Apologies for not having a weekend Minor League Baseball roundup. With the San Francisco Giants being so active at the deadline, I just wasn’t able to find the time to cover the weekend’s games.
But I’m here to talk about what went down on Tuesday! Just five games for the Giants affiliates, as AA Richmond had their game postponed. They’ll play a doubleheader tomorrow.
Link to the 2026 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)
All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that
particular game.
News
The big news on the farm, of course, is the infusion of talent that the Giants got at the trade deadline, which featured 6 prospects, plus 2 young rostered players. You can catch up on all the moves here. If you want to know where the new guys rank, well … ask 10 people and you’ll get 10 different answers. But MLB Pipeline has already adjusted their Giants top 30 to include the new prospects, and 5 of the 6 made the cut (it’s worth noting that the Pipeline top 30 doesn’t yet have the 2026 draftees.
LHP Ramon Marquez tops the list at No. 7 (the highest-ranked pitcher with Jackson Flora not yet included), with LHP Henry LaLane No. 9, RHP Miguel Mendez No. 14, shortstop Joniel Hernandez No. 21, and infielder Kaeden Kent (Jeff’s son!) No. 22. Hernandez has been assigned to the DSL Giants Black team, while Marquez, Lalane, Mendez, Kent, and RHP Marty Gair have been assigned to High-A Eugene. Rostered RHP Anthony Molina was optioned to AAA Sacramento.
In more exciting news, second baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 31 CPL) has, at long last, been promoted from AA Richmond to Sacramento. Very, very deserving. Outfielder Victor Bericoto (No. 35 CPL) is beginning a rehab assignment with Sacramento, while center fielder Jonah Cox was activated off the IL and optioned to Sacramento.
A pair of RHPs were released: Eugene relief prospect Austin Strickland, and Sacramento veteran Michael Fulmer.
AAA Sacramento (62-44)
Sacramento River Cats beat the Round Rock Express (Rangers) 6-4
Box score
Tuesday was center fielder Jonah Cox’s birthday, and it was perhaps a mixed bag of a cake day for him. On the downside, he was optioned to AAA after being officially activated off of the Injured List. On the upside, he had a lovely day at the outdoor office, hitting 3-5 and stealing 2 bases.
Tuesday’s roster moves — the Giants not only optioned Cox, but purchased the contract of Eddys Leonard, who is normally an infielder, to be the 4th outfielder in the Majors — paint a pretty clear picture that the team wants more development out of Cox. That really shouldn’t be even remotely surprising given that he was called up directly from AA, the result of numerous injuries and a desire for a right-handed hitting center fielder. The Giants presumably never felt Cox was fully ready for the Majors, or he wouldn’t have been in AA to begin with, especially as his teammate, Scott Bandura, had been promoted ahead of him.
Now Cox gets to develop at the appropriate level, and so far, so good. Through 5 games at the level, he’s 9-22 with a triple, a walk, and 4 stolen bases. Keep it up, Jonah … and if you do, we’ll see you in San Francisco again soon.
Left fielder Turner Hill — who was perhaps upset at being passed over for Leonard (though not surprising as that would have given the Giants 4 outfielders, all of whom are lefties — had another nice game, hitting 1-2 with 2 walks and a stolen base.
With that, Hill now has a stunning 20-game hitting streak! His numbers during that time are fairly eye-popping: 36-82 with 8 extra-base hits, 8 walks, and just 6 strikeouts. He can’t stop hitting! The 27-year old is up to a .908 OPS and a 141 wRC+, with 23 stolen bases in 27 attempts. He continues to be one of the Pacific Coast League’s premier contact hitters: among the 125 PCL hitters with at least 150 plate appearances this year, he’s 4th in average (.343), 3rd in strikeout rate (8.3%), and 3rd in swinging strike rate (3.6%). What a season he’s having … perhaps it will end with an MLB debut.
Second baseman Thomas Gavello had a nice game, hitting 1-3 with a double, a walk, a stolen base, and a strikeout. He continues to be the do-everything player for Sacramento: he’s loved by coaches and players, and plays all over the diamond. The numbers aren’t very good for the Antioch native: he has a .191 average, a .645 OPS, and a 74 wRC+. But he’s a valuable piece to have in AAA.
Not great days for the higher profile players on the roster, as right fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) went 0-2 with 2 walks and a stolen base; third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) hit 1-4 with a strikeout; and Bandura, the designated hitter, went 0-4. But catcher Adrián Sugastey hit 2-4, as he continues to perform well in his 1st AAA stint.
LHP Cesar Perdomo had a kind of funny start. He went 6.1 innings into the game, which is the deepest he’s gone since getting promoted, and a rarity for a pitcher in the Giants system. That said … he wasn’t particularly strong, giving up 7 hits (including a home run to former big leaguer Jarred Kelenic), 3 walks, and 4 runs, and only striking out 2 batters.
The adjustment to AAA continues to be a struggle for Perdomo, who had a bit of a breakout in AA this year prior to his promotion. Through 5 starts in the PCL, the 24-year old has a 7.77 ERA and a 6.57 FIP, with just 19 strikeouts to 10 walks in 22 innings, and 5 home runs allowed. There’s a lot of work to be done, but then again, that’s what Minor League Baseball is all about!
The bullpen was perfect, as RHP Wilkin Ramos retired all 3 batters he faced, with a strikeout, while RHP Spencer Bivens set down all 5 hitters, with 3 strikeouts.
High-A Eugene (62-41)
Eugene Emeralds beat Spokane (Rockies) 13-1
Box score
A fantastic game for the Emeralds, who had great performances from seemingly everyone who stepped onto the field.
It started with a tone-setting performance on the mound from RHP Hunter Dryden, who had his 2nd phenomenal outing in a row. It’s been a tough 2nd season for the 2024 17th-rounder, who has a 4.98 ERA and a 5.50 FIP on the year. The low point was, hopefully, a July 23 start in which he gave up 12 baserunners and 9 earned runs while making it through just 3.1 innings.
But in his next start? 5 shutout frames with just 5 baserunners and 7 strikeouts. And this game? 6 brilliant innings with just 3 hits, 1 walk, and 1 run allowed, plus 5 strikeouts. What a showing!
Dryden needed just 81 pitches to get through those 6 innings, throwing 51 strikes along the way. His lone hiccup was a solo home run allowed, which has been his kryptonite this year: after ceding just 3 long balls in 93 innings in his debut with Low-A San Jose last year, Dryden has already given up 14 home runs this year, in 81.1 innings. He’ll need to work on that, as well as on his walks, but there’s certainly something intriguing in there, and he has 10.4 strikeouts per 9 innings this season.
An encouraging performance from RHP Liam Simon, who threw 20 of 32 pitches for strikes while recording 2 shutout innings, with 1 hit, 1 walk, and 2 strikeouts. Simon is still really struggling with finding the strike zone, so this was at least a step in the right direction. His stuff is nastier than nasty, as the 53 strikeouts in 36 innings suggests … but also wilder than wild, as evidenced by the 33 walks.
Now, onto the hitters. The biggest day belonged to Zander Darby, who hit 2-4 with a 2-run home run, while also drawing 2 walks and striking out once. Remarkably, Darby was 1 of 4 Emeralds hitters to draw multiple walks, as the team registered a whopping 12 on the day.
Darby, a 23-year old who was taken in the 12th round of the 2024 draft, has been red hot lately following a dismal June and a slow start to his July. In his last 16 games, the lefty is 22-66 with 8 home runs, 5 doubles, and 8 walks, albeit with 20 strikeouts. That remains the issue with Darby’s game: he has a .272 batting average and a .200 isolated slugging mark, leading to an .818 OPS and a 116 wRC+ … but he has a 32.0% strikeout rate.
Second baseman Zane Zielinski had a nearly perfect game, reaching base in all 5 of his plate appearances, with 2 singles and 3 walks. The only stain on his resume was that he was caught stealing. Zielinski, who just turned 25, is back in Eugene after being returned to High-A from AA Richmond following the promotion of Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL). Zielinski has done quite well with the Emeralds, but really struggled with Richmond.
A fantastic game for shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 3 CPL), who hit 2-3 with 2 walks and a sacrifice fly. That’s a great recovery for Level, who had hit 0-10 with 7 strikeouts over his prior 2 games. In all, Level has been struggling a bit to find hits lately: in his last 10 games, the 19-year old switch-hitter is 8-40 with 9 strikeouts. But he’s finding other ways to do damage: 3 of those 8 hits were home runs, and he’s drawn 8 walks during that time span. There will always be bumps and bruises for someone so much younger than his peers … but on the whole, it’s a .781 OPS and a 106 wRC+ for Level, and those numbers are pretty awesome.
A pair of players with limited High-A experience hit well, as first baseman Hayden Jatczak went 2-5 with a double, a walk, and a strikeout, while left fielder Jose Ramos hit 1-2 with a double, 2 walks, and a sacrifice fly. Jatczak, a soon-to-turn 25-year old righty, has an .854 OPS and a 132 wRC+ through 9 games with Eugene; Ramos, a 23-year old righty, has an .891 OPS and a 153 wRC+ through a dozen games at the level.
Low-A San Jose (58-45)
San Jose Giants beat the Stockton Ports (A’s) 5-4
Box score
An exciting game for the Baby Giants, who used a 2-run 9th inning to come from behind and walk off the Ports. And they did it in extremely exciting fashion: after 2 outs were recorded, third baseman Dario Reynoso, who hit 1-4 with 2 strikeouts, drew a walk to bring the winning run to the plate. That winning run was first baseman Jeremiah Jenkins, who planted a ball over the wall to send everyone home happy.
That swing had to feel great for Jenkins, who went 1-4 with a walk and a strikeout. Not only was it his 1st hit of the day, but it was his 1st hit in his last 6 games … He had 5 straight donut games, and was nearing a 6th when he instead walked it off. That’s how you turn things around!
Jenkins, a 23-year old taken in the 14th round of the 2024 draft, oozes power but struggles with contact. His .241 isolated slugging ranks 12th out of the 94 Cal League hitters with at least 150 plate appearances this season, and his 14 home runs are tied for 8th. He also has a 16.7% walk rate that ranks 10th. A whole lot to love!
The contact brings it down quite a bit, though. Jenkins has just a .237 average and a 30.1% strikeout rate, which gives him an .850 OPS and a 111 wRC+. Not bad numbers, but not great ones for someone who is nearing the 700 plate appearance mark in Low-A.
As previously mentioned, Jenkins’ 14 homers are tied for 8th in the league. And the person they’re tied with? His teammate, right fielder Cam Maldonado (No. 34 CPL), who hit 2-3 with a solo blast and a walk. Maldonado, who was a 7th-round pick last year, really struggled when he returned from an IL stint in late July. In his 1st 9 games since coming back from injury, the righty hit just 3-33 with 1 home run, 0 doubles, 5 walks, and 16 strikeouts. But in 3 games since then, he’s recovered to hit 5-8 with 2 homers, 2 doubles, 3 walks, and 0 strikeouts. That’s much more like it! Still, he’s only floating around league average after that slump, as he has an .838 OPS and a 102 wRC+.
Second baseman Lorenzo Meola (No. 23 CPL) continued his doubles surge, as he went 2-5 with a pair of doubles and a strikeout. That gives him 32 doubles on the year, which is 3rd among all Minor Leaguers. Not 3rd among Cal League hitters or 3rd among Giants prospects … 3rd among all Minor Leaguers. And 1 of the 2 names ahead of him is another Giants prospect, Kilen! 13 of those doubles have come since the start of July, when Meola has been extremely hot (he has 36 hits and 20 total extra-base knocks during that time). Despite all of that, Meola is still hitting at a below average clip on the year, which is why he’s been passed over as the team has made so many promotions. He has a .785 OPS and a 94 wRC+ on the year.
A quiet day for the team’s super prospects, as Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) got the day off, while shortstop Josuar González (No. 2 CPL) went 0-4 with a walk, a strikeout, and an error. A nice game for center fielder Andy Polanco, though, as he hit 2-4 with a strikeout and stole 2 bases. The 2024 11th-rounder, who is 21, has just a .680 OPS and a 68 wRC+, but has stolen 31 bags.
A great strikeout day for the pitchers. It was a hot-and-cold start for RHP Trey Seeley, a recently-turned 24-year old taken last year in the 14th round. Seeley had a sensational strikeout-to-walk ratio, punching out 8 batters in just 4 innings, while only walking 1. But in those 4 innings he gave up 5 hits … 3 of which cleared the fence, tagging him for 4 runs.
Those home runs are, unfortunately, nothing new: Seely has given up a staggering 13 of them in just 24 innings with San Jose in his debut year (plus 1 in 9 innings in the Complex League). 13 of his 27 A-ball hits allowed have left the yard! You don’t see that every day. The strikeouts remain promising, though, as Seeley has K’d 13.1 batters per 9 innings with the Baby Giants. That’s about the only positive, though, as he has a 9.00 ERA and a 10.06 FIP. Might be bullpen time.
Speaking of bullpens, RHP Fernando Vasquez was sensational, striking out 5 batters in 3 no-hit innings, while only issuing 1 walk. Those numbers were great to see for the 24-year old, who has really struggled with his strikeout-to-walk ratio this year: prior to this game, he had 44 strikeouts to 41 walks in 41 innings. Vasquez has a 5.11 ERA and a 6.16 FIP, but this is just his 2nd season since returning from 3 years lost to injury.
Dominican Summer League Black (30-16)
DSL Giants Black beat the DSL Cubs Red 6-1 (7 innings)
Box score
A trio of excellent games on offense for the DSL Black team. Let’s start with the new guy, shortstop Joniel Hernandez, who came over in the Heliot Ramos trade. Hernandez, who signed this year for a $1.4 million bonus, has had a stellar year, and it hasn’t stopped since swapping teams. He made his debut for the organization in this game, and all he did was go 2-3 with a double, a walk, and 2 stolen bases. The right-hander, who turned 17 in March, has a .973 OPS and a 131 wRC+, with more walks than strikeouts, and 8 stolen bases. This is a name worth being excited about, folks … the organization’s abundance of riches at shortstop just grew!
The biggest hit, though, belonged to right fielder Vinicius Dos Santos, who only went 1-3, but smashed a home run, was hit by a pitch, and stole 2 bases (he was also caught stealing once). The recently-turned 19-year old has made some improvements this year, but is still really struggling in his 3rd year.
And rounding out the hitting was left fielder Boris Sarduy, who hit 2-4 with a pair of doubles and a strikeout. Like Dos Santos, Sarduy isn’t having a great year … he has a .735 OPS and a 104 wRC+, but has struck out 31.6% of the time.
A really nice outing on the mound from RHP Santiago Guerrero, a just-turned 19-year old in his debut season. Guerrero tossed 4 shutout innings with just 1 hit allowed, and struck out 5 batters … though he also walked 4 and hit a batter. Through 10 games, Guerrero has a 3.48 ERA and 10.5 strikeouts per 9 innings … but a 6.25 FIP and 9.3 walks per 9.
Dominican Summer League Orange (25-21)
DSL Giants Orange lost to the DSL Rangers Blue 13-6 (7 innings)
Box score
This game was called a little early due to lightning, but it was one-sided regardless. A pretty brutal day on the mound, though we’ll give some props to RHP Omar Calcurian, who gave up 2 hits and an unearned run in 2 innings of work, with 2 strikeouts. Calcurian has a nice 3.94 ERA on the year, but his FIP is 5.10, he’s only striking out 7.9 batters per 9, and he’s a 21-year old in his 3rd season.
Good hitting games for right fielder Brandon Vasquez and catcher Andrés Rivero. Vasquez, a 19-year old in his 3rd season, hit 2-4 with a double, a stolen base, and a strikeout, giving him an .829 OPS, a 113 wRC+, and 5 stolen bases. Rivero, a 17-year old in his debut year, went 1-3 with a double and a walk, though he struck out twice. Rivero has had a very difficult 1st season, with a .512 OPS and a 34 wRC+.
Home run tracker
14 — Zander Darby — [High-A]
14 — Cam Maldonado — [Low-A]
14 — Jeremiah Jenkins — [Low-A]
1 — Vinicius Dos Santos — [DSL]
Wednesday schedule
Sacramento: 6:45 p.m. PT vs. Round Rock (SP: Trent Harris)
Richmond: 4:05 p.m. PT vs. Reading (SP: Greg Farone)
Eugene: 6:35 p.m. PT at Spokane (SP: Jacob Bresnahan)
San Jose: 1:00 p.m. PT vs. Stockton (SP: Argenis Cayama)
Reminder that almost all MiLB games can be viewed on MLB TV.
