SAN FRANCISCO — There are 69 Giants players in the clubhouse at Scottsdale Stadium facing varying degrees of pressure.
Some are just trying not to get hurt, knowing that they’ll be standing on the line in San Diego on Opening Day. Some are hoping to avoid an assignment in Sacramento. Some veterans might secretly know that this is their last shot before they head home for good.
But for two young players who became Giants in December, the pressure is unique.
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As Rule 5 picks, Travis Bergen and Drew Ferguson must make the team to have a realistic shot at staying with an organization both have quickly come to enjoy. If they don’t, both could be headed back to teams that drafted them but never added them to the 40-man roster, despite promising track records. Bergen and Ferguson both are trying not to think about the possibility.
The Giants were thrilled to get both in the Rule 5 Draft on Dec. 13, and while he has added plenty of depth in recent weeks, Farhan Zaidi still views both young players as being right in the middle of camp competitions.
“There are still paths for both of these guys to make the team,” Zaidi said.
An opportunity is all Bergen and Ferguson wanted. Bergen, a lefty reliever, was a 2015 draft pick of the Blue Jays. Ferguson was taken that same year by the Astros. Those organizations are in very different places right now, but the Giants saw something in both prospects, enough to guarantee 40-man roster spots through the chunk of the offseason and spring training.
San Francisco Giants
That was a breakthrough for both players. They’re in camp, and they have a chance to try to win jobs. That’s more than what they had in previous stops.
“Any time you get taken in the Major League phase of the Rule 5 Draft, I can’t think of any scenario when it wouldn’t be a good thing,” Ferguson said. “I didn’t really expect it to be honest with you, because I kind of have flown under the radar in my career and my skillset isn’t really a flashy one, with high power or a ton of stolen bases or something like that. I kind of just expected to go unnoticed. I’m glad I didn’t.”
It’s easy to see why the Giants noticed Ferguson. They ranked 28th in the majors last season with a .300 team on-base percentage. Ferguson had a .397 OBP in four minor league seasons with the Astros, and he posted an attention-grabbing .436 OBP in Triple-A last season.
When the Giants drafted Ferguson, the 26-year-old right-handed-hitter looked like a potential platoon partner for Steven Duggar. Since then, Cameron Maybin has been added, and Gerardo Parra provides further outfield depth. But Zaidi is still eager to get a long look at Ferguson. He started the first two games of the spring, and while he didn’t reach base, he made a nice catch in center. Zaidi likes that Ferguson can play all three spots, and he still thinks he has a chance to be a partner for Duggar and Parra.
“Obviously we’ve added a couple of outfielders, but (he has) the ability to play center field, which is still a relatively thin position,” Zaidi said. “Ferguson is a guy that can run and defend, and those are valuable skills in a guy coming off the bench.”
While the Giants were drawn to Ferguson’s ability to reach base, Bergen stuck out for his ability to keep guys off base, particularly by piling up strikeouts. He has averaged 12 strikeouts-per-nine as a minor leaguer, with a 1.27 ERA. Those are the types of numbers that should have had the 25-year-old on track to break through in Toronto with highly-touted minor league teammates like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio, but the Blue Jays did not protect Bergen when they set their 40-man roster in November.
“I was told I had a couple of guys in front of me and that was about it,” Bergen said. “I was hopeful. I thought I put myself in as good a position as I could have, but it was just out of my control. I enjoyed my time with them, but this is the better opportunity, so I’m glad I’m here.”
When the Giants selected Bergen, he seemed to have the inside track on a spot. At the time, Will Smith and Tony Watson were popular names in trade talks, and the Giants had not yet signed reliever Pat Venditte, or Drew Pomeranz and Derek Holland, two starters who could push an Andrew Suarez or Chris Stratton into the bullpen.
But an opportunity still is there. Zaidi said he “certainly” will have three lefties in the bullpen on Opening Day. Early in camp, he stood behind the cage with Bruce Bochy to watch Bergen throw a live batting practice session. The two marveled at the way Bergen consistently used his deceptive delivery to throw a low 90s fastball past hitters.
“He really knows his game. He knows that his fastball up in the zone plays,” Zaidi said. “We obviously have two elite lefties (in Smith and Watson), but that third spot is still open for competition, so he still has a real path to being on that Opening Day roster.”
The anxiety wouldn’t end there, though.
The Giants paid $100,000 to draft each of the players, and if they don’t make the roster, they will have to offer Bergen back to the Blue Jays and Ferguson back to the Astros for $50,000 each. It’s possible, but unlikely, that they could work out a trade to keep the rights. Even if the original teams didn’t want the two, the Giants would have to put them through waivers.
Team officials believe that both players are talented enough that the Giants will not be able to hold onto them if they do not put them on the Opening Day roster. Even then, they would have to keep them the whole season in order to keep their rights.
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It’s a potentially awkward situation, but neither player is thinking about it much. Two months ago, Bergen was sitting in his car listening to the Rule 5 Draft with his fiancée. They were overjoyed that he was getting a fresh start and continue to feel that way. Ferguson pointed out that both have a chance to make the Opening Day roster, and that’s far, far better than the alternative.
“Honestly, I couldn’t have drawn it up much better,” he said. “I was fortunate enough to be with Houston, they do a good job, and I was able to get better with them, and then I got drafted by an organization who sees me potentially fitting into the roster. I couldn’t draw it up much better.”