Giants Minor League Pitching Preview
 
By Joe Ritzo
2/25/2008
San Francisco Farm System Filled With Top Pitching Prospects
Giants minor league pitchers and catchers report to spring training on Tuesday thus beginning the 2008 season. Pitching has long been considered the strength of the San Francisco Giants minor leagues and this year should be no different. A bevy of talented arms should fill the upper levels of the farm system with the potential superstars expected to reside in Class-A. The composition of the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA) five-man starting pitching rotation largely depends on what the San Francisco front office decides to do with Jonathan Sanchez. The hard-throwing lefty, who was a key member of the championship 2005 San Jose Giants team, has an opportunity to win the #5 starting job with San Francisco out of spring training. If that doesn’t happen, then Sanchez could be headed to the San Francisco bullpen, to another organization via trade, or he’ll headline the Fresno rotation. Sanchez, 25, has tremendous potential, but struggled at times with San Francisco a year ago (5.88 ERA). If he doesn’t win a major league job coming out of spring training, the southpaw should provide a nice lift as the ace of the Grizzlies starting rotation. Sanchez did strikeout 62 batters in just 52 big league innings last season. Nick Pereira is ticketed for Fresno this season after a solid ’07 campaign at the Double-A level with the Connecticut Defenders (9-9, 3.39 ERA). The Bay Area product then went on to excel in the Arizona Fall League setting up what should be a promotion to the Pacific Coast League. Pereira is not yet on the 40-man roster, so a 2008 major league debut is unlikely barring a huge season in Fresno. But the former San Jose Giant is clearly on the right track and is widely considered the top starting pitching prospect in the upper levels of the San Francisco farm system. Minor league veterans Chris Begg (12-5, 4.36 ERA) and Matt Palmer (11-8, 4.32 ERA) both enjoyed solid 2007 campaigns in Fresno as starting pitchers and could return to that role this year. If there’s room in the rotation, look for Garrett Broshuis and Geno Espineli to get their first full-time opportunities in Triple-A. Broshuis, 26, was just 3-17 in Connecticut last season, but the right-hander did possess a solid 3.88 ERA. Espineli, 25, recorded an even more impressive ERA at 3.45 – his first full year as a starter. Espineli is probably considered the better prospect because he’s a year younger and is left-handed, so a big year in Triple-A could really put the southpaw on the map. Broshuis and Espineli both pitched in San Jose during the 2005 season. The Fresno bullpen has a chance to be outstanding this year with a full complement of former San Jose Giants expected to lead the way. Brian Anderson has posted league-leading save totals in each of his first three professional seasons – including a California League record 37 saves in 2006. Anderson followed up a solid ’07 season in Connecticut (3.93 ERA, 29 SV) with a stellar performance in the Arizona Fall League (0.00 ERA in 12 IP). All signs point toward Anderson closing games in Fresno this year. The supporting cast in the Grizzlies bullpen could be made up of Billy Sadler, Osiris Matos, and Justin Hedrick. Sadler has limited major league experience and will be trying to bounce back after a difficult 2007 campaign in the Pacific Coast League. Matos owned a 2.89 ERA pitching in relief for Connecticut last season before a providing a lift to the San Jose bullpen during the playoffs. Meanwhile, Hedrick has enjoyed nothing but success as a pro and appears ready for the Triple-A test. Last year, Hedrick logged a 2.14 ERA in 41 appearances out of the Defenders bullpen. Connecticut’s rotation this season will likely be made up of last year’s top starters from San Jose. Dave McKae, 26, dominated in the California League last year before a midseason promotion to Connecticut. With the Defenders, McKae notched a 6-4 record and 4.24 ERA in 17 starts. The likes of Broshuis and Espineli probably get the nod over McKae if there are available starting jobs in Fresno, so he’s probably ticketed for a return to the Eastern League. Paul Oseguera and Joe Martinez both posted solid, and sometimes spectacular, results in the San Jose starting rotation last year. Oseguera, 24, went 10-6 with a 3.54 ERA for the Giants – his first full professional season. Martinez, 25, led the California League in strikeouts (151) to go along with a 10-10 record and 4.26 ERA. The trio of McKae, Oseguera, and Martinez combined to lead the San Jose rotation en route to a First Half North Division title a year ago and they could again join forces to begin ’08. A potential wildcard is lefty Alex Hinshaw. The 25-year old southpaw dazzled with Connecticut last season with his 3-1 record and 1.96 ERA in 41 innings – both as a starter and reliever. An injury though cut Hinshaw’s season short thus raising questions about where he’ll play this year. Hinshaw throws hard and averaged over a strikeout per inning pitched last season. He could begin the year as a starter in Connecticut or perhaps earn a promotion to Fresno and pitch out of the bullpen. The Defenders bullpen this season should be led by the fantastic duo of Sergio Romo and Taylor Wilding. Romo proved to be nearly unhittable in the California League last year when he held the opposition to a .155 batting average against as the ace of the San Jose relief corps. Romo finished with a 1.36 ERA and a whopping 106 strikeouts (compared to just 15 walks) in 66 innings. The 25-year old is well deserving of a promotion, especially after a dominant offseason in the Arizona Fall League (0.64 ERA in 14 IP). Wilding was the only San Jose Giant chosen to the midseason California League All-Star team after a spectacular First Half. He was more up-and-down in the Second Half, splitting time between San Jose and Connecticut, but the right-hander should still see significant action out of the Defenders bullpen this year. If there are available spots in the Connecticut starting rotation to begin the season, the possibility certainly exists for some of the dominant Augusta starters from a year ago to jump all the way to Double-A. Adam Cowart went 14-7 with a 2.39 ERA for the Greenjackets last season before a promotion to San Jose for the playoffs. Cowart, 24, made the California League look easy last September and it may be enough to earn a shot at Double-A to begin the season. Henry Sosa owned the top ERA in professional baseball while pitching for Augusta last season (0.73 ERA) before a midseason promotion to San Jose. Sosa was the surprise story in the Giants minor league system last year as he seemingly came out of nowhere to become a legitimate top prospect. Sosa averaged over a strikeout per inning pitched with San Jose after his promotion, but was plagued with inconsistency over the final month. The 22-year old finished with a 5-5 record and 4.38 ERA in 14 starts. Another factor to consider with Sosa is he's recovering from offseason knee surgery and may not be available to pitch in games when spring training concludes in late-March. But when healthy, Sosa, with his mid-90’s fastball, should possess a spot in either the San Jose or Connecticut starting rotation. Baseball America named Sosa the #5 prospect in the entire Giants farm system entering 2008. The remaining three pitchers from the 2007 Augusta starting rotation – Kevin Pucetas, Ben Snyder, and Clayton Tanner - should all be moving up in the Giants organization. Pucetas, 23, led the South Atlantic League in ERA last season with his 1.86 mark. He also logged a 15-4 record and was named Most Outstanding Pitcher in all of minor league baseball by milb.com at the conclusion of the season. Snyder, 22, was second in the league in ERA (2.09) to go along with a 16-5 record. Tanner, just 20 years old, is a former third round draft pick. As a teenager last season in Augusta, Tanner went 12-8 with a 3.59 ERA. The most likely scenario has these three pitchers forming what could be an excellent San Jose rotation. In relief, Juan Trindad notched 18 saves and a 1.94 ERA as the ace of the Augusta bullpen last year. He, along with Dave Newton (1.58 ERA, 3 SV), could anchor the San Jose relief group. Finally, the prospects in Augusta this season are incredibly bright with the possibility of the top young pitchers in the system beginning the year in the South Atlantic League. San Francisco’s top two draft picks last June (both first rounders) – Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson – could be headed for Augusta this April. Bumgarner, 18, signed too late last summer to make a 2007 debut. A left-hander with a mid’90’s fastball, Bumgarner was taken with the tenth overall pick last year. Alderson, 19, fired five scoreless innings with no walks and 12 strikeouts for the Arizona Giants (Rookie level) last summer after signing his contract. The 22nd overall pick in the draft, Alderson has uncanny command to go along with a low 90’s fastball and a devastating breaking ball. He and Bumgarner were recently rated the #2 and #3 prospects respectively in the Giants farm system according to Baseball America. Both hurlers are still very young and the possibility exists that they could be held back in extended spring training come April, but the most likely scenario is a ticket to Augusta where they’ll headline the Greenjackets rotation. An Augusta starting rotation with Bumgarner and Alderson would already have plenty of star power, but other top pitching prospects are also probably headed to Georgia. Waldis Joaquin, with his mid-90’s fastball, should be given a ticket to Augusta out of spring training. Joaquin, 21, came back from Tommy John Surgery last year and threw well for Salem-Keizer (Short-Season) in helping the Volcanoes to the Northwest League title. Joaquin went 3-0 with a 2.84 ERA in 38 innings for Salem-Keizer during the regular season before a dominant start in the playoffs (6 IP, 0 R, 7 SO). Meanwhile, Wilber Bucardo also could be headed to Augusta after a stellar summer with the Rookie-level team in Arizona. Bucardo, 20, finished with a 6-2 record and 1.94 ERA in 11 starts for the Arizona Giants and is another hard-thrower with a fastball above 90 M.P.H. Joaquin and Bucardo were rated the #15 and #19 prospects respectively in the Giants farm system according to Baseball America. A star-studded rotation could be in the works this season for Augusta, but don’t forget about the bullpen. Danny Otero saved 19 games to go with a 1.21 ERA for Salem-Keizer last summer and a promotion to the South Atlantic League appears to be in order. The journey starts on Tuesday when these pitchers (and all others in the farm system) report to Scottsdale to begin spring training.