 5 starter in the big leagues? If it’s just to fill minor league innings, then it seems like player development isn’t the primary objective. I mean, if the Giants are pretty sure the best potential MLB role for a pitcher, say Carson Seymour, is as a reliever (in any form), why wouldn’t they help him hone that craft in the minors as early as possible?
Hi Roger - wanted to piggyback off of a question from last week about Luciano's bat speed metrics and how they seem to go against what he's been known for as a prospect. I was reading a great article in Fangraphs (https://blogs.fangraphs.com/maybe-the-launch-angle-revolution-wasnt-really-about-launch-angle/) about how bat speed, launch angle and spray angle are intertwined. Since Statcast measures bat speed at the point of contact, the players with the highest bat speed all hit the ball out in front, because that's the point in the swing where the bat is moving the fastest. He found that "every single player has a higher swing speed to the pull side than to the opposite field."
It made me think about Luciano's MLB hit spray chart, and how essentially every hit this year has been to the opposite field. His complete lack of pulling the ball could explain why his average EV and bat speed are so low, since he's letting the ball travel so far before swinging (presumably to cut down on his K rate), so he's not able to generate the level of bat speed he would if he were catching the ball out in front and hitting it when his bat is moving at its fastest. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this, because if it's a conscious approach, it seems like an unsustainable way to more or less fake having a lower K rate at the cost of his natural power. Thanks!
I get why they’re doing it (kinda), but it feels pretty irresponsible for the Giants to keep forcing Luciano and Matos to play positions that they clearly are not suited for at this time. Do you think it has hurt their development? This and the rushed promotions you’ve mentioned feel like a Farhan Hail-Mary to save his job.
Kinda of a piggyback question... If Luciano can't stick at short, where do you think his next best position is?
If you had to bet your house on one position player currently in the upper minors (who hasn't debuted) to have a 3-WAR season at some point in the future, who is deciding the fate of your house?
What's it like to be an injured player in the Giants system? If they are higher level players do they go to SF or Scottsdale to work and rehab at the facilities there? What if they are in Richmond or Eugene? I sometimes see players on the injured list in uniform. What are the rules about them being in the dugout, clubhouse, etc.? For MLB pitchers it seems like the rehab progression is soft toss, flat mound throwing, throwing off a normal mound, bullpen session, live hitter batting practice simulation, minor league appearance, and then back to the bigs. Is that right?
Saw someone joke in the wake of the McCray promotion that “the Giants sure seem to want their top hitting prospects to spend as little time in Richmond as possible.”It was said in jest, but it got me seriously thinking.
We’ve heard a lot about how the quality of pitching in Triple A has declined precipitously. Has that created any sort of a flattening effect on the previously vaunted jump from Double A to Triple? Is there any chance that the Giants now just view Sacramento as a more favorable environment for hitter development and not that much of a jump in difficulty? Especially with the ABS in place. I know we’ve all realized it’s led to fake walk rates, but that’s because it rewards hitters for taking more, and we know that’s something the Giants value and have been trying to teach a lot of their hitters to do anyway. I wonder if that’s part of the calculus for why they’ve seemed to want to promote their top hitters out of the Diamond as soon as they wrap up their first sustained hot streak. Or, more cynically, do you think it’s just because they think the AAA hitting environment is better for preserving the prospect status of guys like Bishop and McCray?
Tagging on to the McCray promotion questions, i wondered if because of the injuries at the major league level, they want a "true" centerfielder closer to home, so to speak. Getting some reps at a higher level in case new injuries lead them to need someone who can really play center at a high level, even if the bat is perhaps not ready?
I’m curious about your opinion on how the shift effected the hitting development of some of our prospects , particularly Bart and Ramos. There seemed to b such an emphasis on home runs and 3 true outcomes during that time because of the shift taking away so many line drive and ground ball hits
Bonus Q: The Oakland Ballers have already lost 3 players to MLB organizations in their short existence, most recently to the Giants. Do you ever scout the Indy leagues?
How do you see the Giants approaching this year's draft? With 100 picks between their first and 'second' picks do you think they'll perhaps try an under-slot deal in R1 and hope they can then spread more around, or do you think they'll just go as high as possible? 'Near-Giant' Vance Honeycutt keeps getting linked as he has dropped down the ranks but would the Giants risk his K-rate?
I'm glad you wrote about Wade Meckler having a potential rehab setback; I was going to ask if you'd heard anything.
What's your impression of the DSL graduates who are in SJ right now? Thinking of Flores, Mejias, Perdomo, Cassiani, Francisco, Quintas, Rayo, Sio esp. These are guys that didn't sign for enormous bonuses, who aren't expected to rocket through the levels, and who are experiencing their first full non-complex season. Do you think any of them have one carrying tool or some combination of factors that could get them up to the upper minors? In other words, do you see a potential Ismael Munguia (non-heralded guy who nonetheless rose up through the ranks) in this group?
Why are so many pitchers being developed as starters throughout the minor leagues when only a sliver of them have even a prayer of being a No. 5 starter in the big leagues? If it’s just to fill minor league innings, then it seems like player development isn’t the primary objective. I mean, if the Giants are pretty sure the best potential MLB role for a pitcher, say Carson Seymour, is as a reliever (in any form), why wouldn’t they help him hone that craft in the minors as early as possible?