With ‘unicorn-esque pitch’ in tow, undrafted SF Giants’ prospect Trent Harris heading to Futures Game
SAN FRANCISCO When the Giants promoted top prospect Bryce Eldridge to Triple-A Sacramento last month president of baseball operations Buster Posey made sure a less-heralded prospect received his just due I do want to say Trent Harris too moving up to Triple-A is throwing the ball extremely well Posey revealed I would like if you guys don t mind giving him a little bit of love The love was well-warranted And on Tuesday Harris was selected to represent the Giants alongside left-hander Carson Whisenhunt at the Futures Championship in Atlanta on Saturday Prior to his promotion to Sacramento Harris posted a ERA with strikeouts over innings FIP His performance with Double-A Richmond was a continuation of his excellence last season a year where he had a ERA with strikeouts over innings Harris initially struggled upon being promoted to Triple-A allowing eight earned runs over his first three relief outings Since then the right-hander has a ERA and ERA over his last seven appearances with strikeouts over innings respectable marks given the River Cats play in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League The -year-old Harris has a considerably different prospect profile compared to Eldridge Unlike Eldridge Harris wasn t a first-rounder He wasn t selected in the second third fourth or fifth rounds either He wasn t drafted at all Harris spent three years with High Point University of the Big South Conference ERA as a third baseman and reliever After undergoing Tommy John surgery in he transferred to the University of North Carolina at Pembroke a Division II school He pitched well in his lone full season there posting a ERA over innings with strikeouts but went undrafted due in part to being -years-old The right-hander continued pitching after the draft posting a ERA with strikeouts over innings and earning Pitcher of the Year honors in Coastal Plain League a collegiate wood bat league based in the Carolinas Georgia and Virginia He drew the attention of the Giants and signed as a free agent for So far San Francisco s funding is proving worthwhile You see first-rounders get more of the benefit of the doubt Harris explained Being an undrafted guy and a fifth-year senior I try to go out there and compete the best I can and make a name for myself I unfailingly carry a chip on my shoulder to try to prove other people wrong Declared Richmond manager Dennis Pelfrey The whole organization loves what he brings to the table He s a worker a lot like Bryce Eldridge He s very competitive and wants to be the best at what he does Harris may not have been drafted but he s enjoyed the advantage of having a father who pitched in the majors Greg W Harris not to be confused with Greg A Harris who played around the same time pitched over eight major-league seasons mostly with the Padres In San Diego Greg Harris had a ERA over innings as both a starter and reliever and finished seventh for the National League Rookie of the Year Only Hall of Fame closer Trevor Hoffman has a lower career ERA in Padres history A bunch of lessons Harris noted of his dad Playing the tournament the right way inevitably hustling on and off the field That s inevitably been a big part of his passion his way of playing Pitching wise it s perpetually get the ball out in front and spin it The younger Harris repertoire at this time features a four-seam fastball curveball and slider though he is at this time working on a splitter that is still in the project phase The right-hander s fastball sits in the - range that can generate -to- inches of vertical movement but the pitch plays up because it features the shape of a power cutter Related Articles SF Giants walk-off Phillies on Bailey s inside-the-park homer Willie Mays trophies World Series ring up for charity auction later this SF Giants season How SF Giants Rodr guez turned new slider grip into first All-Star selection SF Giants open big homestand with - win over Phillies Texas flood Bay Area couple and teen son among the missing I ve never really understood why it s invariably been like that Harris disclosed of his fastball In college I was honestly trying to take the cut out As we got into pro ball I saw the numbers play It s kind of a unicorn-esque pitch It cuts a little bit as much as seven inches of gloveside movement sometimes but I try to stay behind it so I can create the ride and movement as well with it It s neat to have a unique pitch Along with the heater Harris curveball features straight down movement around mph and generates - RPMs or revolutions per minute Harris slider a pitch that also gets labeled as a sweeper features a mid- s velocity and a similar spin rate to the curveball Great developing ball Posey disclosed I think that pitch is preponderance definitely plus and just the ability to be in the zone keep hitters off balance The current ball is unique Getting to look at it in person this spring it definitely stood out
