SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Spring training is the time of year when pitchers are well ahead of hitters. Even baseball’s best batters need a couple weeks to truly get going.
For Willy Adames and Heliot Ramos, that hasn’t quite been the case.
Adames set the tone on the first day of full-squad workouts by homering off right-hander Sean Hjelle during live bullpens, then hit two more off Logan Webb the next day. On Wednesday afternoon, Ramos stepped in the box in front of several dozen fans and took his turn to flex.
Matched up against Justin Verlander, Ramos sent a four-seam fastball well over the left-field fence that ricocheted off the light pole and bounced off the scoreboard. Immediately knowing the ball was gone, Verlander yelled out a four-letter expletive that begins with the letter “F.”
When Ramos was asked if he took any satisfaction from homering off a future Hall of Famer, Ramos replied, “Who wouldn’t?”
“He’s a great pitcher. He’s still got it,” Ramos said. “He still got it late in his career. He’s a Hall of Famer, at the end of the day. He knows what he’s doing out there.”
The Giants are still searching for their first player to hit at least 30 home runs in a single season since Barry Bonds did so in 2004, and Adames and Ramos are among the candidates to break the streak. Adames hit a career-high 32 home runs for the Milwaukee Brewers last season while Ramos, the team’s first homegrown All-Star since Chili Davis, hit 22 home runs despite not making his season debut until May.
Despite allowing the loudest — and longest — home run in camp, Verlander impressed during his live bullpen session, inducing whiffs with both his fastball and breaking balls. Verlander wasn’t afraid to direct a bit of traffic either.
During his matchup against Adames, Verlander threw a breaking ball down-and-away that Adames laid off. Verlander then asked Adames, “You saw that right away?” While most batters only get four pitches before having to leave the box, regardless of outcome, Verlander told Adames to stay in the batter’s box for a sixth pitch because the count ran full.
“I love the way he goes about his business,” Ramos said.
Among the non-roster invitees, right-handed reliever Joel Peguero has been an early standout in camp. Peguero, 27, touched 101 mph in his first bullpen session of spring, according to Melvin, and Peguero’s first live bullpen had heads turning and eyes popping.
Peguero was tasked with facing several members of the Giants’ starting lineup, a list that included LaMonte Wade Jr., Patrick Bailey and, yes, Adames. But if Adames had any ambitions of homering for a third straight day, Peguero immediately shut them down.
In their first meeting, Peguero blew a high fastball past Adames; in their second encounter, Peguero got Adames to whiff through another heater and flail at a slider low-and-away.
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“He was throwing gas,” Adames said with a smile. “He looked really good. Sinker looked great. The four-seamer at the top of the zone was heavy.”
Peguero signed a minor-league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2015 but has only reached as far as Triple-A, spending time in the minor-league systems of the Rays, Rockies, Nationals and Tigers. Despite having triple-digit heat, the right-hander has never boasted high strikeout totals (8.0 K/9). His high walk totals (3.8 BB/9) haven’t helped his case.
The right-hander likely won’t crack the Opening Day roster, especially given the team would have to designate someone for assignment to clear a roster spot. Despite his long odds, Peguero has done his part to leave a lasting impression on the team — especially San Francisco’s $182 million dollar man.
“He was throwing so hard. It’s just gas,” Adames said. “Especially this early in camp, it seems like more than what it is, but it’s like 102 (mph). It’s not like he’s throwing 95 and it looks like 102 — he’s throwing 102.”
