With the minor league baseball season wrapping up, the latest edition of the KNBR Minor League Podcast looks back at some of this year’s standout players from the San Francisco Giants farm system and which players might be ready to make the jump to the majors. September call ups are right around the corner, and while some prospects like infielder Ryder Jones and pitcher Chris Stratton have already joined the big league club, there are plenty of fresh faces still to come. Giants director of player development Shane Turner joined the podcast to talk about some of the organization’s most notable prospects, including the newly drafted Heliot Ramos.
Ramos is currently sidelined with a concussion after being hit in the head Sunday, but before that he hit the ground running since making his professional debut. Since his first game on June 30th, Ramos is batting .348 so far with a spectacular 1.049 OPS in Arizona rookie league action. While he’s still got a long way to go, Turner spoke highly of the Giants’ 2017 first rounder.
“He’s a very exciting kid”, Turner said of Ramos. “He does a lot of things you like. He’s got power, he’s got speed, (he’s a) centerfielder who covers ground, he’s got an above average arm. Very, very mature game for a kid who’s still 17 years old and he’s not built like a 17 year old either.”
An outfielder who will be in the major leagues much sooner is Steven Duggar. There was a chance that Duggar would make his MLB debut this season, but after a hip injury kept him on the DL for much of the first half, he’s only now getting a shot in Triple-A. Even after missing so much time, he could still be a late September call up, but Turner was very clear as to what Duggar’s goal is for the rest of 2017.
“Stay healthy…if he stays healthy, the rest is gravy. He’s a very talented player, obviously a top notch defender, he can play center field (as well as) anybody. He’s a very patient hitter, he can draw walks and he has speed to steal bases, he has the ability to do a lot of things.”
For more on Ramos, Duggar and what Tyler Beede and Christian Arroyo’s injuries mean for the 2018 Giants, check out the latest edition of the KNBR Minor League Podcast.