September callups

[LHG]

One of my favorite times of the year (especially in non-competitive seasons) is September, when guys get called up to fill out the active roster. Its a chance to see some of the top prospects of the game, one last chance for guys to redeem themselves with the org or the minor league veteran to finally get his cup of coffee.

Considering how poorly the Giants are doing this season, I really hope that they bring up as many guys as possible. I know that its not Bochy's way (although, if I remember from last year, the Giants were close to 40 in September), but here's who I would like to see fill out the 40 man roster this September (not counting the guys already active):

Pitchers
Derek Law
Mark Melancon
Reyes Moronta
Steven Okert
Tyler Rogers*
DJ Snelton*

Catchers
Tim Federowicz*

Infielders
Brandon Belt
Orlando Calixte
Jae-gyun Hwang

Outfielders
Austin Slater
Mac Williamson

Those guys would put the roster size at 37. I don't know about whether Brandon Belt will be able to play again this season but I hope he is able to get better from his concussion in time for the last month.

Rogers, Snelton and Federowicz would need to be added to the 40 man roster but I think it would be easy to do so. Cueto is done, place him on the 60 day disabled list. Mike Morse just needs to be released. If Belt or Slater cannot come back, move one of them to the 60 day as well. However, if both get activated, I think its time to cut bait on Brown. His season has been absolutely awful and he hasn't improved at all as the season has moved on. Give Federowicz a look to see if the team should keep him as a 3rd catching option, in case Hundley isn't re-signed. Another option would be to move Chase Johnson to the 60 day dl as well.

I don't have Christian Arroyo or Matt Reynolds on this list due to their injuries. I don't know if either will play again this season. Otherwise, I would have Arroyo on here as well and maybe Reynolds.

 

[calsnowskier]

Shelton already needs to be added to the 40 this off season, so if they want to take a look at him, adding him is essentially zero cost anyway.

Rogers and Fed Ex are non-rusk adds, so as long as there is room, I would not be too surprised.

Shaw and .Suarez will likely be passed over because both are legit prospects and do not need to be added yet. No reason to start their clocks.

I would like to add Heathcott, though.

 

[LHG]

Shelton already needs to be added to the 40 this off season, so if they want to take a look at him, adding him is essentially zero cost anyway.

Rogers and Fed Ex are non-rusk adds, so as long as there is room, I would not be too surprised.

Shaw and .Suarez will likely be passed over because both are legit prospects and do not need to be added yet. No reason to start their clocks.

I would like to add Heathcott, though.

I was going to address Shaw and Heathcott, but forgot to do so. I agree with you on both Shaw and Suarez. Suarez is pretty easy too because he's been okay but not good at Sacramento. He needs some more time. Shaw, however, has been doing well as AAA. Ordinarily, I would argue for him but there are so many outfield options, and he has another year before he has to be added, that I think he should stay down. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the Giants call him up anyway. If they do that, I doubt Heathcott gets the call and maybe even Williamson. The way the Giants have treated Mac, I could see them, at a minimum, passing him over in September and possibly even dfa'ing him. I hope that they at least give him one more shot though.

I wouldn't mind seeing Heathcott being brought up, but I think that the Giants won't do so with 5 outfielders already on the roster and Slater and Williamson coming up. However, if Slater isn't ready, then maybe Heathcott gets the call. If that is the case, I could see Brown getting the boot from the 40 man, if the Giants opt to move Chase Johnson to the 60 day in the scenario I previously gave.

Oh and there is one other name I should put in this discussion - Conor Gillaspie. Previous post season heroes are treated irregularly by the organization. Some (Mike Morse) get a lot of leeway on the roster while others (Ishikawa) sit in the minors. Gillaspie sticking around the org makes me wonder if the FO promised him a spot in September. I hope not, unless he completely rakes at AAA (and not in the Panda sense of "raking"), but I fear that we may see more Gillaspie, unless they decide to leave him off like they did Ishikawa last year (who did rake at the end of the season but got no call).

 

[calsnowskier]

I actually think there is a decent shot we see Heathcott. There is no risk. Call him up, he blows, you cut him in the off season. Call him up, he plays well, we now know he is in the mix for next year, and the org needs to decide between him, Gorkys and Moncrief for the #5 OF spot.

Shaw does not get a call, but he is invited to ST with a decent shot at making the club (of course, totally depending on trades/FA signings)

 

[Stokes1931]

If Melancon is not ready to go soon, I'd sit him out until Spring Training.

Same with Belt. Concussions are nasty things. He gains nothing by coming back, other than increasing his solo HR totals.

No sense "rushing" them back for no count 'em games.

I think Suarez is doing very well at Sacramento, and getting better. Still, there is no urgency with he and Shaw to start the clock.

Not about September, but I think Moore is on a short leash. If he continues to pitch with a 6.00 ERA, they may try and move him this off-season, picking up the option, or just buying him out. The problem is what kind of pitcher is he? Is he Jekyll or Hyde? He sometimes is both during the same inning!

Bringing Gonor back is a decent idea. Let him hit a walk-off homer in a 0-0 game to end the season.

 

[LHG]

Here's the top 5 hitters in Sacramento as of Aug. 20th:

Chris Shaw - .286/.325/.533 in 287 at-bats
Tim Federowicz - .290/.357/.462 in 262 at-bats
Jae-Gyun Hwang - .288/.334/.461 in 319 at-bats (40 man roster)
Juan Ciriaco - .274/.316/.406 in 212 at-bats
Slade Heathcott - .286/.400/.310 in 42 at-bats

The rest of the 40 man roster guys at AAA:
Mac Williamson - .240/.297/.410 in 317 at-bats (6th on active roster in OPS)
Trevor Brown - .171/.216/.211 in 175 at-bats (dead last in OPS on roster)

Also of note, guys whom I think the Giants will be tempted to bring up next month, regardless of production:
Conor Gillaspie - .296/.321/.358 in 81 at-bats
Melvin Upton, Jr. - .244/.306/.333 in 45 at-bats

Here's another guy I hope the Giants consider bring up though, on the pitching side: Jose Flores. He's looked good in 9 starts for Sacramento, since being called up from Richmond, and has posted a 2.96 ERA and 1.16 WHIP, with 53 Ks in 51.7 innings pitched.

 

[LHG]

Here's the top 5 hitters in Sacramento as of Aug. 20th:

Chris Shaw - .286/.325/.533 in 287 at-bats
Tim Federowicz - .290/.357/.462 in 262 at-bats
Jae-Gyun Hwang - .288/.334/.461 in 319 at-bats (40 man roster)
Juan Ciriaco - .274/.316/.406 in 212 at-bats
Slade Heathcott - .286/.400/.310 in 42 at-bats

The rest of the 40 man roster guys at AAA:
Mac Williamson - .240/.297/.410 in 317 at-bats (6th on active roster in OPS)
Trevor Brown - .171/.216/.211 in 175 at-bats (dead last in OPS on roster)

Also of note, guys whom I think the Giants will be tempted to bring up next month, regardless of production:
Conor Gillaspie - .296/.321/.358 in 81 at-bats
Melvin Upton, Jr. - .244/.306/.333 in 45 at-bats

Here's another guy I hope the Giants consider bring up though, on the pitching side: Jose Flores. He's looked good in 9 starts for Sacramento, since being called up from Richmond, and has posted a 2.96 ERA and 1.16 WHIP, with 53 Ks in 51.7 innings pitched.

Well, I can scratch Upton from this list.

 

[calsnowskier]

It has been rumored, but Boch flat out said it tonight after the loss...

6-man rotation once Cueto comes back. And Cueto is expected to start on Friday.

 

[LHG]

It has been rumored, but Boch flat out said it tonight after the loss...

6-man rotation once Cueto comes back. And Cueto is expected to start on Friday.

And it looks like Cueto is the only Giants on the dl that could get activated tomorrow. Here's the rest of the guys on the dl and their current status:
Will Smith - not going to be pitching this year
Brandon Belt - expected to rejoin the team in mid September
Miguel Gomez - was set to start rehab but had some setback and not known if he will return this year
Michael Morse - no idea. Is he unofficially retired? Baseball Reference doesn't even list him on the team's Current Injuries list.
Austin Slater - possibly expected to return in mid September

 

[LHG]

Conor Gillaspie got placed on the 7 day disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 28th, by Sacramento. I don't know what his injury is or the extent of its severity, so I don't know the likelihood of him coming back up in September.

 

[calsnowskier]

Conor Gillaspie got placed on the 7 day disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 28th, by Sacramento. I don't know what his injury is or the extent of its severity, so I don't know the likelihood of him coming back up in September.

He would need to be added to the 40, so I doubt he comes back.

 

[calsnowskier]

Austin Slater - possibly expected to return in mid September

He starts rehab tomorrow.

 

[SFGRTB]

He starts rehab tomorrow.

He'll rehab 4 games, and then either go to San Jose if they makes the playoffs or just get activated if they don't.

 

[SFGRTB]

Heard multiple times that we won't see any "new" guys. So Heathcott, Duggar, Shaw, Snelten etc. won't be added.

 

[Stokes1931]

Giants add four players, outright Jae-gyun Hwang

Orlando Calixte, Derek Law, Steven Okert, and Tim Federowicz

 

[LHG]

Heard multiple times that we won't see any "new" guys. So Heathcott, Duggar, Shaw, Snelten etc. won't be added.

I understand Duggar and Shaw. Neither need to be added to 40 man roster this offseason, and, in Duggar's case, he's been injured most of the year. However, Snelton really makes no sense to me. He's a lefty who's done well at AAA, the Giants have greatly struggled with left handed relievers and Snelten needs to be protected this off season. I think he would definitely get picked up in the Rule 5 draft. I think the FO has been delusional in how they've handled this season. I don't blame them for the way the season has gone but I do blame them for how poorly they've handled it.

 

[SFGRTB]

I understand Duggar and Shaw. Neither need to be added to 40 man roster this offseason, and, in Duggar's case, he's been injured most of the year. However, Snelton really makes no sense to me. He's a lefty who's done well at AAA, the Giants have greatly struggled with left handed relievers and Snelten needs to be protected this off season. I think he would definitely get picked up in the Rule 5 draft. I think the FO has been delusional in how they've handled this season. I don't blame them for the way the season has gone but I do blame them for how poorly they've handled it.

Just because they won't add Snelten now doesn't mean they won't in a few weeks after the season. In the past, they've rarely added prospects just to add them for a taste of the majors in September, Posey and Bumgarner being the exceptions.

I would like to see Snelten too, but we're going to see a lot of him in Spring Training and by now the Giants have a decent idea of who he is anyway.

 

[LHG]

Just because they won't add Snelten now doesn't mean they won't in a few weeks after the season. In the past, they've rarely added prospects just to add them for a taste of the majors in September, Posey and Bumgarner being the exceptions.

I would like to see Snelten too, but we're going to see a lot of him in Spring Training and by now the Giants have a decent idea of who he is anyway.

I understand that September numbers are taken with a grain of salt, but wouldn't it make sense to see him in the big leagues now, to get an idea before heading into the offseason whether they really want to look at getting another lefty in the bullpen? Spring training seems awfully late when most of the free agents are snatched up or if he looks good and they didn't need to sign someone else.

 

[Stokes1931]

I understand that September numbers are taken with a grain of salt, but wouldn't it make sense to see him in the big leagues now, to get an idea before heading into the offseason whether they really want to look at getting another lefty in the bullpen? Spring training seems awfully late when most of the free agents are snatched up or if he looks good and they didn't need to sign someone else.

There's always the Arizona Fall League!

 

[LHG]

There's always the Arizona Fall League!

Still not the same. The best test for how a guy will do in the big leagues is . . . the big leagues!