Lowrie, Garcia are set to make Opening Day roster, Melvin says
Two position battles have been officially settled, and the A’s have five more cuts to make before the Opening Day roster is a finished project.
Just four days before they face the Houston Astros on Thursday in their opener, the A’s have notified infielder Jed Lowrie and catcher Aramis Garcia that they will make the squad, manager Bob Melvin
announced on Saturday before the A’s beat the Rangers 5-1.
Lowrie is expected to be the primary second baseman, with some designated hitting duties sprinkled in — though Mitch Moreland will be the primary designated hitter. The last time the soon-to-be 37-year-old played in a major league
game was in 2019 with the New York Mets. He played just nine games before a knee injury took him out the rest of the year and for the entire 2020 season.
After getting surgery in October, Lowrie returned to the A’s for a third stint and looked like he never left. Though the A’s are being cautious, he’s been playing at second for most of the spring — every other day — and is making consistent contact. He’s 6 for 31 with two home runs and two doubles. He’s also made some nice defensive plays, including a nifty 4-6-3 double play turned with Matt Chapman in a game last week.
“It’s more of a monitor each and every day thing,” Melvin said of how they’ll play Lowrie. “I don’t know how many games in a row he would be able to play. The games are going to be nine innings, so we will have coverage there. He will DH some, even though we target Moreland more for that. But the fact we’re running him out there every other day at second base and he’s doing fine with it would suggest that’s his position.”
The A’s will need to add Lowrie, who signed on a minor-league deal, to the 40-man roster. But they have an open spot.
Garcia will be Sean Murphy’s backup at catcher, a move that was all but decided when the only catchers that remained in camp, Carlos Perez and Francisco Peña, were reassigned to minor league camp Saturday morning. Among the other cuts were outfielder Cody Thomas (acquired this offseason in a trade with the Dodgers), infielder Pete Kozma and bat in the lineup. As Posey turned 34 on Saturday, a new Giants regime led by Kapler and Farhan Zaidi still believe he can be a valuable hitter, but it’s clear his greatest asset is his defense behind the plate.
When Posey elected to sit out the 2020 season, the Giants learned just how important the veteran backstop was to game planning and helping young and veteran pitchers alike maximize their potential.
“I don’t think it’s giving anything away to say that we struggled at the catcher position last year,” Kapler said. “We just had a pretty significant lack of experience between (Tyler) Heineman, (Joey) Bart and (Chadwick) Tromp, all who have high ceilings, but certainly don’t have the experience level of Buster.”
After missing a week of games with right hip tightness, Posey returned to the Giants lineup last week against the Dodgers and said afterward that he hopes to play as much as possible this season.
Neither Zaidi nor Kapler have expressed a target number of games for the veteran, but unless top prospect Bart forces his
relievers Reymin Guduan and Deolis Guerra.
Those reassigned are unexpected names that could be on the cusp of big league action in the event of injury. Guerra and Guduan haven’t allowed a single run this spring and provide bullpen depth. Kozma will provide depth at shortstop in particular, with Elvis Andrus the everyday shortstop and utility player Chad Pinder the second option on the big league team.
The A’s have more cuts to make, but Melvin has said he’s pleased with the newfound depth that came with the emergence of these players.
“I felt like coming into the spring our depth was a little short,” he said. “I certainly feel a lot better about it now.”
The A’s wanted to see Garcia’s bat come alive this spring, and he’s risen to the occasion. The 28-year-old is batting .333 this spring with three doubles. Having to give up Jonah Heim to the Texas Rangers in the Khris Davis/andrus trade, Oakland demanded Garcia in return to ensure another strong defensive catcher replenish their system. Garcia hasn’t disappointed behind the plate. He caught Daulton Jefferies’ six-strikeout outing against the Colorado Rockies last week and Cole Irvin’s 10-strikeout performance against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday.
“We talk about how spring training numbers don’t count, and in his case they certainly do,” Melvin said. “Not only has he swung the bat well, his catching ability is tremendous. We’ve talked a lot about that. Whether it’s framing. Whether it’s calling a game. I thought he did a fantastic job with Cole Irvin last night. Pitching in just enough, getting some called strikeouts in
way onto the roster to split time with Posey during the first half of the season, it seems the Giants would also want their primary backstop handling pitchers as frequently as he can.
When Posey rests and backup Curt Casali starts, the Giants won’t be looking to use Posey at first base. Brandon Belt, Wilmer Flores and Darin Ruf all offer the Giants more power while the Giants believe Posey will be served well by a full day off.
Down on the farm
Oracle Park has never been known as a hitter’s paradise, but the Giants farm system is loaded with players who hope to test its reputation.
Earlier this week, MLB. com announced the Giants have the second-highest ranked group of position player prospects, trailing only the Detroit Tigers, who added No. 1 overall pick Spencer Torkelson to their organization last summer.
Led by Bart, Marco Luciano and Heliot Ramos, the Giants have several players who project as middle-ofthe-order hitters at the major league level and strong layers of depth behind their elite prospects.
Outfielder Hunter Bishop, the team’s 2019 first-round draft choice, has demonstrated elite bat
there, sinker, changeup, just enough curveballs to keep them off balance. His last couple outings, and what he did with Daulton last time, really resonated.”
With 31 players still in camp, here’s how the final Opening Day 26-man roster should shake out: STARTERS >> Chris Bassitt, Jesús Luzardo, Sean Manaea, Frankie Montas, A.J. Puk/daulton Jefferies/cole Irvin.
The fifth starter is still unresolved and appears to be a dead heat between Jefferies, Puk and Irvin. Puk made his case in Saturday’s start.
Puk delivered four scoreless innings with three strikeouts, no walks and one hit allowed. He threw 45 pitches. In comparison, Jefferies has 20 strikeouts in 13 innings this spring, while Irvin — a new face — put a cherry on top of his strong camp by striking out 10 of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ regulars on Friday night. Jefferies will pitch again today.
“It’s a good competition, and you like to see this, because there’s more pressure on these guys at this point,” Melvin said. “You want to see how they respond. We have to make a decision regardless. But it’s good to see these guys stepping up and performing well when there’s pressure on them”
Puk said he felt “calm, relaxed” this time out. He knows he’s competing for a spot, but is working on himself primarily.
“Whatever the team decides,” Puk said after his start. “I know Jefferies and Irvin have done their thing. I’m always confident in myself, each time I take the rubber coming off the injury, each time I get more and more confidence. Keep feeling better and better each time.”
Mike Fiers threw a bullpen session Friday and will
speed while the Giants’ second-round selection from the same draft class, first baseman Logan Wyatt, has impressed with his plate discipline and gap-to-gap approach during spring training.
What’s most exciting for the Giants and their fans is that beyond the group that received invites to major league camp this spring, there are a number of players who could be producing for a mostly homegrown lineup within the next few seasons.
Outfielder Luis Matos is considered a top-100 prospect by several outlets while infielder Luis Toribio showed off a swing during summer camp last year that was reminiscent of Pablo Sandoval’s early career cuts from the lefthanded batter’s box.
The Giants’ four position players among MLB’S top 100 prospects are tied for the most with the Rays and Diamondbacks. And the good news for San Francisco is that two players the organization is really high on — infielder Will Wilson and catcher Patrick Bailey — didn’t crack the list.
The last time the Giants had this many highly rated prospects, the organization quickly found itself competing for and winning titles. It might be impossible to replicate the success a homegrown core led by
start the regular season on the injured list, Melvin announced. That will open up an active roster spot for one of the three battling to be the early fifth starter.
BULLPEN >> RHP Yusmeiro Petit, RHP Sergio Romo, LHP Adam Kolarek, LHP Jake Diekman, RHP Trevor Rosenthal, RHP J.B. Wendelken, RHP Burch Smith, RHP Lou Trivino.
The A’s will carry 13 pitchers. With Rosenthal closing, the A’s can go matchup-heavy between the sixth and eighth innings to optimize this bullpen with a variety of arm angles and speeds.
INFIELD >> 3B Matt Chapman, SS Elvis Andrus, 2B/ DH Jed Lowrie, 1B Matt Olson, UTIL Chad Pinder, 2B/ OF Tony Kemp.
Nothing surprising here. But now we can officially pencil in Lowrie as an everyday second baseman. Tony Kemp will make the team as a left-handed-hitting option in a very righthanded infield. He also can flip into the outfield, which could allow Melvin to optimize some matchups against right-handed pitchers.
DESIGNATED HITTER >> Mitch Moreland.
OUTFIELD >> CF Ramón Laureano, RF Stephen Piscotty, LF Mark Canha, OF Ka’ai Tom.
Tom hasn’t officially made the team, but if he continues to hit as he has this spring, the fourth outfielder spot is his to lose.
CATCHERS >> Sean Murphy, Aramis Garcia.
ODD MEN OUT >> This could mean former Rule 5 draft pick Vimael Machin is left on the bubble. But with a full season completed with the team last year, Machin can be optioned to the minor leagues. Seth Brown, though he’s been solid at the plate of late, could also be shipped back to the minors.
Posey, Tim Lincecum, Madison Bumgarner and many more achieved, but there’s at least hope that within the next few seasons fans will see players the Giants drafted, signed and developed leading them into the postseason and competing atop the National League West.
Statcast study
Ask Kevin Gausman how he achieved his success in a Giants uniform last year and he’ll give you a simple explanation.
“They just kind of helped me to be my own guy,” Gausman said. “Not necessarily fit in this mold that a lot of pitchers are in right now which is sinker-slider guys or high-spin rate guys or guys who have really good sliders. I’ve never been one of those guys.”
Take a look at Gausman’s numbers from his first season in San Francisco and they’ll provide more context for the pitcher’s explanation.
Of the more than 900 pitches Gausman threw for the Giants last season, only 6.8% were sliders. After several years of trying to mix a slider into his regular repertoire with the Orioles, Gausman essentially nixed the pitch in 2019 when he found success pitching out of the Cincinnati Reds bullpen.
Gausman’s 4.03 ERA in 15 games with the Reds wasn’t eye-popping, but Giants scouts watched him ride a dominant splitter to rack up 29 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings. They fell in love with Gausman’s primary offspeed pitch, signed him to a one-year deal ahead of the 2020 season and recently named him their 2021 Opening Day starter.
The key to Gausman’s trust in the Giants and the Giants’ trust in Gausman comes down to letting the right-hander do what he does best.
“I struggled early in my career trying to be one of those guys and it made me get away from doing the things that I do well,” Gausman said.
When Gausman takes the mound this season, expect him to use a mid-90s fastball up in the strike zone where he generates more whiffs and a dominant splitter that induced swings and misses 49% of the time he threw it last year. Fans will still notice a few sliders and an occasional changeup, but when the Giants’ top starter takes the mound, the coaching staff will want him to take advantage of his best offerings.
That’s the fastball and the splitter, making him a different kind of No. 1 starter than most others around the league.