Here are some random notes, thoughts and observations from my first day covering the Giants in Scottsdale:
Rafael Devers was dealing with a left hamstring issue over the last few days, but he was back on the field today and is expected to play in a few of the Giants’ upcoming spring road games. Manager Tony Vitello said Devers could have played a day or two earlier, but decided to proceed cautiously with their first baseman.
Devers took part in infield drills and shared time at first base with Casey Schmitt. Right away, you notice how much slimmer Devers looks compared to when he arrived with the Giants last year. Infield drills are just drills, and everyone looks good against air, but Devers looked very comfortable at first and was moving very well.
During batting practice, he uncorked a couple of massive shots, including one that landed in the Charro Lodge out in right field.
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Casey Schmitt seems to have a new swagger about him. He looks like a guy who knows he belongs on the field and had a few deep shots in batting practice as well, switching in and out with Devers. The swing looks very good for Schmitt. It is not all good for him, though. He complained out loud that he is burning through too many batting gloves.
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Bryce Eldridge is the talk of camp for Giants fans. He moved well during infield drills, but also never really had a serious test come his way. Regardless, being able to do the basic things at first is going to be the key for him, and this morning, he got a passing grade for that.
Andrew Baggerly, who covers the Giants for The Athletic, asked if it is becoming less of an open question where to start Eldridge, and Vitello discussed how development has been more of a focus with the Giants’ young and tall first baseman.
“All those conversations, honestly, have been about development as opposed to where he hits in the lineup,” said Vitello during his pregame scrum. “I think it's a little clearer where he fits in defensively. He's shown that he's capable at first base, but it's all just been about how to get the most out of them and how to work with them daily.”
The fact that the Giants feel set with Eldridge at first is a positive development, especially after they had him go shag fly balls in the outfield in the first week of spring, which raised all sorts of questions as to where he will play.
Being able to reliably put him at first makes carrying him and Devers on the final roster a much easier decision to make.
Marty Lurie then brought up the very accurate point that Eldridge’s fate could determine how a lot of other roster spots are determined. Vitello downplayed the impact of Eldridge’s status impacting the roster by stating that lots of players’ fates will determine the roster, but the truth is there is more weight with the Giants’ first baseman.
If Eldridge does make the roster, it could spell the end of the Giants’ Jerar Encarnacion experiment. After a slow start to the spring that saw him hitting .190, Encarnacion has turned things up a bit with five hits in the last two days to raise his average up to .300. Encarnacion’s potential has always been determined by his power, and so far, he still has yet to go deep this spring.
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The Giants’ bullpen will and should be a topic of conversation all season long unless it pitches lights out, which right now is far from a guarantee. I had a chance to ask Vitello about the state of the bullpen so far, and the thing he is still looking for the most is consistency.
“It'd be higher level of consistency, and that's not out of any one individual,” said Vitello when I asked him what improvement he wants to see from this group so far. “Every day, there's a guy that steals the show. Keaton Winn [on Sunday] was outstanding. A couple different times I've seen [Ryan] Walker, he's really impressive. [Matt] Gage wasn't happy with his last outing, but if you revert back to outings prior to that, he might have been the best guy that given day.”
Vitello acknowledged that the bullpen does not have the same level of reliable options as, say, the Giants’ outfield, which feels very deep at the moment. But with Erik Miller (lower back) and Joel Peguero (hamstring) dealing with injuries, the bullpen is very short on reliable arms at the moment.
It bears pointing out that the bullpen is not completely cooked. Vitello raved about the performance that Winn had on Sunday against a Cubs team that was running some talented hitters out on the field. He especially highlighted the presence and calm that Winn exuded on the mound.
“You're not sweating when it doesn't look like the pitcher is sweating,” said Vitello of Winn’s outing. “The Cubs ran some good hitters at us yesterday. The ball was carrying a little bit. So that's a great facility. It was full. So, it's not like the circumstances were easy. And I don't want to say he made it look easy, but he did kind of have that never let him see a sweat type approach out there, and it carries over.”
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Ryan Walker is another arm fans will keep a very close eye on this year, being that he is the closer and all.
Walker’s spring has been good so far, with 3 hits and no runs allowed so far, albeit in three innings of work. Much like Winn, Vitello praised the demeanor in which Walker pitches on the mound.
“He's got that that aura about him, and he's had it before I even got here,” Vitello said. “What I've liked about him is just, he seems comfortable in his own skin, you know. And that's key for a guy that's going to be handed the ball in sticky situations is the okay with whatever task you're given, and it probably helps.”
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As for the game itself, the Giants suffered their fourth loss of the spring, falling 2-0 to the Los Angeles Angels, with reliever Trystan Vrieling giving up both runs in the top of the 9th inning while getting some tough luck plays from his defense.
Outfielder Raudi Rodriguez reached base on an error from Osleivis Basabe at short (Basabe had played the first 7 innings at second base). After going from first to third on a Gabriel Davalilo base hit to right, he scored on a short base hit to left. Encarnacion was in left at the time, and an argument could be made that that was a play he should have been able to make. Alas, the ball fell in front of him, and the game’s first run was scored.
After getting a force out from Niko Kavadas, the second run of the game scored on a sacrifice bunt by former Giant Donovan Walton.
Robbie Ray started for the Giants and twice got into trouble after giving up back-to-back walks in the third and fourth innings, but got some defensive help to prevent those walks from causing any damage.
In the third inning, Bryce Teodosio drew a walk, but got picked off on a great move by Ray for out number two. Later in the fourth, Ray issued back-to-back walks to Zach Neto and Vaughn Grissom but got out of the inning when Christian Moore hit a liner at Matt Chapman that he caught and fired to Basabe to complete the double play and end Rays day.
The Giants’ offense was rather tepid (the cynic in me would say it was in midseason form), scraping together 3 hits on the day. Basabe had the most impressive of the three hits with a scorching double down the left field line in the bottom of the sixth. Rafael Devers then struck out, and Matt Chapman popped out to second to end the inning.
Patrick Bailey did not challenge any pitches today, but he did end the top of the fifth inning for reliever Caleb Killian, recording a strike-em-out, throw-em-out on Teodosio and Oswald Peraza.