Minor Leagues in 2021

[LHG]

IDK about the other NWL facilities, but the Eugene's facilities are very good compared to San Jose's facilities. In fact most of the Cal League facilities are pretty bad, which probably played into it.

I remember a big push in the Cal League, back in the 90s, to get new stadiums. That happened mostly in the southern cities (i.e. Lake Elsinore, Rancho Cucamonga, Lancaster, etc) but the northern cities either did nothing (Visalia) or just revamped their current stadiums (Modesto). Personally, I haven't been to a Cal League game in quite some time, except for one game in Visalia last year. They did recently do a complete re-haul of the facilities and it was nice, for high A standards. I don't know what other teams' facilities look like, though.
It just seems like minor league ball in California is getting a raw deal (except for Sacramento). I'm especially pissed that Fresno has been told to move down to the new Cal League or cease to exist as an affiliated team.

 

[SFGRTB]

I remember a big push in the Cal League, back in the 90s, to get new stadiums. That happened mostly in the southern cities (i.e. Lake Elsinore, Rancho Cucamonga, Lancaster, etc) but the northern cities either did nothing (Visalia) or just revamped their current stadiums (Modesto). Personally, I haven't been to a Cal League game in quite some time, except for one game in Visalia last year. They did recently do a complete re-haul of the facilities and it was nice, for high A standards. I don't know what other teams' facilities look like, though.
It just seems like minor league ball in California is getting a raw deal (except for Sacramento). I'm especially pissed that Fresno has been told to move down to the new Cal League or cease to exist as an affiliated team.

Yeah Fresno being a low-A team is criminal

 

[LHG]

In the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft, the Giants took 3 players:
Vince Fernandez
Ronnie Williams
Mitchell Tolman
I find Fernandez the most intriguing of the 3. He's had good numbers throughout his career. I guess the Rockies feel that they have a surplus of outfield prospects. Williams is meh and Tolman is just a replacement of Jalen Miller, whom the Giants lost to the Braves in the minor league phase of the draft.

 

[tzill]

I didn't know about Augusta going away until I saw this article on the Giants' website. I thought they just built a new facility a couple years ago. I haven't heard if that team will exist and, if so, in what form.

I think Augusta is now part of the Braves system.

 

[calsnowskier]

I think Augusta is now part of the Braves system.

Makes sense

 

[LHG]

I think Augusta is now part of the Braves system.

Looks like you are correct

Braves invite new, old Minor League affiliates

Atlanta-area fans wanting to watch Braves prospects might now have the option of making the short trek to Augusta, Ga. As part of Major League Baseball’s restructuring of the player development system, the Braves announced they have invited the Gwinnett Stripers (Triple-A), Mississippi Braves...

www.mlb.com

 

[Pastafazul]

I remember a big push in the Cal League, back in the 90s, to get new stadiums. That happened mostly in the southern cities (i.e. Lake Elsinore, Rancho Cucamonga, Lancaster, etc) but the northern cities either did nothing (Visalia) or just revamped their current stadiums (Modesto). Personally, I haven't been to a Cal League game in quite some time, except for one game in Visalia last year. They did recently do a complete re-haul of the facilities and it was nice, for high A standards. I don't know what other teams' facilities look like, though.
It just seems like minor league ball in California is getting a raw deal (except for Sacramento). I'm especially pissed that Fresno has been told to move down to the new Cal League or cease to exist as an affiliated team.

lol, played in cal league prior to the 90’s, Modesto Athletics, Stockton brewers, Reno Padres , Visalia oaks , twins affiliate, Bakersfield dodgers , Fresno giants , Salinas I forget , was it mariners?, Yada yada yada , stadiums mostly all sucked, 6 lights on a pole. No tarps!!! No money is put into minors cause most players don’t make it to show , so why invest money? What ever they make from attendance payed our pitiful monthly salary. Funny but true story .. the fans felt so bad for us players on how we were treated, while on road trip. Fans got together and updated our clubhouse. Lol chicken wire separated player from player. Only 1 organization treated their players like pros , and it was the St Louis Cardinal organization. They had real stadiums at every level from my vantage point.

 

[LHG]

lol, played in cal league prior to the 90’s, Modesto Athletics, Stockton brewers, Reno Padres , Visalia oaks , twins affiliate, Bakersfield dodgers , Fresno giants , Salinas I forget , was it mariners?, Yada yada yada , stadiums mostly all sucked, 6 lights on a pole. No tarps!!! No money is put into minors cause most players don’t make it to show , so why invest money? What ever they make from attendance payed our pitiful monthly salary. Funny but true story .. the fans felt so bad for us players on how we were treated, while on road trip. Fans got together and updated our clubhouse. Lol chicken wire separated player from player. Only 1 organization treated their players like pros , and it was the St Louis Cardinal organization. They had real stadiums at every level from my vantage point.

That doesn't surprise me to hear that. When I started attending games in the early 90s, most of the facilities seemed pretty crappy. Between the late 80s and mid 90s, Fresno, Salinas and Reno all lost their clubs, as did Palm Springs. New stadiums were built in Lake Elsinore, Lancaster, High Desert (Adelanto), Rancho Cucamonga and San Bernardino (who also lost their club but got it back when they built a new stadium).
That left only San Jose, Modesto, Stockton, Visalia and Bakersfield with clubs north of the LA area. Modesto did revamp their facilities in the late 90s and Visalia about 10 years ago. I don't know if San Jose, Stockton and Bakersfield have done anything but I assume that they have, in order to stay in the league.

 

[LHG]

In the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft, the Giants took 3 players:
Vince Fernandez
Ronnie Williams
Mitchell Tolman
I find Fernandez the most intriguing of the 3. He's had good numbers throughout his career. I guess the Rockies feel that they have a surplus of outfield prospects. Williams is meh and Tolman is just a replacement of Jalen Miller, whom the Giants lost to the Braves in the minor league phase of the draft.

Here's a write up on the Rule 5 guys, in case anyone is interested.

SF Giants: Scouting Reports On Their 4 Rule 5 Draft Picks

The SF Giants selected four players in the Rule 5 Draft on Thursday. Right-handed pitcher Dedniel Nuñez was the lone player added in the major-...

aroundthefoghorn.com

 

[Stokes1931]

My son and I went to all the Cal League stadiums on SoCal when we lived there. Really like the Rancho Cucamunga stadium, regardless of the parent club. The High Desert stadium (no team now) was funky, as is the stadium in Lancaster.

I have been to all the NorCal stadiums. San Jose is a dive. Modesto is meh. I like the Stockton stadium, as it is right by the water and can get pretty chilly on hot nights in the valley. The Visalia stadium is interesting, in that they keep adding to it, but keep the older parts. You can see 3-4 different architectures in that stadium. Fresno's stadium is pretty nice, as long as you avoid the unhoused on your way to the game. Reno's stadium is pretty new, right next to downtown, and it is a gem. I have mixed feelings about Sacramento's stadium, but it seems in decent shape.

Too bad Augusta is now in the Braves' system. Makes sense, though. But that stadium is only a year or two old, and looked pretty cool in pictures.

I wonder if the cities without affiliates will start their own leagues.

I hope that with this retraction, that the players will be paid more. It is criminal how little the players make, and that only for the season. Most players train for 12 months, they should be paid for 12 months.

 

[LHG]

My son and I went to all the Cal League stadiums on SoCal when we lived there. Really like the Rancho Cucamunga stadium, regardless of the parent club. The High Desert stadium (no team now) was funky, as is the stadium in Lancaster.

I have been to all the NorCal stadiums. San Jose is a dive. Modesto is meh. I like the Stockton stadium, as it is right by the water and can get pretty chilly on hot nights in the valley. The Visalia stadium is interesting, in that they keep adding to it, but keep the older parts. You can see 3-4 different architectures in that stadium. Fresno's stadium is pretty nice, as long as you avoid the unhoused on your way to the game. Reno's stadium is pretty new, right next to downtown, and it is a gem. I have mixed feelings about Sacramento's stadium, but it seems in decent shape.

Too bad Augusta is now in the Braves' system. Makes sense, though. But that stadium is only a year or two old, and looked pretty cool in pictures.

I wonder if the cities without affiliates will start their own leagues.

I hope that with this retraction, that the players will be paid more. It is criminal how little the players make, and that only for the season. Most players train for 12 months, they should be paid for 12 months.

Most of my experience with NorCal stadiums dates from the 90s. Back then, Visalia's stadium, by far, was the worst. It was small, old and not much for amenities. The upside, for an autograph hunter, was that it was easy to get to the spot where players exited after the game to get their autographs. Modesto was okay and looked better when they upgraded it in the late 90s. San Jose's seemed decent back then and so was Stockton's but I didn't have much to compare. Bakersfield's, I felt, was about on par with Stockton and San Jose. They really had trouble drawing fans after the Dodgers pulled affiliation with them. I went to game, with my brother and a college friend who grew up in that city, there in 1998 and there were maybe 20 other fans at the game that day. They announced the attendance and we looked around and laughed (my first time learning how season ticket holders artificialy inflates attendance). It was only when I got to attend some games in SoCal did I realize that those NorCal stadiums were pretty bad.

 

[pachyderm]

Most of my experience with NorCal stadiums dates from the 90s. Back then, Visalia's stadium, by far, was the worst. It was small, old and not much for amenities. The upside, for an autograph hunter, was that it was easy to get to the spot where players exited after the game to get their autographs. Modesto was okay and looked better when they upgraded it in the late 90s. San Jose's seemed decent back then and so was Stockton's but I didn't have much to compare. Bakersfield's, I felt, was about on par with Stockton and San Jose. They really had trouble drawing fans after the Dodgers pulled affiliation with them. I went to game, with my brother and a college friend who grew up in that city, there in 1998 and there were maybe 20 other fans at the game that day. They announced the attendance and we looked around and laughed (my first time learning how season ticket holders artificialy inflates attendance). It was only when I got to attend some games in SoCal did I realize that those NorCal stadiums were pretty bad.

I've actually been to the Modesto stadium...

John Thurman Field..?​

or the one they had back in '72 when they were the Modesto Reds... which I'd guess they still are..? EDIT: Modesto Nuts ... lol. Stands to reason, we had a huge walnut tree in our backyard back then.

Herschel Greer here in Nashville was petty meh. Built in '78 for the Nashville Sounds and now long gone. Their new stadium is fairly state of the art... so that's nice.

I went to several games at Bill Meyer Stadium home to the Knoxville Blue Jays back in the late 80's:




They were actually part of the New York Giants farm system back in the day... 1940, 1948–1952 ... although they would have been known as the "Smokies" back then.

And they are currently the "Tennessee Smokies" now.

 

[LHG]

I've actually been to the Modesto stadium...

John Thurman Field..?​

or the one they had back in '72 when they were the Modesto Reds... which I'd guess they still are..? EDIT: Modesto Nuts ... lol. Stands to reason, we had a huge walnut tree in our backyard back then.

Herschel Greer here in Nashville was petty meh. Built in '78 for the Nashville Sounds and now long gone. Their new stadium is fairly state of the art... so that's nice.

I went to several games at Bill Meyer Stadium home to the Knoxville Blue Jays back in the late 80's:

View attachment 260238


They were actually part of the New York Giants farm system back in the day... 1940, 1948–1952 ... although they would have been known as the "Smokies" back then.

And they are currently the "Tennessee Smokies" now.

Yep, Thurman Field. Didn't know you grew up in that area. My father was a firefighter for the city of Modesto from 1990 to 2007. That was why I caught so many games back in the early 90s there. Got to see guys like Jason Giambi, Eric Chavez and Miguel Tejada come up through the org and got many of their autographs (back before they were much larger).

 

[pachyderm]

Yep, Thurman Field. Didn't know you grew up in that area. My father was a firefighter for the city of Modesto from 1990 to 2007. That was why I caught so many games back in the early 90s there. Got to see guys like Jason Giambi, Eric Chavez and Miguel Tejada come up through the org and got many of their autographs (back before they were much larger).

Yes sir.

We lived in two different houses, one on, I think, Thunderbird ...? The first one was across the street from a peach orchard if I recall correctly...

I attended Kindergarten there.

Then we moved to San Mateo. I went to Bayshore Elementary for 1st & 2nd. Then we moved to East McKeesport, PA for about 6 months then to Franklin, TN. Mom and dad were originally from there. Been in Mid TN ever since.

 

[Stokes1931]

I think I have told this story before, but one day I took my son and some friends out to High Desert for a game. We drove up 395, and just as we were cresting the hill, I told the fellas that there would be hundreds of fans or dozens of fans. As soon as we saw the stadium from a distance, they shouted in unison, "Dozens!" Indeed, I think there were more people on the teams than in the stands.

My son's college-aged friends (he was a soph at UCLA), were thrilled because it was dollar beer night. Before they ordered, I had them break out their phones and calculate the cost per ounce of the dollar beers. They all assumed the dollar beers would be on a 16 ounce red Solo cup. Nope, they were basically in large shot glasses.

The game featured a Double-Double Hitter. Some poor bloke who was 0-season was picked. If he hit a double, everyone in a certain section would get a coupon for a free Double-Double and In-n-Out in Adelanto or Victorville. Well, the poor guy struck out three times, and didn't come close to making contact. In about the 7th inning, he connected on a routine fly to right. However, the right fielder slipped as he started for the ball, and the ball fell in for a double!

All of a sudden, all five dozen fans hustled over to the Double Double section previously announced. Some college girl intern had a whole handful of coupons, and I am sure she was told just to hand them out to that section. A group of high school guys made it to the first row, got their coupons, said thanks, and then moved back to the fourth row. She kept handing them out, so after getting their second set of coupons, skipped back a few rows. By the end, the girl ran out of coupons, but the high school boys had coupons for In-n-Out for a week.

Gotta LOVE minor league baseball.

 

[LHG]

I think I have told this story before, but one day I took my son and some friends out to High Desert for a game. We drove up 395, and just as we were cresting the hill, I told the fellas that there would be hundreds of fans or dozens of fans. As soon as we saw the stadium from a distance, they shouted in unison, "Dozens!" Indeed, I think there were more people on the teams than in the stands.

My son's college-aged friends (he was a soph at UCLA), were thrilled because it was dollar beer night. Before they ordered, I had them break out their phones and calculate the cost per ounce of the dollar beers. They all assumed the dollar beers would be on a 16 ounce red Solo cup. Nope, they were basically in large shot glasses.

The game featured a Double-Double Hitter. Some poor bloke who was 0-season was picked. If he hit a double, everyone in a certain section would get a coupon for a free Double-Double and In-n-Out in Adelanto or Victorville. Well, the poor guy struck out three times, and didn't come close to making contact. In about the 7th inning, he connected on a routine fly to right. However, the right fielder slipped as he started for the ball, and the ball fell in for a double!

All of a sudden, all five dozen fans hustled over to the Double Double section previously announced. Some college girl intern had a whole handful of coupons, and I am sure she was told just to hand them out to that section. A group of high school guys made it to the first row, got their coupons, said thanks, and then moved back to the fourth row. She kept handing them out, so after getting their second set of coupons, skipped back a few rows. But the end, the girl ran out of coupons, but the high school boys had coupons for In-n-Out for a week.

Gotta LOVE minor league baseball.

I don't remember that story but I may have just forgotten it. Gotta love minor league baseball.

If I remember correctly, they built that stadium outside of the city (I think I drove past it once going to a golf resort about 10 miles north of there). I would guess that they anticipated that the city would eventually grow around it. I know that is what they did for Lake Elsinore but that growth took much longer than expected.

 

[LHG]

From MLB Trade Rumors:

• The Giants have signed right-hander Jay Jackson to a minors contract, MLBTR has learned. Marc Delucchi was first to report that the two sides were close to a deal. Jackson has seen some action in the majors as a member of the Padres (2015) and Brewers (2019), with whom he has combined for a 4.67 ERA alongside a 33.6 percent strikeout rate and a 12.5 percent walk rate in 34 2/3 innings. But Jackson has been big in Japan, where he has spent parts of four seasons (including 2020 with the Chiba Lotte Marines) and recorded a superb 2.16 ERA across 183 innings in Nippon Professional Baseball. Jackson returned stateside with the Reds last August, but he didn’t pitch for them in 2020.

 

[Hangman]

SF adds prospect, trades Coonrod to Phils

The Giants used their bullpen depth to bolster their long-term pitching needs on Saturday, dealing hard-throwing reliever Sam Coonrod to the Phillies in exchange for right-hander Carson Ragsdale, a 2020 fourth-round Draft pick who was ranked as Philadelphia’s No. 30 prospect, according to MLB...

www.mlb.com

 

[LHG]

Interesting minor league free agent pick up - Giants signed 1st baseman Kyle Mottice. He had a nice OPS and steals a few bases but has yet to hit a home run in 297 professional at-bats. Odd numbers from a 1st baseman.

 

[LHG]

Also, apparently, there is going to be a DSL team (or two) this year. The Giants just signed a bunch of international players last week, totaling 11 pitchers, 5 catchers, 7 shortstops, a third baseman and 10 outfielders. They had previously signed 7 pitchers and a catcher in 2020.

01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent CF Diego Villegas.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Jose Rojas.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Angel Sanchez.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Ramon Peralta.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent C Eduardo Montero.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent C Diego Gonzalez.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Anderson Azor.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent C Brayan Ferrer.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Samuel Rodriguez.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Diego Velasquez.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Samir Chires.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Gerelmi Maldonado.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Jan Caraballo.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent RF Mauricio Pierre.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Brandy Rosario.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Pavel Duarte.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent C Javier Castillo.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Jose Astudillo.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Jose Perez.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Daniel Espinoza.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent LF Eliam Sandoval.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent LF Brian Guzman.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Jhosward Camacho.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Ricardo Estrada.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent LF Carlos Rosario.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent CF Juanel Urena.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent CF Saul Bautista.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent 3B Derwin Laya.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent P Carlos Rangel.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent CF Fabio Villadiego.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent SS Gustavo Cardozo.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent C Angel Polo.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent CF Randy Arrieta.
01/15/21	San Francisco Giants signed free agent LF Jediael Maduro.

10/15/20	San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP Jose Montilla to a minor league contract.
10/06/20	San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP Jose Gonzalez to a minor league contract.
10/06/20	San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP Brayan Palencia to a minor league contract.
10/06/20	San Francisco Giants signed free agent C Claudio Falcon to a minor league contract.
10/05/20	San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP Yonathan Ochoa to a minor league contract.

09/11/20

San Francisco Giants signed free agent LHP Nomar Medina to a minor league contract.

08/28/20

San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP Junior Flores to a minor league contract.

08/25/20

San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP German Malave to a minor league contract.