On today's Locked On Giants Podcast, host Ben Kaspick talks about the San Francisco Giants adding former Reds top prospect Jose Siri to their 60-man player pool. Outfielder Billy Hamilton was expected to make the Giants' Opening Day roster as someone who could impact the game in the outfield and on the basepaths, but he has yet to report to Summer Camp and the season is just over a week away. Hamilton's status remains somewhat of a mystery, as the Giants have given no official updates. Enter Jose Siri, who possesses several of the same skillsets as Hamilton's, like blistering speed and base stealing ability. Unlike Hamilton, Siri is considered to have high upside and plus raw power offensively. Siri was already on the Giants' 40-man roster, so his addition to the 60-player pool makes sense. His chances of making the Opening Day roster is probably a lot higher than people think at this point.
Ben also discusses why projection systems may be inaccurate for a team like the Giants in 2020. Under normal circumstances, projections are among the best tools we have for predicting player performance. But they typically have a few weak spots. Among them: breakout performances and swing changes. And the Giants just so happen to have numerous players who fall into both categories. Mike Yastrzemski is not projected to have a good season, but Giants fans saw what he was capable of last year. Projection systems typically take a long time to "buy in" to the type of late-career breakout Yastrzemski exhibited last year. In addition, some Giants have made tangible changes to their swings this year, thanks to the new development oriented coaching staff. For example, Brandon Crawford's stance and swing look dramatically different this year. Swing changes often lead to dramatically different outcomes for players (see Hunter Pence last season with the Texas Rangers), but there's no way for projections systems to see it coming, and they tend not to "believe" those results even once they happen.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices