Giants prospects Beede, Arroyo impress in final hours in big league camp

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Before Sunday's game, the Giants reassigned Christian Arroyo and Tyler Beede to minor league camp. The organization's top two prospects made sure to make big impressions on the way out of Scottsdale Stadium.

Beede pitched two shutout innings, lowering his Cactus League ERA to 0.96. Arroyo went the opposite way in the ninth inning for his first homer of the spring.

The front office has not set a timetable on either player's arrival in San Francisco, but both are expected to push for summer or September promotions from Triple-A Sacramento. Manager Bruce Bochy added an interesting wrinkle to Beede's case Sunday, saying the staff has discussed using the right-hander out of the bullpen at some point.

"I'm not saying that's what he's going to do, but it keeps his options open and ours if we need help in the 'pen," Bochy said. "He's at 94-95 (mph) and he's a guy that holds runners well. He's a guy with good stuff."

Beede said earlier this month that he's intrigued by the possibility of helping the Giants down the stretch as a reliever, but for now his focus remains on getting stretched out. He entered camp as the seventh starter in the organization and did nothing but help his cause. Over five spring appearances, Beede allowed nine hits and one run in 9 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out five, and coaches raved about the presence he showed on the mound a year after he appeared to be nervous during spring outings. 

“I’m happy with it,” Beede said. “It went way better than I expected in terms of comfortability and how sharp I felt. For the most part, you want to make sure you leave a good impression so they know what they’ve got if there is the possibility of being called up.”

Beede felt he didn’t do that last spring, but he shook it off to post a 2.81 ERA for Double-A Richmond. That showed Bochy something. The last month showed him even more. 

“It’s been neat to watch his progression in the past year,” he said. “Last year, he did a good job in Richmond. The velocity picked up. He’s a four-pitch guy. I think he made enough noise that we’re confident that we can use him at any point.”

Shortly after Beede made his final case, Arroyo left a lasting mark. His homer to deep right raised his average in big league camp to .278. Over three springs at Scottsdale Stadium, Arroyo is now 19-for-44 with three homers. He took the news in stride, saying it’s time to get regular playing time. Arroyo will continue to play second, short and third for Sacramento, with the idea that he could be a midseason fill-in if injuries pop up. 

“I got an extra week this year, so that was fun, but it’s time for me to get some more consistent at-bats and go back over to the minor league side,” he said. “Hopefully I left the people here with a smile on their face.”

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