Carson

Whisenhunt

Up as the extra man for the Giants in their double header, Whisenhunt pitched well enough to win. He didn’t miss many bats and dealt with plenty of traffic on the bases, but always found a way to wriggle out of the jam. His changeup was critical as oftentimes the only pitch he could consistently put where he wanted and it forced five of his seven swings-and-misses. Likely headed back to the minors directly after this one, Whisenhunt figures to be an option in this rotation at some point in the second half.

Whisenhunt draws the starting assignment for the second game of Wednesday’s twin bill at Truist Park in Atlanta. The 25-year-old lefty has been one of San Francisco’s more intriguing pitching prospects for the last couple years, but he’s struggled to gain any traction at the highest level. He’s capable of missing enough bats to be interesting as a fantasy streamer, but he’s not a recommended option in a challenging road tilt.

It will be the 25-year-old’s first MLB start this season. He has pitched to a 3.65 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and 77/30 K/BB ratio in 69 innings for Triple-A Sacramento this season. With both Trevor McDonald and Tyler Mahle struggling of late, a good start by Whisenhunt could put him in the mix for a rotation spot.

Whisenhunt lost out on a rotation spot when the team signed Tyler Mahle and Adrian Houser in the offseason. The 25-year-old also allowed ten runs on eight hits in 9 1/3 innings this spring while striking out 14 and walking eight. The strikeouts are obviously great, but he’s going to need to work on ironing out his command to start the season.

Whisenhunt’s velocity bump might not last; he was down to 94.2 mph with his average fastball tonight after coming in at 95.2 mph and 94.8 mph in his previous two years. Still, he was able to fan six Reds anyway. He remains likely to open up in the Triple-A rotation.

All five strikeouts came on his changeup. Whisenhunt’s velocity was very good once again; his 94.8 mph average on his fastball was up 2.2 mph from last year. He has a 14.29 ERA in three outings this spring and probably won’t earn a spot on the Giants, but that extra velocity still makes him more of a midseason sleeper than he was coming into the spring.

The results weren’t pretty, but Whisenhunt’s fastball velocity was up to 95.2 mph out of the bullpen in this one, which is up nearly three miles per-hour from last year as a starter. The 25-year-old pitching prospect’s stuff should play up in shorter bursts in relief, which makes him a name to watch over the remainder of the spring.

Roupp appears on track for a normal spring training after suffering a season-ending bone bruise in his left knee last August. The 27-year-old righty is vying for one of the final spots in San Francisco’s rotation this spring after posting a serviceable 3.80 ERA — 4.25 xERA — 1.48 and 102/45 K/BB ratio across 106 2/3 innings over 22 starts last year. He’ll need to beat out prospects Carson Whisenhunt, Blade Tidwell and swingman Hayden Birdsong to lock up a rotation spot. There’s some appeal in deeper mixed leagues and NL-only formats.

No word yet on how much time Whisenhunt will miss after his back tightened up on his this weekend, but he’s obviously no longer starting on Monday against the Rockies. The 24-year-old rookie allowed three runs over five innings on Wednesday in a win over the Cubs. There should be a more definitive update on his status at some point in the coming days.

It’s not the worst outcome for Whisenhunt to miss a potentially disastrous start at high-octane Coors Field, but the fact it’s for physical reasons is concerning. It sounds like there’s a chance he’s headed to the injured list. It’ll be Kai-Wei Teng taking the ball in his place if he’s not ready for Monday’s contest.