Giants' Mejia dazzles in Triple-A debut

Triple-A Sacramento manager Jose Alguacil understands it will not be a decision for him to make, but what he saw from Adalberto Mejia on Saturday made him believe that the 22-year-old southpaw will force the hands of the Giants front office again soon enough.

"He was amazing," the skipper said. "For a kid to come to Triple-A that young and face the best hitting team in the [Pacific Coast League], he was cruising. He was commanding all of his pitches, working ahead and did a great job."

The Giants' No. 10 prospect allowed four hits while striking out eight over seven scoreless innings in his debut for the River Cats. He did not walk a batter and helped himself with an RBI single in Sacramento's 6-1 win over El Paso at Raley Field.

"His changeup was working fine and he was locating well with his fastball," Alguacil said. "He followed the plan we set for him before the game and he looked like a veteran in Triple-A. He looked confident and like he belonged, not only here but a level above."

After allowing his second hit -- a leadoff single by Padres No. 13 prospect Jabari Blash -- in the second, Mejia retired the next 14 batters before third-ranked prospect Hunter Renfroe led off the seventh with a single.

"He was very poised," Alguacil said. "This is the best crowd we've had all year and he was very confident out there. His tempo was great, and I'm glad we were able to put some runs on the board for him and get him a win today to start his Triple-A career."

 Alguacil said he saw no pregame jitters from Mejia.

"I told him, 'It's the same thing as the other level. Just go over there, have fun and enjoy yourself out there,'" Alguacil said. "He was actually excited when he got to the ballpark. He said, 'I'm ready to go. I've been waiting for this opportunity.'"

Alguacil, who worked with Mejia last year in his managerial debut with Double-A Richmond, said the southpaw has come a long way since he last saw him.

"He's more mature," the manager said. "He's a young guy at this age in Triple-A. Double-A is a big jump for a lot of guys and he's held his own very well. He did well last year and he's a guy with a bright future. He's going to keep growing from these games and keep getting better."

Mejia was promoted after tossing seven scoreless innings for Richmond on June 11 to lower his ERA to 1.94, which ranked second in the Eastern League. Based on Mejia's Double-A performance, Alguacil said he wasn't surprised by Saturday's outing.

"This is my first time seeing him this year and he was impressive, very impressive," Alguacil said. "This is one outing, but I hope I can see this again. If he keeps doing what he did, I know somebody will think of him. He's a 40-man [roster] guy, he's a guy [the Giants] will pay attention to."

Alex Torres took over for Mejia in the eighth and allowed the lone El Paso run on a hit and a walk. Braulio Lara gave up two two-out hits in the ninth before Austin Fleet got Casey McElroy to fly to left.

Gorkys Hernandez and Grant Green paced the River Cats with three hits apiece, while Giants No. 20 prospect Austin Slater singled and doubled. Seventh-ranked prospect Mac Williamson hit a three-run homer in the first to give Mejia some early support.