Ryder Jones started off slow at the plate in the Arizona Fall League. But lately, all the Giants prospect can do is find hits.
Little by little, Jones continues to see his numbers rise. This past week, he continued to be locked in at the plate, going 6-for-14 (.429) with one home run and five RBI in four games played. Ironically, Jones hit exactly .429 the week before in one less game.
This fall in the AFL, Jones is hitting .321/.397/.464 with two home runs and 11 RBI in 16 games played.
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Insider Alex Pavlovic watched the Scottsdale Scorpions play on Nov. 7 with Jones and two other Giants prospects -- Hunter Cole and Aramis Garcia -- in action. Jones recorded three hits in the game with Garcia adding two and Cole another one.
While Jones continues to impress at the plate, his defensive versatility has also caught eyes as well. Here's what Pavlovic saw from Jones:
Jones has mostly played third in his career, but he looked like a natural at first, with several slick scoops and a diving stop. It should be noted, given what the big league roster looks like, that he’s playing some left field this fall.
Giants general manager Bobby Evans also spoke highly about Jones' production in the AFL on the Giants Insider Podcast. "Ryder Jones has done a good job attacking the baseball," Evans said. "He's had quality at-bats. ...He's played first and third, we've even stuck him in left, started getting some versatility into his game, because we don't want anything to hold him back when his bat's ready and the opportunity permits itself.
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"That said, he's probably a guy that could just as well start the year off at Double-A next year, but we'll look at him and even evaluate him for Triple-A and see how that plays out."
With so many teams looking at splits and managers trying to build lefty-righty matchups vs pitchers and vice versa, the left-handed hitting Jones has given no reason to sit against lefties going forward as he progresses through the Giants' system. In 16 games played during the AFL, Jones has nearly identical numbers against lefties and righties.
Jones' splits against left-handed pitchers reads as: .318/.375/.455 with one home run, two walks and nine strikeouts in 22 at-bats. Hitting against right-handed pitchers, Jones is just slightly better with a slash line of .324/.410/.471 with one home run, four walks and six strikeouts in 34 at-bats.
The AFL regular season ends on Nov. 17 with a championship game on Nov. 19.
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-- Pitchers Chris Stratton and Tyler Rogers played in the Fall Stars Game. Stratton started and allowed four earned runs while Rogers faced two batters and recorded two outs.
-- With Jones' hot recent weeks, he is now fourth on the team in batting average, fifth in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging percentage, second in home runs, second in RBI, and second in hits.
-- Giants catching prospect Aramis Garcia is only hitting .195 with with 16 strikeouts in 13 games, but he also leads the team in RBI with 12.
-- Tim Tebow, playing with Giants prospects on the Scorpions, is now only hitting .157 with 15 strikeouts in 15 games played.