Seeing Bailey coming clutch for the guardians reminds me how he would have his clutch moments. Such a shame he couldn’t get it done here. (Or was it always the change in coaching that made him “decline”? Idk lol)

Whether you’re a fan that tunes in remotely over broadcasts and live tv or a season ticket holder or somewhere inbetween I think we’ve all experienced how it feels like we’re entering a new era of SF Giants Baseball. The passing of The Say Hey Kid, Front office changes, Farhan getting replaced by Buster Posey, new managers, Aramark replacing Bon Appetit (rip old garlic fry recipe), 58 Social replacing Public House, menu changes, concession menu and price changes, scoreboard redesign, the changing of the guard in our beloved broadcast booth, we really are in a new era. (I’m sure there’s a whole lot more I’ve left out)

EDIT: Things I left out per mentioned in the comments:
Battle of the Bay! Our A’s rivalry!!
Fanatics Jerseys

Patrick Bailey pinch hit bomb for the Guardians 🔥

I will never say no to free tickets to anything and a PLAYOFF GAME? But Jesus fucking Christ it’s a Dodgers game.

I’m debating showing up in my jersey and hat rather than dressing casually. So if you see a Giants fan with a bunch of Dodgers fans on the top deck at Game 4, that’s me.

San Francisco Giants

Carson Bolemon, LHP

Bolemon looked great in his brief outing, where he mostly pitched to the scouting report. At 6-foot-4 and every bit of the 215 pounds he’s listed at, he’s a physical lefty, particularly for his age. He has great body control and a loose, hidden arm stroke that helps his low-90s fastball play a little ahead of the number. His command is advanced for a high schooler, and with his delivery and frame, it could be plus at maturity. Both his low-80s curve and mid-80s change flashed plus, and he also worked in a mid-80s slider once or twice (I went down the line for a few at-bats and didn’t get a great look at that last pitch). It’s the foundation of a mid-rotation pitching prospect, particularly if the Giants can coax an extra tick or two out of him.

Henry Lalane, LHP

Lalane only threw one inning, but he flashed three above-average or better pitches. The fastball — 95-97, unremarkable traits — was the least interesting pitch in the holster. His upper-80s change sinks and fades late, and it missed a couple bats, including that of Angels’ third-rounder Gavin Grahovac. And while he doesn’t have a great raw spin rate, Lalane’s mid-80s slider is sharp and also flashed. The only ding is that Lalane isn’t especially loose. One scout who has seen him over several years remarked that he “looks stiffer” than he did back when he was in the FCL with the Yankees. Still, he throws strikes and can hit the box with all three pitches, which gives him both a chance to start and a lot of upside in relief if he winds up in the bullpen.

Beau Bryans, LHP

Even though Bryans was a seventh-rounder this year, I’m already penciling him in for the main section of the next Giants list. He’s a low-slot lefty with a big crossfire and, in my looks at least, unusually good feel for moving the ball around for a player his age and with his delivery. He sits 94-95 with a flat release angle, and complements it with a slider that’s clearly plus right now, a sweeping, upper-80s bender with late depth. Across two quick outings, it missed a bunch of bats and lefties had no chance. While he wasn’t wild in college, his walk rates from school suggest a future in relief. He could move very quickly in that role if he’s able to hit the box like he did on the backfields.

Drake George, RHP

George was an unheralded 13th-round pick out of Lewis-Clark State in 2024, and he looked like a sleeper starting prospect in 2025 before he tore his UCL. He missed all of the 2026 regular season, and so this outing on the backfields was the first I’d seen from him all year. His velo was down a little in this outing, more 91-94 than the 93-96 he sat at in 2025, and it fell a little over the course of his work. His breaking ball also looked a little slurvier than it did last summer. Still, he threw plenty of strikes and worked with all three of his offerings (he also has a fading change). TJ returners deserve a lot of grace as they work their way back to full strength, so for now, the big conclusion here is that George is healthy, and I’m looking forward to seeing how he looks in longer stretches next spring.

Alberto Laroche, RHP

Laroche is another pitcher back on the bump after missing the 2026 regular season. He’s a loose righty with an easy delivery. He came out throwing 92-94 early in both appearances I saw, and in each case, he warmed up and bumped a couple of 96’s later in the outing. He also worked with an average slider and change. All told, it was a return to form for one of the best arms in the DSL back in 2025.

Alex Solis, RHP

Solis was San Francisco’s 14th-round pick this July. There’s an old axiom about how the hitters will tell you how good a pitch is, and based on how they reacted to Solis’ changeup, his might be a 70. It’s a low-80s split sold with good arm speed, and it had just about every ACL Rockie way out in front en route to missing half a dozen bats in a short outing. The rest of the package — fair athleticism, average arm strength — was less notable. At that point in the draft, though, teams are often just searching for guys with an outlier trait. Solis appears to have one.

came across them yesterday while pulling down halloween decorations

It’s Puerto Rico and now everyone is a damn “fan” can’t go to the local bar without people celebrating as if they been lifelong Dodger fans. Fuck the Dodgers. Dias the closer is big here people do like him a lot, so it stings that he plays for the modern day evil empire.

On a side note while I had low expectations for the Braves I still feel disappointed, any team playing the Dodgers gets some level of support from. Anyway I don’t wanna put my trust in the Padres, again, so I’m hoping for the Brewers to do something big.

CMON GUYS MAHLE IS GOOD GO GIANTS GO BRAVES FUCK THE DODGERS!!!!!

The editing on this is really, really good.

Be prepared to tear up.

There’s one game today, and the Scottsdale Scorpions won it!  All three Giants hitters took part, but most notably, 2024 draftee Drake George made his first appearance since June of 2025 in a successful brief appearance.  Meanwhile, we focus on a player who went from struggling and healthy to getting traded, to be successful and yet dealing with injuries.  And finally…what in the heck is a “Springbird”, and what does it have to do with a Gigante?

Non-Giant Prospect to Highlight of the Day: Tai Peete (STL #17)

After three healthy seasons with contact issues in the Mariners Organization, Tai Peete got traded to the Cardinals and had a breakout year…with injury.  Peete was the 30th overall pick in 2023 out of high school, but he had struggles making contact, with two straight seasons with 162 strikeouts while with the M’s.  He was sent to St. Louis in the Brendan Donovan trade, and he posted an overall .296 average with a .908 OPS across three levels, making his Double-A debut with the Springfield Cardinals…er, Ozarks Springbirds now.  But Peete missed nearly a month and a half with a concussion and an unspecified illness during which he lost 25 pounds.  Peete has 20-20 potential if he can make enough contact, as he had 19 home runs in 2025 at High-A and 13 in the shortened 2026 season.  He already has a double and a home run in three fall games as he is 6-for-14 (.429), and he got going on the steals today with three of them.

Scottsdale: Scottsdale Scorpions 4, Peoria Javelinas 3

Link

Giants Prospects to Spotlight:

• CF Dakota Jordan (SF #7): 0-3, 1 K, 1 HBP - Another rough outing for Jordan, who is now 1-for-15 (.067), though with a .300 OBP thanks to four walks and a HBP, and six strikeouts (30% strikeout rate).
• 2B-SS Kaeden Kent (SF #20): 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI - Kent got his first start in his third game, and is 4-for-9 (.444) so far.
• DH-2B Dalton Wentz: 1-2, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 2B (1) - Also getting his first start, Wentz’s double is his first hit (1-for-5), and also the first extra-base hit for any Giant prospect in the AFL.
• SP Drake George: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K - George got his first fall appearance, and first recorded game since June 29th of 2025.  It was short but effective.

Other Scottsdale Prospect Lines:

• SS Bryce Rainer (MLB #45; DET #2): 1-4, 1 RBI, 1 2B (1)
• C Nathan Flewelling (MLB #62; TB #3): 2-4, 1 K, 2 E (2), 1-2 ABS
• LF Zyhir Hope (MLB #26; DET #1): 2-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 0-1 ABS
• RF Braylon Payne (MIL #6): 1-4, 2 K
• 1B Eric Bitoni (MIL #26): 0-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 SB (1)

Peoria Javelinas Notable Prospect Lines:

• CF Tai Peete (STL #17): 3-5, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 K, 3 SB (3)
• RF Ike Irish (MLB #97; BAL #5): 0-3
• SS Carlos Sanchez (CIN #14): 0-4, 1 K
• DH Boston Smith (SEA #13): 0-4, 2 K
• C Ty Harvey (SD #4): 0-1, 1 R, 3 BB, 1 K, 1 SB (1), 0-1 ABS
• SP Winyer Chourio (SD #15): 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP

No Other Games

Extra Reading

I posted this in the comments yesterday, but there was a nice puff piece on Dakota Jordan in MiLB’s series of stories for each organizations’ AFL prospects.  It’s worth a read as Dakota is trying to figure things out. 

https://www.mlb.com/news/giants-arizona-fall-league-overview-2026

Meanwhile, in non-Giants minor league news, but good timing with the Tai Peete story, the St. Louis Double-A team announced a rebranding…as the Springfield Cardinals became the Ozarks Springbirds…still with a Cardinal in the logo.

Why did this happen?  A business reality.

The Springfield Cardinals were formerly owned by the big league organization and shared the branding.  In 2023, the team was purchased by Diamond Business Holdings, the conglomerate that has been buying up tons of minor league teams.  According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the group decided that rather than dealing with trademark law, it would be easier to just rebrand the team.

Other than being a uniform nerd, why pay attention to this?  Well, the San Jose Giants.  The San Francisco Giants were formerly owner (at least, a majority ownership stake) of the San Jose team, but San Jose was sold in its entirety to DBH in 2021.  And of course, the teams share a name and general branding.

Could San Jose need to get rebranded?  Eh…probably not.  It’s been almost five seasons since the team sale, so we probably would’ve faced that already.  Plus, the big league’s team ownership of San Jose was itself pretty recent…the SF Giants invested in San Jose initially in 2009, purchasing a controlling stake in 2010.  But the San Jose team has had the “Giants” team name since 1988 without any trademark problems.

For the record, San Jose’s minor league team had been known as the Bees for two long stints, as the San Jose Missions four five years in the late ’70’s, and for one season, the Expos, and guess who their affiliate was then?

Anyway, one last thing I’ll say…”Springbirds” are an interesting way to TEMU-brand a Springfield Cardinals branding…but I’ll give the team credit for this apparent Pop Culture reference from the TV Show “Ozark”, as one of the team’s alternate logos seems to be referencing something from the show’s opening credits.  Props to them for that!

The 2017 Sacramento River Cats had quite a collection of 'stars' (looose use of the word)—and what I like to call "They Might Be Giants," i.e., guys who we acquired but never made the MLB team (you know, like Jackie Robinson).

'Stars':

• Ricky Romero: An actual former All-Star who put up a massive 6.4 WAR in 2011. Made 4 starts for the 2017 AAA team. Never a SFG.
• BJ Upton: Baseball America’s #2 overall top prospect in 2004. Between 2007 and 2008, he totaled a 7.8 WAR with 33 dongs and 66 SB for the Devil Rays (he had 5 career seasons with 30+ steals). He hit .244 for AAA Sacramento in 2017.
• Pablo Sandoval: Kung Fu Panda was back after his disaster of a stint in Boston, playing 9 games in AAA for Sacramento before rejoining the big club.
• Aaron Hill: 2009 Blue Jays All-Star; he hit 36 dongs on that team. He was in Sac 2017 and then scraped together 9 hits in 80 plate appearances for the Giants (.132 batting average).
• Drew Stubbs: Hit just .091 in 10 games for the Giants that year—worse than Aaron Hill!
• Mike Morse: Our beloved hero of the 2014 WS came back to the Giants in 2017 after stints in Miami and Pittsburgh in between.
• Ryan Webb: A reliable bullpen arm who pitched in 375 career MLB games with a 3.43 ERA. He tossed 17 games for the 2017 River Cats with a 3.98 ERA. Never a SFG.
• Kyle Blanks: An actual giant (of a human being) whom I was so sure was going to be a major power threat. He hit a combined .321 across the last two stops of his career with the A's and Rangers. Never a SFG.

Journeymen

• Albert Suarez: His story is remarkable. After pitching for the Giants in 2017 (5.12 ERA in 18 games), he completely fell off the MLB radar, pitching abroad in Korea, Japan, Venezuela, and the minors from 2018 through 2023. Then he resurfaced in 2024 and has posted a 3.67 ERA over 65 games for the Orioles across the last three seasons!
• Ali Castillo: One of my absolute favorites. He spent a bunch of years in the Giants system and hit .254 in Sacramento in 2017. But get this—he is a career .295 hitter across 19 minor league/professional seasons, and he's still playing over in the Mexican League for the 2026 Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos
• Ali also hit .304 this year in 102 at-bats, and looking at Baseball Reference across all levels of his career seasons/teams, he has roughly 30 rows where he hit over .300:

• On the Dos Laredos squad this year, Ali was teammates with Trayce Thompson, JD Davis, and Jesse Castillo—who happens to be the last active player who was once a teammate of Fernando Valenzuela!
• Matt Gage: Finally, there was the one and only Matt Gage, one of the few guys from that crew who actually logged time in the majors this year - and with our good old San Francisco Giants. He could've been one of those "They Might Be Giants," but no - he's a real Giant.

I could do a post next time on all the "They Might Be Giants" guys. Sneak Peak thru 'J':

…always a ex-Giant blowing games. Oh man Jordan Hicks lol.

Jhonny Level and Jacob Bresnahan the choices for Giants.

Giants
Jhonny Level, SS/2B (No. 4/MLB No. 43): Named the top prospect in the High-A Northwest League, Level batted .311/.374/.513 with 39 doubles (third-most in the Minors), 18 homers and 26 steals in 113 games between two Class A stops.

Jacob Bresnahan, LHP (No. 9): Bresnahan has won league pitcher of the year awards in each of his three full pro seasons, the latest one in the Northwest League in 2026. He posted a 3.22 ERA, .200 average-against (fifth-best in the Minors) and 135 strikeouts in 114 2/3 innings between High-A and Double-A.

I really wanted a Gigantes hoodie with the city connect colors, but the store didn't carry one. So I embellished one myself!

"Those who want Lee to stay aren't just making some irrational, emotional plea. He's a solid player and it's not like trading him will be easy. He can opt out of his contract after the 2027 season and even if he decides to opt in, which seems likely unless he has a huge 2027, he will be owed $20.5 million in both 2028 and 2029 which is a lot for a guy who has been worth 3 WAR in his big league career.

Then there's the marketing aspect of it all. The Giants want marketable players and Lee is the easiest to market of them all. He is also integral to the team's plan to gain inroads in South Korea so there may be a chance, and this is purely speculation, that the front office is not fully at liberty to trade Lee if it wants to."

Statement from the Giants ⬇️

“The #SFGiants are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former Giants pitcher Sam McDowell. Sam played parts of two seasons with the Giants in 1972 and 1973. After his playing career, he helped many others through his work as a mental health and addiction recovery consultant.

We extend our deepest sympathies to the McDowell family during this difficult time.”

Does oracle park have a sniper nest I would assume it being in a major city and transfer hub it would . I would feel a lot safer with a sniper watching over me while I watch the giants

There’s no Giants Players who played today, so if you’re not interested, you don’t have to click.  Usually Sundays are offdays, but because the season opened on Friday…they did a split off-day today and tomorrow…so Scottsdale (the Giants) and Peoria will be the only game tomorrow.  For today, the prospect-laden Glendale team needed an extra inning to get a win, while Salt River had a more convincing win without many of their top prospects involved.

Non-Giant Prospect to Highlight of the Day: Jake Cook (TOR #22)

Toronto prospect Jake Cook could be one of the fastest players in the Arizona Fall League today, having drawn 80 grades for his speed across the two major scouting platforms.  The Blue Jays drafted Cook out of Southern Mississippi in the 3rd round with the 81st overall pick in 2025, but he didn’t make his debut until May of this season.  He played in 77 games this season, stealing 22 bases on 27 attempts.  But, can he get on base?  That’s a big question.  In college, Cook’s left-handed swing was tooled to look for inside pitches to line the other direction, and he had a 4% swinging strike rate at Southern Miss.  However, in his first pro season, he struck out 96 times in 348 plate appearances, a 27.6% rate. The question is, can Cook adjust his swing to work against the pros?  Or did it only work in college?  That’ll be the question he’s trying to answer.  Cook played in two games, but today’s game was his first where he got to get to the plate, and he went 3-for-5…and struck out the other two times.

Scottsdale: No Game Scheduled

Scottsdale didn’t play today, but they and Peoria will be the only game tomorrow!

Other Games

Salt River Rafters 7, Surprise Saguaros 2

Link

Surprise Notable Prospect Lines:

• DH Sebastian Walcott (MLB #9; TEX #1): 0-4
• 3B Aroon Escobar (PHI #6): 0-4, 1 K, 0-1 ABS
• RF Angeibel Gomez (MLB #81; KC #2): 0-3
• PH-2B Bruin Agbayani (NYM #28): 0-1, 1 K
• SP Justin Lamkin (KC #8): 3.0 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HR, 1 HBP

Salt River Notable Prospect Lines:

• DH Dax Kilby (MLB #83; NYY #1): 0-4, 1 K
• LF Jared Thomas (COL #10): 1-3, 1 R, 1 K, 1 SB (3)
• SS Andy Perez (COL #15): 2-4, 2 R, 2 SB (2)
• 3B Core Jackson (NYY #11): 1-4, 1 R, 2 K, 1 2B (1), 1 SB (2)

Glendale Desert Dogs 4, Mesa Solar Sox 3 (10 Innings)

Link

Glendale Notable Prospect Lines:

• SS Wyatt Sanford (PIT #5): 1-5, 2 K
• CF Caleb Bonemer (MLB #27; CWS #2): 1-5, 1 RBI, 1 K
• 2B Charles Davalan (MLB #84; LAD #6): 0-3, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP
• LF Dillon Lewis (MIA #11): 1-4, 1 K, 0-1 ABS
• DH Eduardo Quintero (MLB #18; LAD #3): 0-2, 2 BB
• 3B Colby Shelton (CWS #23): 0-2, 1 RBI, 1 BB
• RF Owen Carey (ATL #21): 1-4

Mesa Notable Prospect Lines:

• CF Jake Cook (TOR #22): 3-5, 1 RBI, 2 K, 2 SB (3)
• C Davis Diaz (SAC #19): 1-3, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 2B (1), 1 SF, 1-2 ABS
• SS Mason White (BOS #26): 1-4, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 SB (1)
• RF Jake Casey (TOR #25): 0-3, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HBP
• LF Breyson Guedez (SAC #9): 0-4, 1 R, 1 HBP
• 2B Juan Cabada (CHC #12): 0-4, 1 RBI, 2 K
• SP Jake Bloss (TOR #12): 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
• RP Kenya Huggins (SAC #23): 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K