Less than a week after Bobby Evans implied on KNBR that the club had no plans to call him up, top prospect Christian Arroyo was in the Giants’ lineup for the first time ever Monday evening.
Arroyo went 0-for-4 in his first experience with big league pitching, but was still able to affect the game with two stellar defensive plays, barehanding a ricocheted ball to throw Yasmani Grandal out at first base, and making a key diving stop that led to a double play, ending an 8th inning rally by the Dodgers.
Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper was impressed by Arroyo’s ability to have an impact on the game without doing much at the plate, and told Murph and Mac on Tuesday morning that Arroyo has everything you could possibly want from a third baseman.
“If you’re a shortstop and you’re highly touted offensively, sometimes people forget what you can do defensively,” Kuiper said. “I doubt he’s a Brandon Crawford shortstop, but if you move him over to 3rd, you can really, really excel. He’s got great feet, he’s got a terrific arm. He’s got everything that you could possibly want out of a third baseman and then of course the age factor. He’s 21…he’s 21! So, he’s still got a lot to learn, but he’s got a great clubhouse to learn it in, he’s got a great manager and coaching staff and he’s certainly got a great fanbase behind him. It’s only upward and beyond for Christian Arroyo, but he’s gonna be tested, most young hitters are.”
Arroyo was crushing the ball in his first 16 games with Triple-A Sacramento before being called up, posting a batting average of .446 with three homers and seven doubles. The ability to get hits is there, but it’s an encouraging sign that the 21-year-old can also change the game with his glove.
“If you’re not going to get a hit like he did yesterday do something else to help the team win, and he did a couple of things to help that team walk off the field with a win,” Kuiper said.
In addition to stellar offensive and defensive skills, Kuiper also believes Arroyo has the elusive sixth tool. He’s a good talker.
“He’s got the sixth tool…and that’s being able to talk. Being able to conduct an interview where you’re interesting and he’s got that. He just has a really joyus personality and nobody, nobody wants that to change…It was fun listening to him, you could just tell that he really was excited and there was a lot of things that he needed to say and of all the years I’ve watched Amy G interview somebody, that was the easiest interview she ever had.”
Listen to the full interview below.