The San Francisco Giants made a series of moves on Friday, ahead of their series opener against the Colorado Rockies, as they’re bringing up a pair of youngsters to replace a pair of youngsters.
As was reported on Thursday, the Giants are calling up outfielder Turner Hill to make his MLB debut. Hill is a tremendous story, as the 27-year old went undrafted in 2023 but has steadily rose through the ranks with strong defense, good base stealing, and sensational contact skills. He was on a 26-game hitting streak in AAA Sacramento, and in 88 games at the level this year posted a .950 OPS and a 148 wRC+, with just an 8.5% strikeout rate. The Giants are surely excited to get a long look at him over the next six weeks as they try to figure out which of their young players can contribute in 2027.
Joining Hill is Jonah Cox, who makes his return to the Majors following a brief stint in AAA. Cox was shockingly called up straight from AA in June, but played sparingly and looked fairly overmatched (while he collected a home run and a double off of position players, he hit just 5-24 with 15 strikeouts against MLB pitchers). The hair-on-fire 25-year old, who is arguably the best defensive outfielder in the system and the best base stealer, was injured in July, and got his first taste of AAA during a rehab assignment. After finishing that rehab assignment he was optioned back to AAA. In 11 games with Sacramento, Cox hit a stunning 22-47 with six extra-base hits and five walks, albeit some underlying metrics that should still give the Giants a little pause about his readiness for success at the next level.
With Jung Hoo Lee playing almost every game in right field, it seems likely that left and center will be handled by Hill and Drew Gilbert when a right-hander is on the mound, and by Cox and Victor Bericoto when facing a lefty.
Hill and Cox replace outfielder Grant McCray and second baseman Nate Furman, who were both optioned back to Sacramento. It’s especially tough news for McCray, who has to feel that his time with the organization might be nearing an end (though he has another option year after this one). While McCray had a huge home run in late July, he’s looked wholly uncomfortable in the batter’s box since getting called back to the Majors. He hasn’t collected a single hit in August, and since the last game of July he’s gone 0-20 with five walks and eight strikeouts. He’s hitting just .081/.227/.162 on the year, for a 22 wRC+, and has also hit below average when in AAA this year.
As for Furman, he barely got on the field, and will have to wait to collect his first Major League hit. He was called up right before the trade deadline, presumably to give the team an option if Luis Arráez were traded mid-game. But given that he’s limited to just second base, and that the Giants are clearly invested in seeing if Osleivis Basabe or Christian Koss can emerge as a viable backup infielder option, there just wasn’t playing time for the lefty, whose proper developmental place was always in AAA. Furman got into just five games in his two weeks with the Giants, and hit 0-6 with two walks and a strikeout.