The San Francisco Giants officially began their Spring Training 2014 schedule February 26th.
While getting a look at some new and familiar faces at the major league level is a key part of spring, this time of the year presents the perfect opportunity to take a look at the future of the organization – those who have generated buzz for their minor league performances since this time last year.
In case you missed them, here are the previous four previews:
Heath Hembree & Chris Stratton
Clayton Blackburn & Christian Arroyo
The final pair of prospects in the series features two pitchers who have the skills to be the next Matt Cain/Madison Bumgarner combo in San Francisco, Edwin Escobar and Kyle Crick.
Edwin Escobar
Projected long-term position: Starter (left-handed)
2013 level: Double-A, Richmond Flying Squirrels
Age: 21
The Venezuelan born Escobar is the only prospect on this list who wasn't originally drafted by the organization. Having missed out on signing him back in 2008, the Giants traded for the hard-throwing lefty in 2010 and he has taken off since then.
He began last year at San Jose, but after posting a 2.89 ERA and 92 K's over 74.2 innings, Escobar got the call up to Double-A Richmond, where he produced even better numbers: 2.67 ERA and 1.06 WHIP in 54 innings.
With good movement and velocity on all four of his pitches, Escobar appears polished enough that he won't need much more time to be major league ready.
While he may start the season at Double-A, a look at the Triple-A level is not out of the question if he continues to impress this season.
From there, Escobar may be the first of the organization's top pitching prospects to debut, perhaps as soon as this September. He should stick as a plus middle-of-the-rotation arm, but with a few adjustments he has the talent to claim a #2 spot in the future.
[embed]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwvHf-Q-GhE[/embed]
Kyle Crick
Projected long-term position: Starter (right-handed)
2013 level: Class-A, San Jose Giants
Age: 21
Crick was the 49th overall pick in what is shaping up to be a stellar 2011 draft class for the Giants.
Taken out of high school, Crick has blown away the competition in the last two seasons and has actually posted increasingly better numbers through each level of the minors.
In 14 starts at San Jose last year, Crick posted a 3-1 record, with a 1.57 ERA and 95 K's in just 68.2 innings pitched. As a result, he now sits atop the Giants prospect rankings, as well as the #32 prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB.
Much like Clayton Blackburn, Crick has the body to be a workhorse starter, and his fastball is said to be a plus pitch for him. Along with a solid slider and two breaking ball offerings, Crick has the physicality and the skills to become a frontline starter down the road.
Expected to make the jump to Double-A this year, Crick may still be brought along slowly to assure full development, but his arrival will be much anticipated.
A debut may be closer to 2016, but he may get a taste of the majors in September of next year. Whenever he arrives, Crick should stay for good and may end up as an Opening Day starter at some point in his career.
[embed]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMSewCGC2Ek[/embed]
Back to the San Francisco Giants Newsfeed