The Dominican Summer League wasn’t in action on Wednesday, but all four of the San Francisco Giants A-Ball affiliates were. So let’s dive into some Minor League Baseball action!
Link to the 2025 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)
All listed positions in the roundup are the positions played in that particular game.
AAA Sacramento (64-58)
Sacramento River Cats beat the El Paso Chihuahuas (Padres) 9-8
Box score
A 3rd consecutive win for the River Cats, who are playing some nice baseball down the stretch. And the offense
was fueled by a trio of players hoping to head west in the coming weeks.
That included first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL), who had yet another majestic home run, notably off a left-handed pitcher. The slugger finished the day 1-3 with a walk and 3 runs batted in.
Despite the home run, it does still feel like Eldridge has become a long shot to debut this year. His recent slump hurt his numbers, as he’s sitting on an .813 OPS and a 99 wRC+ in Sacramento, and most concerning is his 32.3% strikeout rate. I would assume the Giants want him to work on that in the lower-stakes environment of Minor League Baseball, and then in Spring Training, with hopes that he can hit the ground running in 2026. But I also don’t think it would be shocking if Eldridge, who has publicly stated that he thinks it would be beneficial to his development to get a cup of coffee this year, spends some of September in the Majors.
Editor’s note: The following paragraphs were written before the news that Luis Matos had been called up and Grant McCray optioned.
On that note, I would certainly expect Luis Matos to spend some time in the Majors soon, and he stated his case again on Wednesday, hitting 1-4 with a home run and a walk.
Matos is clearly benefitting from playing every day in Sacramento, and has a 5-game hitting streak, during which time he’s 8-22 with 2 home runs, 3 doubles, and just 2 strikeouts. Matos has been, frankly, horrible in the Majors this year, but the amount of time he’s spent on the roster — and the fact that he broke camp with the team — suggests that the front office still has some faith in the 23-year old. This is pure speculation, but it’s starting to feel like Matos being in Sacramento and Grant McCray in San Francisco is more about prioritizing the former’s development than wanting the latter in the Majors. Since starting 3 consecutive games from August 2-4, McCray has had just 7 plate appearances over 2 weeks.
Another hitter who is hoping to see MLB time this year is right fielder Wade Meckler (No. 13 CPL), though if McCray is having a hard time getting MLB at-bats, then things look a little grim for Meckler. Still and all, he put forth a fine audition on Wednesday, hitting 2-3 with a double, 2 walks, and 2 RBI. It’s been a pretty disappointing year for Meckler, as he dealt with injuries and has just a .714 OPS and a 100 wRC+ with Sacramento. It’s pretty clear based on the draft and the trade deadline that the Buster Posey-led front office values contact, which Meckler certainly provides, but it’s also hard to see what value he has given that he’s not a standout defensive player, isn’t a big threat on the bases (he has 9 stolen bases in 61 games), and has essentially no power (0 homers and 12 total extra-base hits in 276 plate appearances).
A nice game for third baseman Drew Ellis, who hit 1-3 with a homer and a walk.
While the players trying to get to (and back to) the Majors in the batter’s box had good days, it wasn’t quite the same on the mound. Unfortunately, it was another tough outing for RHP Hayden Birdsong, who simply has not been able to fix his command issues the way the team hoped when they optioned him. Birdsong simply could not find the strike zone, throwing just 46 of 85 pitches for strikes, and walking 5 batters in just 3 innings. That, combined with 3 hits, tagged him for 4 runs, 3 of which were earned. Birdsong, who struck out 4 batters, has now walked 12 batters in 19.1 innings since getting optioned (he also has 2 hit batters and 5 homers allowed in that time). It seems he’s still a ways away from working his way back into the Major League plans.
The same is not true for RHP Keaton Winn, who pitched for the 1st time since getting optioned. Winn made his season debut in the Majors over the weekend and looked fantastic filling in for Ryan Walker, and he was strong again on Wednesday, pitching a scoreless inning with a hit and a strikeout. He would be a sensible addition to the roster come September 1, though it also wouldn’t surprise me if the Giants keep him in AAA to build up his arm strength towards starting again.
Tough relief outings for a pair of notable arms, as RHP Braxton Roxby gave up 3 hits and 2 runs in 2.1 innings with a strikeout, while RHP Trent Harris (No. 20 CPL) ceded 2 hits, 1 walk, and 1 run in 1.2 innings, with a strikeout. Both players look like they could play a big role in the bullpen in 2026, but given their struggles since getting promoted, I’d guess neither is on the radar to make a debut this season.
AA Richmond (44-69)
Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Chesapeake Baysox (Orioles) 6-0
Box score
A bad game for the Flying Squirrels, and certainly not the only bad one they’ve had this year. There have been plenty of them! Richmond had no extra-base hits, though a trio of players reached base multiple times: second baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 16 CPL) hit 1-3 with a walk, a stolen base, and an error, boosting his OPS to .677 and his wRC+ to 107, with 17 stolen bases; third baseman Dayson Croes went 2-4 with a strikeout and now has a blistering .972 OPS and 180 wRC+ in 11 games since getting promoted; and designated hitter Turner Hill hit 1-3 with a walk, and is now the proud owner of a .761 OPS and a 127 wRC+.
It was also a bad game for the starting pitcher, LHP John Michael Bertrand. The 2022 10th-round pick had some uncharacteristic command issues, throwing just 55 of 91 pitches for strikes, and walking 5 batters in just 4.2 innings, while also allowing 7 hits and 4 runs. Just a bad day overall for Bertrand, who struck out 3 and now has a 2.98 ERA but a 4.35 FIP.
But a very fruitful day for Richmond’s other funky southpaw, LHP Jack Choate (No. 29 CPL). Choate recently moved to the bullpen, and so far it seems to be paying dividends. He gave up just a hit and a walk while pitching 2 shutout innings and, impressively, recorded 5 of his 6 outs by way of strikes. In his last 4 games, the 2022 9th-rounder has tossed 5.1 innings and allowed 4 hits, 3 walks, and 1 run, with 9 strikeouts. It’ll be fun seeing if his stuff plays a little better out of the bullpen, where he can really let it all out.
High-A Eugene (68-48)
Eugene Emeralds lost to the Hillsboro Hops (D-Backs) 17-1
Box score
Well, simply an awful day for the Emeralds. They gave up 17 runs and scored 1. They gave up 28 baserunners and had 5. Just plum bad, so no need to waste time out it.
There was one highlight, as first baseman Charlie Szykowny (No. 43 CPL), who hit 1-3 with a walk, homered for the 3rd consecutive game. He’s really starting to find his rhythm as the season wears on … look at how much he’s improved both his contact and his power, which has led to a .793 OPS and a 112 wRC+:
April: .250 average, 2 homers in 84 at-bats
May: .193 average, 2 homers in 83 at-bats
June: .297 average, 5 homers in 91 at-bats
July: .260 average, 4 homers in 104 at-bats
Aug: .329 average, 5 homers in 73 at-bats
Always love to see growth throughout the year!
Especially rough days for a pair of new-to-Eugene players, as third baseman Parks Harber hit 0-4 with 3 strikeouts while shortstop Jean Carlos Sio struck out in all 3 of his at-bats.
LHP Cesar Perdomo got absolutely destroyed, with an ERA-buster of 12 baserunners, 8 runs, and 7 earned runs in just 3 innings. The bullpen also got destroyed, so much so that infielder Jose Ramos came in when RHP Ben Peterson couldn’t get out of the 9th inning. But hiding in the misery was a delightful outing from LHP Esmerlin Vinicio, who struck out 5 batters in 2 scoreless innings, with 2 hits and 1 walk allowed. It’s been a very tough year for Vinicio, who has 5.76 ERA, a 4.67 FIP, and 39 walks in 45.1 innings. Here’s to more outings like this one!
Low-A San Jose (75-41)
San Jose Giants lost to the Fresno Grizzlies (Rockies) 5-4
Box score
A very good game for the players assigned to San Jose, as those players won 4-0. All the damage occurred against AA Richmond RHP Ryan Murphy, who gave up 6 hits (all singles) and 1 walk in just 1 inning of work, resulting in all 5 runs. It was just the 4th rehab appearance for Murphy after more than a year on the sidelines, so while it cost San Jose the win, it isn’t really anything to be concerned about.
The Baby Giants used 3 pitchers, and the 2 arms that bookended Murphy’s brutal 6th inning were fantastic. It began with 5 shutout innings from the starter, RHP Niko Mazza. It wasn’t the cleanest outing for Mazza, who allowed 3 hits and 3 walks, struck out 4, and threw just 41 of 75 pitches for strikes. But learning to keep runs off the board when you’re not at your sharpest is a very important skill, especially for a starting pitcher, and it’s a big part of how Mazza has a 2.17 ERA despite just a 4.23 FIP in his debut season.
This was the 6th consecutive game with 0 or 1 earned runs allowed for last year’s 8th-round pick, though the Giants will certainly want to see him improve his command: during that time he’s walked 18 batters in just 28 innings.
And finishing the game was LHP Ricardo Estrada, who took down 3 scoreless innings with just 2 hits. Unlike Mazza, Estrada had impeccable command, throwing 26 of 37 pitches for strikes, walking nobody, and K’ing a trio of batters. The 23-year old from Mexico, who began the season in the ACL, has been exceptional at preventing contact lately: in his last 5 games he’s pitched 12.1 innings and allowed just 4 hits and 1 run, though he has walked 10 batters during that time. But he’s even trending in the right direction there, as this was his 2nd straight outing without a free pass.
On offense, the star was yet again shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 6 CPL), who had a sensational day, hitting 2-4 with a home run, a walk, and a strikeout.
The organization has to be completely thrilled with how Level — who I would strongly argue is the No. 3 prospect in the system right now — has looked in moving from the Complex League to A-Ball. The power has dropped off (though you wouldn’t know it based on Wednesday’s performance), but otherwise his numbers have been nearly identical through 18 games in the Cal League:
ACL: .288/.375/.493, 12.6% walk rate, 15.3% strikeout rate, 119 wRC+
SJ: .273/.385/.377, 14.3% walk rate, 16.5% strikeout rate, 117 wRC+
He sure looks like a star in the making!
Center fielder Trevor Cohen and second baseman Lorenzo Meola, the team’s 3rd and 4th-round picks in July, both hit 1-4 with a strikeout and a stolen base. Right fielder Cameron Maldonado, their 7th-round pick, went 1-3 with a double, a walk, and 2 strikeouts in his 2nd career game.
Home run tracker
AAA Bryce Eldridge (20) [13 in AAA; 7 in AA]
AAA Luis Matos (12) [5 in MLB; 7 in AAA]
AAA Drew Ellis (7) [6 in AAA; 1 in AA]
High-A Charlie Szykowny (18)
Low-A Jhonny Level (11) [2 in Low-A, 9 in ACL]
Thursday schedule
Sacramento: 6:45 p.m. PT vs. El Paso (SP: Mason Black)
Richmond: 3:35 p.m. PT at Chesapeake (SP: Joe Whitman)
Eugene: 3:35 p.m. PT vs. Hillsboro (SP: Greg Farone)
San Jose: 6:30 p.m. PT vs. Fresno (SP: Luis De La Torre)
