Silver Slugger Solano finds success at plate with simple approach
SaOTTSmALn, ARIZ. >> You don’t have to look far for evidence of Giants infielder Donovan Solano’s hitting skills. It’s in the numbers from a superb 2020 campaign in which he hit .326 with an .828 OPS. It’s in the Silver Slugger Award he won last year for being the National League’s top offensive second baseman.
But Solano chooses not to focus on his success and accolades from last year. Instead, he’s trying to keep things simple, and take it one day at a time. Wednesday’s 3-for-3 performance in the Giants’ 7-6 win over the Chicago Cubs was a direct byproduct.
“My frame of mind was to go up the middle and to right field,” Solano said through a translator. “Just like the previous at-bats in
the previous games, I was just hitting the ball with the tip of the bat. That’s what spring training is.”
Solano is hitting at a torrent pace this spring. The 33-year-old has six hits in 12 at-bats, including a home run. How’s he doing it? By following some of the most basic advice he could have received over the offseason and in the first several weeks of spring training: change absolutely nothing.
“Solano last spring, continuing into our summer camp, through the season and now this spring training,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said, “has been completely dependable and drives the baseball consistently.”
Solano was responsible for three of the Giants’ 10 hits against the Cubs on Wednesday. Wilmer Flores, who hit right after Solano, collected two hits of his own, including his second home run of the spring.
“I’ve been feeling great,” Flores said.
Flores and Solano find themselves in a rather unique scenario. Both are coming off career years at the plate and have seemingly stayed just as hot this spring. However, neither has cemented a role in the Giants’ starting lineup. The organization has no shortage of infielders on its active roster, creating a potential hurdle for Solano and Flores to find playing time.
That’s all right with both of them though. They’re hoping to make a mark through their offensive play this spring and let Kapler and the rest of the Giants’ front office figure out how to accommodate them.
“I think this is going to be a headache for the manager,” said Solano, who played third base Wednesday. “He’s the one that’s going to have to choose who he’s going to want to play on a certain day.
“If we both are hitting good that means that the headache is going to be for the opposing pitcher.” HJELLE OFFERS ‘A DIFFERENT LOOK’ >> Amid the 10hit, seven-run performance by the Giants on Wednesday it may have been easy to overlook the single inning of work from one of their top pitching prospects, 23-year-old right-hander Sean Hjelle.
He entered the game in the eighth inning long after the bulk of the Giants’ major leaguers had already left the game, giving way to prospects and non-roster invitees. It’s a forgettable time to enter a spring training game. But that might be the only unremarkable thing about Hjelle’s presence on the mound.
At 6-foot-11 and 228-pounds, Hjelle is on the brink of history. If he makes it to the majors, he will tie former MLB pitcher Jon Rauch as the tallest player to ever play in the league. It’s something opposing teams can’t prepare for, and through a big grin and some chuckling, Kapler acknowledged the challenge.
“Hjelle is a different look,” Kapler said as he continued to smirk. “It’s a tough at-bat for hitters because you don’t often see limbs that long and you’re trying to pick the ball up from a location you just don’t normally see.”
It was clear that the Cubs’ hitters were fairly uncomfortable on Wednesday, too. Three of the four players who came to the plate put the ball in the air for outs, and one hit the ball on the ground. While he gave up a single, Hjelle seemed to keep hitters off-balance with his 93-96 mile-perhour fastball and a sharp slider that generated a few swings and misses in his spring debut.
“Good solid outing for him,” Kapler said.
It’s not far-fetched that Giants fans could see one of baseball’s tallest players in San Francisco this year. The former second-round pick out of the University of Kentucky had a 3.32 ERA across three minor-league levels in 2019 and MLB.com projects the righty to debut in 2021.
Notes
• Right-handed pitcher Aaron Sanchez hasn’t yet played in a game with the Giants since he signed with the organization on Feb. 21, but it appears the 28-year-old is nearing that milestone. Sanchez threw a live bullpen session on March 9, and Kapler said Wednesday that the team is still deciding what his next step will be after the successful outing. The options are limited to a threeinning backfield game or Cactus League play.
• Cincinnati Reds star first baseman Joey Votto reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday morning, a somewhat complicated situation given the Giants played the Reds and Votto in Goodyear on Sunday. When asked whether or not any of his players were considered close contacts with Votto, Kapler said the organization will “continue to do our due diligence” and that he has not heard anything directly from the Reds.
“Our responsibility is to stay focused on our camp,” Kapler said.
• Johnny Cueto is expected to make his second start of the spring today against the Angels.