It appears baseball might actually be nearing its return. Whenever, wherever and however MLB starts the 2020 season, the Giants will have an intriguing arm out of the bullpen that might be a surprise name to some fans.
The Giants had their eyes on Dany Jimenez before the Rule 5 draft and couldn't have been more excited when he fell in their laps last December.
"Our scouts really, really liked him this winter, and a lot of that had to do with the fact that he has a high-velocity fastball," Giants manager Gabe Kapler said Tuesday on KNBR's "Tolbert, Krueger & Brooks" show. "He's got a loose and whippy athletic body, and we all thought that if he could drop the curveball in for strikes and he maintained that velocity, he might be a really good option out of the 'pen for us."
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Jimenez, 26, sits in the mid-90s with his fastball, which clearly stood out to Kapler and the Giants' scouts. The Toronto Blue Jays signed the right-handed pitcher out of the Dominican Republic in 2015, and he made it as high as Double-A last season.
He went 2-2 with a 1.87 ERA over 22 appearances out of the bullpen in Double-A last year. Jimenez also struck out 46 batters in 33 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .183 batting average. Over his minor league career, Jimenez has a 19-10 record with a 3.43 ERA.
[RELATED: Kapler a big believer in potential of Giants slugger Davis]
In his first spring training with the Giants, Jimenez went 1-0 and had a 2.57 ERA over six relief appearances.
San Francisco Giants
"He impressed at times during spring training," Kapler said. "He had a little trouble dropping that breaking ball in for strikes, and at times his velocities were not what we expected them to be. Assuming we end up back in a modified camp, a lot of our time will be spent evaluating if that velocity is where it needs to be and can he drop that curveball in for a strike at will.
"If he's able to do those two things, he's an exciting guy for us going into whatever our 2020 season looks like."
There's good reason to assume rosters will be expanded once baseball comes back. When Kapler decides who will be a Giant this year, Jimenez should have his name on the roster for this season and possibly more to come.
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