I had yesterday off, so didn’t have a roundup of Wednesday’s Minor League Baseball games … so today, we get Wednesday and Thursday from the San Francisco Giants system! Let’s jump in!
Link to the 2026 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)
All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.
AAA Sacramento (48-39)
Wednesday: Sacramento River Cats beat the Salt Lake Bees 6-1 [box score]
Thursday: Sacramento River Cats beat the Salt Lake Bees 5-3 [box score]
It’s a 3-game winning streak for the River Cats, and while there weren’t many standout performances in these games, there’s a lot to talk about.
Let’s start with the rehab, as there was some exciting news on that front. Daniel Susac (No. 20 CPL) made his Sacramento debut on Thursday, as he kicked off a rehab assignment by being the designated hitter for most of the game. He went 0-3 with a strikeout. Given Susac’s recent slump, and the fact that he had a mediocre offensive year in AAA last year, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Giants wanted to drag out his rehab a little bit so that he can get some additional AAA seasoning, which he otherwise can’t get due to Rule 5 restrictions. Then again, they (justifiably) don’t really seem to trust the trio of catchers in the Majors right now, so they might rush Susac back to San Francisco as soon as he can handle it.
On the pitching front, RHP Keaton Winn made a rehab appearance on Wednesday and pitched a scoreless inning, with a walk and a strikeout. It was Winn’s 3rd rehab appearance, with 1 each in rookie ball, Low-A, and AAA. He can’t single-handedly fix San Francisco’s wretched bullpen, but he sure can help!
And rounding out the rehabs was RHP Jason Foley, who had far and away his best performance thus far, striking out the side in a perfect Thursday inning, while throwing 10 of 12 pitches for strikes. Foley’s rehab has been fairly unsightly, so this was good to see.
There was some excitement in Wednesday’s game, as LHP Cesar Perdomo made his AAA debut and pitched quite well. Perdomo had a high class season with AA Richmond — “breakout” might be a slightly exaggerative word, but he certainly cemented himself as an exciting prospect, with a 3.98 ERA, a 3.56 FIP, 11.1 strikeouts per 9, and 2.7 walks per 9 … stats that ranked 11th, 6th, 9th, and 10th, respectively, out of the 43 Eastern League pitchers who have thrown at least 50 innings this year.
With LHP Carson Whisenhunt (No. 8 CPL) heading back to the Majors, the Giants called on the 24-year old Perdomo to try his hand at AAA and he delivered on Wednesday, throwing 5 innings while allowing just 3 hits, 2 walks, and 1 run, and striking out 6. The only stain on his resume was a home run allowed to former Major Leaguer Kyren Paris. That’s quite a performance!
What followed, however, was odd: after Winn pitched (and before LHP Reiver Sanmartin struck out 3 in 2 scoreless frames), there was a relief inning from LHP Joe Whitman (No. 26 CPL). Whitman pitched in relief on Sunday, and it seemed like that was primarily due to it being his regular pitching day coinciding with LHP Matt Wilkinson’s return. But now he pitched an honest to goodness relief inning (0 hits, 1 walk, and 2 strikeouts), and I’m a bit at a loss for explanation. Whitman certainly hasn’t been forced out of the rotation due to depth — he’s a higher-rated prospect than Perdomo, and certainly higher-rated than tonight’s starter, LHP Seth Lonsway — and there’s really no reason to start converting him into a reliever. Perhaps the Giants are just using some relief outings, mixed with the upcoming All-Star break (it coincides with Major League’s), to get Whitman a little midseason breather, given that he’s already at 80.1 innings, which leads all Giants prospects (though Whisenhunt has more if you include his MLB time). Either way, something to keep an eye on.
Thursday’s starter was RHP Blade Tidwell (No. 9 CPL) and he was decent, as he needed just 80 pitches to go 6 innings deep, while giving up 6 hits, 1 walk, and 3 runs, with 6 strikeouts. 3 of the 6 hits went for extra bases, though, including — like Perdomo — a homer ceded to Paris. Tidwell has been fairly sharp lately, and in his last 3 games has a 19-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio, with 14 hits and 4 runs in 17 innings. It seems likely that the Giants will have 2 holes in their rotation after the trade deadline, and Whisenhunt and Tidwell seem the pitchers to fill them.
Also pitching on Thursday was RHP Eric Cerantola, whom the Giants recently claimed. He made his organizational debut and pitched a scoreless frame with 1 hit and 1 strikeout.
It was a quiet pair of games on offense, save for great performances from 2 outfielders: center fielder/right fielder Scott Bandura hit 4-6 with a 2-run home run, a walk, a sacrifice fly, a stolen base, and 2 strikeouts, while left fielder/center fielder Turner Hill went 4-7 with a solo home run, a triple, a walk, and a stolen base.
Bandura, a soon-to-turn 25-year old who was taken in the 7th round in 2023, is starting to make his adjustments in AAA, and is up to a .726 OPS and a 90 wRC+ through 43 games, with 6 stolen bases in 7 attempts. Over his last 13 games, he’s gone 15-44 with 6 extra-base hits, 9 walks, and just 8 strikeouts.
Hill just keeps on raking, as the 27-year old UDFA has an .871 OPS and a 131 wRC+, with 16 stolen bases in 18 attempts. With Jonah Cox and Harrison Bader injured, Grant McCray rehabbing, and Victor Bericoto leaving last night’s game with an apparent injury, Hill could potentially be looking at an MLB debut. The slap hitter has certainly taken advantage of the Pacific Coast League environment: he has 6 home runs in 64 AAA games this year — at the time of his promotion earlier this season, he had 5 home runs in 281 career games across all levels.
AA Richmond (52-30)
Wednesday: Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Altoona Curve 8-5 [box score]
Thursday: Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Altoona Curve 5-3 [box score]
A few days ago, it was third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) who hit a flurry of home runs in a short stretch. This time, it was another player who plays third (though he was a first baseman and designated hitter in these games): Sabin Ceballos (No. 43 CPL).
Ceballos made it clear that his power is emphatically back, as he went 3-7 with a walk … and with all 3 of his hits clearing the fences. Ceballos, a 23-year old who was taken in the 3rd round in 2023, has seen his power come in waves after needing some adjustment time. When the Giants traded Jorge Soler for him in 2024, he was sitting on just 3 home runs in 377 plate appearances with Atlanta’s High-A affiliate … and then, for the rest of the season, bashed 7 dingers in just 140 plate appearances with San Francisco’s High-A squad.
Last year he spent the full season with Richmond, and hit 6 home runs in 420 plate appearances. This year? 13, in just 299 plate appearances. You love to see that!
Ceballos, who has a .788 OPS and a 111 wRC+ on the year, with quality defense at third when Harber vacates the position, continues to have one strange quirk in AA: he has a hard time getting hits. He draws a lot of walks (11.2% rate last year; 12.7% this year) and does a strong job limiting strikeouts (17.4% last year; 20.1% this year). And yet, despite that, he had just a .273 BABIP in 2025, and a lowly .256 mark this year, leading to batting overages of .232 and .234, respectively. Given that he’s got the power, the plate discipline, the swing-and-miss avoidance, and the defense … he could really become something special if he can figure out how to turn that contact into hits!
Speaking of power surges, they continue for right fielder Jean Carlos Sio (No. 44 CPL), who only hit 1-7 over these pair of games (with a walk, a strikeout, and an outfield assist), but the hit was a big fly. Despite his small frame, the 22-year old lefty — who had very limited power early in his career — is up to 12 home runs on the season, despite getting a late start with an injury. He’s tied for 5th in the system in home runs, and just 38th in plate appearances.
The overall package is still in need of some adjustments — Sio has a .768 OPS and a 95 wRC+ in 29 games since getting promoted — but considering that he plays all over the infield and outfield, and is nearly 2 years younger than his average peer in the Eastern League, it’s certainly time to be excited about Sio.
The best pitching performance came from Thursday’s starter, LHP Greg Farone. It’s been a very difficult 2nd season for the 2024 7th rounder, but this was his 2nd fantastic start in a row, as he dealt 5 innings of 1-run ball, while allowing just 1 baserunner per inning (3 singles, 1 walk, and 1 hit batter), and striking out 6. He was efficient and lived in the zone, throwing 53 of 82 pitches for strikes.
After finishing June with 17 earned runs, and just 16 strikeouts to 15 walks in 21 innings, Farone has opened July with an 11-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 11 innings, with only 1 run allowed. Perhaps he’s starting to figure it out!
RHP Yunior Marte (No. 25 CPL), unfortunately, had a rough go of it, giving up 9 hits (5 of which went for extra bases) in just 3.2 innings, tagging him for 8 runs and 6 earned runs. The future is quite bright for the soon-to-turn 23-year old, who had 2 strikeouts, but his AA adjustment has been difficult, as he has a 5.74 ERA and a 4.73 FIP through 7 starts. He is doing fairly well with strikeouts and walks, though, as he has 10.3 and 2.9 per 9, respectively.
LHP Dale Stanavich struck out all 3 batters he faced, as he has started to find a groove. The 27-year old, signed in April as a Minor League free agent, has given up just 11 hits and 3 runs in 12 innings since the start of June, with 20 strikeouts against just 4 walks. LHP Jack Choate (No. 37 CPL) also had a nice relief outing, allowing just 1 hit in 2.2 innings, with 3 strikeouts. He has a 3.06 ERA and a 3.92 FIP on the season, and has been excellent at pretty much everything except limiting walks. So it was nice to see him not issue any in this game.
High-A Eugene (50-34)
Wednesday: Eugene Emeralds beat Spokane 10-2 [box score]
Thursday: Eugene Emeralds lost to Spokane 4-1 [box score]
The Emeralds might have lost on Thursday, but it featured the best performance of the 2 days, for any Giants affiliate, thanks to one player who is putting his season together in a hurry: LHP Jacob Bresnahan (No. 11 CPL). Bresnahan started the season injured, then moved into rust, then moved into good pitching, and on Thursday, graduated to greatness. The just-turned 21-year old pitched 6 innings and allowed just 2 hits (though admittedly 1 left the park) and 1 run, while striking out a whopping 11 Spokane hitters. 11!
He did walk 3 batters, which has been his weakness this year and in prior years, as his 4.2 walks per 9 allowed is right in line with what he’s done at previous levels. But other than that, it was a truly exceptional day for half of the Alex Cobb return.
For Bresnahan, who lowered his ERA to 3.02 (though his FIP is just 4.42, due to 1.1 home runs allowed per 9 innings), it was his 4th consecutive dominant outing and his 4th consecutive start in which he went at least 6 innings. That’s largely missing in the system, so fabulous to see.
Over those last 4 starts, Bresnahan has pitched 24.1 innings and allowed just 9 hits, 7 walks, and 2 runs, with 28 strikeouts. The home run and walk suppression may need work, but 10.4 strikeouts per 9 innings and just 37 hits allowed in 59.2 innings is very exciting. Among the 42 Northwest League pitchers with at least 40 innings this year, Bresnahan is 5th in ERA, 13th in strikeouts per 9, and 2nd in batting average against (.174). All while being more than 2 years younger than the average pitcher in the league. What a year he’s suddenly having!
It was a decent start for RHP Hunter Dryden as well, as the 2024 17th rounder handled 5.1 innings of 1-run ball on Wednesday, giving up 5 hits (including a home run), 2 walks, and 1 hit batter, while striking out 4. Dryden had really been struggling lately — he’d allowed 20 earned runs in 26 innings since the start of June coming into this start — so great to see him have a good outing. He has a 4.78 ERA and a 5.42 FIP and, like Bresnahan, is struggling with both walks (5.2 per 9) and home runs (1.4 per 9).
But a great relief outing from RHP Gerelmi Maldonado (No. 21 CPL), who pitched a perfect inning with 2 strikeouts. The strikeouts are never surprising for the flamethrower, who has a staggering 31 of them in 20.2 innings. Seeing him not walk anyone, however, is surprising, as this was just the 3rd time this year he’d pitched at least an inning without issuing a walk, and in total he has 27 of them, good for 11.8 per 9 innings. That needs to come way way way way down.
Wednesday was a superstar showing from right fielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 32 CPL), who hit a perfect 4-4 and finished a triple shy of the cycle, while knocking in 3 runs. Diaz, who went 1-4 on Thursday, just keeps showing off the power, as he’s now tied with his teammate Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) for 2nd most home runs on the farm (15), despite having 74 fewer plate appearances.
As I’ve talked about repeatedly with Diaz, all the tools are there, it just hasn’t all worked out. Despite all those home runs (3 of which were in Low-A), and despite a delightful 16.6% strikeout rate, Diaz’s OPS and wRC+ are fairly middle of the road, at .772 and 98, respectively. But the tools are worth dreaming on (he also has an absolute cannon of an arm), especially since he’s more than 2.5 years younger than the average hitter in the league (he turns 21 next weekend). The future is (hopefully!) bright.
Left fielder Carlos Gutierrez (No. 18 CPL) and catcher Jancel Villarroel (No. 42 CPL) also had brilliant Wednesdays, with Gutierrez hitting 2-3 with 2 walks and a strikeout, and Villarroel going 2-4 with a double and a walk. Gutierrez, who went 1-4 with a strikeout on Thursday, has an .802 OPS and a 117 wRC+, while Villarroel, who didn’t play Thursday, has an .892 OPS and a 139 wRC+. Both players are still just 21, and both have strikeout rates at or below 20%.
A brutal pair of games for first baseman Jakob Christian (No. 40 CPL), who hit 1-8 with 7 strikeouts. Christian, a 5th-round pick in 2024, has always had good numbers with awful strikeout rates, and that’s no different this year, as he has a .782 OPS, a 111 wRC+, and a 33.5% strikeout rate. Unfortunately, that’s not really a recipe for success at higher levels.
Low-A San Jose (52-32)
Wednesday: San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide 15-4 [box score]
Thursday: San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide 11-3 [box score]
The Baby Giants are officially back and rolling, as, following a midseason slide, they’ve now won 10 games in a row! Holy guacamole!
It was the long ball that led the way for San Jose, and above all else, it was first baseman Jeremiah Jenkins, who hit 5-10 with 3 home runs, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts, and 7 runs batted in. That’s certainly a damn good pair of days at the office!
Jenkins, a 14th-round pick in 2024, is quietly having a very strong offensive season. He’s tied for 5th in the system with 12 home runs, which he’s paired with a sky-high 15.8% walk rate. Add in the .917 OPS and the 124 wRC+, and it’s been a very memorable campaign for the left-hander.
You might read that and think he’s someone we should be talking about more but, unfortunately, the season isn’t lacking for warts, either. Jenkins has a scary 30.5% strikeout rate, and is nearly 2 years older than the average Cal League hitter. Add in the fact that he’s exclusively a first baseman (and thus really needs to hit), and there’s as much reason for skepticism as optimism. Still! A good year worth celebrating.
Speaking of good years, that’s exactly what third baseman/second baseman Isaiah Barkett is having, and he showed off in these games as well, hitting 5-9 with a home run, 2 doubles, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts. The Giants have to be utterly thrilled with the debut season from last year’s 10th-round selection, as he has an .887 OPS, a 124 wRC+, and just an 8.6% strikeout rate. He also plays strong defense at second and third, and has even logged innings at first base and right field this year.
Left fielder Angel Guzman made his Low-A debut after a recent promotion and had quite a showing, homering in his 1st game! Over the course of the 2 games, the 20-year old lefty went 3-9 with a walk and 2 strikeouts. Welcome to San Jose, Angel!
Rounding out the dinger party was catcher Daniel Rogers, who hit 2-6 with a solo shot. Rogers, a 24-year old UDFA in his 2nd season, has hit very well with San Jose, but has played sparingly. He’s appeared in just 11 games for the Baby Giants, plus 11 more for Eugene this year.
Not homering but playing very well was shortstop Lorenzo Meola (No. 23 CPL), who hit 3-9 with a triple, a double, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts, and a stolen base. Meola now has a 5-game hitting streak, during which time he’s 11-21 with 5 extra-base hits, 4 walks, and just 4 strikeouts, bringing him up to a .762 OPS and an 89 wRC+, with 9 stolen bases in 12 attempts.
The starting pitching performances were encouraging, if not particularly successful. LHP Jordan Gottesman started on Wednesday and struck out 6 batters in 4.1 innings, but also allowed 4 hits, 2 walks, and 3 runs, while needing 84 pitches to get his 13 outs. RHP Ben Bybee had a similar outing on Thursday, striking out 7 batters in 5.2 innings, but allowing 6 hits (including 2 home runs), 1 walk, and 3 runs.
The pair, who are in their debut seasons, are not having the best campaigns, as Gottesman (last year’s 6th-round pick) has a 4.48 ERA and a 5.31 FIP, while Bybee (taken 2 rounds later) has a 5.08 ERA and a 5.13 FIP. Both players are doing a great job limiting walks, though.
RHP Samir Chires, a 22-year old from Venezuela, made his Low-A debut and it went swimmingly, as he struck out 2 batters in a scoreless inning, with a hit allowed. It’s a long time coming for Chires, who was signed in 2021 and, prior to his promotion, was in his 4th season in the ACL.
Joining him was RHP Chen-Hsun Lee, a 24-year old from Taiwan who also made his Low-A debut, and also pitched well, throwing 2 scoreless frames with a hit and a strikeout. Lee, who signed in 2023 but pitched just 4 times that year before suffering injuries that cost him all of 2024 and 2025, has some really nasty stuff, but is still trying to figure out how to harness it. Great to see him in affiliated ball.
Arizona Complex League (28-21)
Thursday: ACL Giants lost to the ACL Guardians 6-3 [box score]
Not the most exciting game. AAA center fielder Grant McCray continued his rehab and hit 1-2 with a hit by pitch, while stealing 2 bases. He should be nearly ready to head back to Sacramento.
The best offensive day belonged to catcher Broedy Poppell, who hit 2-4 with a strikeout. Last year’s 13th-round pick has a .952 OPS but just a 102 wRC+ since getting sent from Low-A down to the ACL to work as a catcher.
Second baseman Josuar González had a nice game, hitting 1-3 with 2 walks and a stolen base, though he also had a strikeout and a caught stealing. The 18-year old switch-hitting sensation has a 1.037 OPS and a 158 wRC+, with 7 stolen bases in 9 attempts. I’m starting to wonder if we might see him in San Jose before the ACL season even ends.
Really strong relief showings from LHP Jose Rengel and RHP Jose T. Perez. Rengel pitched 2 perfect innings with 4 strikeouts, while Perez struck out 2 in a perfect frame. It’s been a brutal pass through the ACL for Rengel, who has had an ERA in the 7s in all 3 years at the level. Nice to see him have a great game. Perez is also having a tough season (4.82 ERA and 5.48 FIP in the ACL, with far worse numbers during a short Low-A stint), but his strikeout stuff is firmly on display. The 22-year old has struck out 32 batters in just 18.2 Complex League innings.
Dominican Summer League Orange (17-11)
Wednesday: DSL Giants Orange beat the DSL Mariners 3-2 (7 innings) [box score]
Just a single DSL game, as the Giants Orange team had Thursday off, while the Giants Black squad didn’t play Wednesday, and had their Thursday game postponed in the 2nd inning due to weather.
A pair of nice hitting games from second baseman Yoxander Benitez and first baseman Albert Jimenez. Benitez, a 19-year old in his 3rd season, hit 1-2 with a double, a walk, and a strikeout, bringing his OPS to .763 and his wRC+ to 98 … not great numbers, but better than past years, and he’s not striking out much. Jimenez, also a 19-year old in his 3rd season, went 2-3 with a double, and now has a 1.059 OPS and a 143 wRC+, with more walks than strikeouts. A very nice season for the righty.
RHP Jesus Lopez was the star on the mound, tossing 3 scoreless innings with 1 hit and 2 strikeouts. It’s been a pretty tough year for the 21-year old, who is in the DSL for a 4th straight year, but he’s been a little better lately. Hopefully it can hold.
Home run tracker
15 — Lisbel Diaz — [12 in High-A; 3 in Low-A]
13 — Sabin Ceballos x3 — [AA]
12 — Jean Carlos Sio — [7 in AA; 4 in High-A; 1 in ACL]
12 — Jeremiah Jenkins x3 — [Low-A]
6 — Scott Bandura — [3 in AAA; 3 in AA]
6 — Turner Hill — [AAA]
5 — Isaiah Barkett — [Low-A]
3 — Angel Guzman — [1 in Low-A; 2 in ACL]
3 — Daniel Rogers — [Low-A]
Friday schedule
Sacramento: 6:45 p.m. PT vs. Salt Lake (SP: Seth Lonsway)
Richmond: 3:00 p.m. PT at Altoona (SP: Charlie McDaniel)
Eugene: 6:35 p.m. PT vs. Spokane (SP: Niko Mazza)
San Jose: 6:35 p.m. PT at Visalia (SP: TBD)
Reminder that almost all MiLB games can be watched on MLB TV
Tanner Gordon
Munetaka Murakami
Kyle Schwarber
