Who Will Hit the First Righty Splash Hit?

Present Giants’ 3B J.D. Davis when he was with the New York Mets; Picture through D. Benjamin Miller

The baseball world and Giants followers alike have grow to be very aware of the “splash hit” dwelling run at Oracle Park in San Francisco that leaves the stadium and lands in McCovey Cove past proper area. These splash hits have gained some consideration just lately, as Lamonte Wade Jr. hit the one hundredth dwelling run into the cove. Barry Bonds, identified dwelling run hitter, is answerable for 35 of the 101 splash hits. Bonds’ whole of 35 is much larger than second place, which is 10 by Brandon Belt. Lefties have a large benefit within the splash hit recreation, which results in an unbelievable statistic surrounding a lot of these dwelling runs: no right-handed hitter has ever hit one. One notable hit from a righty that was near being the primary right-handed splash hit was Buster Posey’s dwelling run within the 2021 NLDS off Walker Buehler. This text will study the Giants’ roster and farm system from high to backside, producing three candidates to hit the primary right-handed splash hit.

J.D. Davis (MLB)

So far as energetic, MLB-level Giants go, J.D. Davis has confirmed himself to be probably the most harmful energy hitter from the right-handed batter’s field. Davis’ recreation has seemingly improved since becoming a member of the Giants on the commerce deadline of 2022. His energy numbers and excessive percentile rankings are one thing that carried over from his 2022 season. In 203 at bats this yr, Davis has 9 dwelling runs, 34 RBI, and a .854 OPS. His batting common is pretty much as good as ever, too, sitting properly at .286. After all, batting common hardly captures a participant’s full skillset, however J.D.’s excessive common is price mentioning as a result of his 58 hits and strong batting common present that he doesn’t precisely promote out for dwelling runs.

Talking of dwelling runs, Davis’ spray chart from this yr is extraordinarily promising when looking for a righty who may hit a ball into the cove. In truth, 4 of Davis’ 9 dwelling runs have gone to the other area. Pairing this truth together with his unbelievable energy percentiles would get any Giants fan excited concerning the potential he has to hit this never-before-seen dwelling run. Davis sits within the 92nd percentile for HardHit %, ninetieth in Common Exit Velocity, 76th in Barrel %, and 73rd in Max Exit Velocity. The one draw back to this risk is his age of 30. Davis may have a couple of years for this accomplishment to occur, and a few pure regression of energy might be in play for him as he ages. If Davis continues to play on the similar fee he at the moment is and his power-hitting talents don’t regress too rapidly, he has a professional shot at hitting the primary ball into McCovey Cove from a right-handed hitter.

J.D. Davis Statcast, Visuals & Advanced Metrics | MLB.com | baseballsavant.com

Luis Matos (AAA)

Luis Matos has been a well-recognized title within the Giants’ farm system for a lot of seasons. Matos was signed internationally and started working his method up the minors in 2019. In 2021, he led all Low-A gamers in hits, extra-base hits, doubles, whole bases, and RBI. Nevertheless, Matos has had some struggles in his skilled profession. He has battled accidents that took away a number of the sharpness of his instruments as an athlete. Luis injured his quadricep final season, and when he returned, he was not the identical participant he as soon as was, slashing solely .211/.275/.344 in Excessive-A in 2022.

Since this setback, Matos has had a fast rise to the very best stage of competitors within the minors. In his final 30 video games between AA and AAA, he’s slashing .396/.434/.660 and has 5 dwelling runs in his final 5 video games. He wanted solely 31 video games performed at AA to show that he was prepared for his subsequent promotion. The aforementioned 5 dwelling runs in 5 consecutive video games performed have all come on the AAA stage prior to now week. His confidence is returning. Matos’ potential to play at a number of ranges in the identical season and seize spectacular outcomes is a vital high quality as a prospect, proving he is ready to play as much as and above his competitors. Matos was written off by a number of followers after his down season in 2022. He has absolutely bounced again since then, seemingly fueling himself with that criticism. If somebody tells him that it’s inconceivable to hit a ball into McCovey Cove as a righty, Matos would possibly shock individuals once more and get it performed.

A number of the the explanation why Matos won’t rating a splash hit are his dimension and his scouted energy numbers. Matos is listed as 5’11’’ and 160 kilos. His scouting grades solely listed him with an influence rating of 45 out of a doable 80. Nevertheless, as said earlier than, Luis has handled doubt and adversity in his younger profession and has confirmed he can rise above these expectations. If he provides dimension and extra energy to his recreation, don’t be shocked to see Matos ship a screamer into the cove to perform the righty splash hit.

Giants Top Prospects | MLB.com

Marco Luciano (AA)

Marco Luciano has a number of the greatest uncooked energy for a center infielder in all the Giants’ group. He acquired a 65 out of 80 for his scouting grade and has demonstrated the flexibility to hit the ball out of the park in his time within the minors. In his total 2021 season, he hit 19 dwelling runs with 71 RBI. Nevertheless, just like Matos, his efficiency within the minors has been a bit derailed due to an damage. Luciano injured his again in 2022, solely permitting the 20-year-old to play in 57 full video games. Luckily, his damage has come and gone, and Luciano is again taking part in for the AA Flying Squirrels in 2023.

Marco Luciano’s begin to the yr has been distinctive based mostly on his stats. He’s slashing a .191/.309/.452, good for a .761 OPS. When seeing that batting common under .200, it instantly makes one suppose he isn’t producing near what he’s presupposed to be. Nevertheless, the hole between his common and his on-base share is so giant (118 factors), and he has above-average slugging numbers, pointing to a participant who’s experiencing some dangerous luck with balls put in play. Now, there are not any anticipated stats for these minor leaguers, so the dangerous luck declare doesn’t have a ton of statistical proof behind it. Nevertheless, the kind of hitter that Luciano has been the previous couple of years makes his chilly batting common slightly extra acceptable. His numbers will definitely regress to the imply. When that regression takes place, his spectacular energy potential could be an enormous bonus, probably leading to Luciano taking an enormous step ahead as a prospect.

So far as his probabilities for the long run righty splash hit, there may be some critical consideration available for Marco. MLB Pipeline’s description of his talents stated “He’ll all the time be a power-over-hit man however his pure potential and aptitude for making changes may imply that he is a .270 hitter with 35 homers per season.” If Luciano continues to be a harmful energy menace and his growth within the minors sees him refine his hitting talents, he might be the star shortstop the Giants will want after Brandon Crawford is out. And what higher strategy to introduce your self as the brand new star shortstop than amassing the primary righty splash hit?

Giants Top Prospects | MLB.com

This record of right-handed hitters isn’t the complete risk of everybody within the Giants’ system that would gather the primary right-handed splash hit. There might be different prospects who turn into energy threats and even new draft picks who would possibly gather this elusive dwelling run. Nevertheless, based mostly on numbers and scouting of all the gamers listed above, there’s a higher likelihood that one among them would be the one to do it. Nonetheless, such a accomplishment is inconceivable to foretell, and whoever will get the primary right-handed splash hit will immediately grow to be a Giants legend, cementing themselves right into a second that no Giants fan will neglect.