San Francisco Adds Three Pitchers To 40-Man Roster
Earlier last week, San Francisco added top prospects Ehire Adrianza and Thomas Neal to their 40-man roster. Both players would have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft in December and could have been selected by other organizations had they not been protected on the 40-man. With last Saturday's deadline for finalizing the 40-man roster approaching, the Giants continued to make moves with the inclusion of three former San Jose pitchers.
Casilla had a banner 2010 regular season with the Low-A Augusta GreenJackets serving as their primary closer. Over 46 relief appearances, Casilla notched a spectacular 1.16 ERA to go with a 4-1 record and 14 saves. Casilla limited the opposition to a .214 batting average and did not allow an earned run in 21 straight outings from May 16 through August 3. The younger brother of current San Francisco reliever Santiago Casillia, Jose was promoted to San Jose at the start of the playoffs when he immediately became a key member of the Giants bullpen. Often pitching in critical late-inning situations, Casilla appeared in four postseason games with San Jose working a total of 4 2/3 innings with two earned runs allowed and five strikeouts.
The 21-year old Casilla owns a career record of 15-6 with a 2.33 ERA and 26 saves over 97 relief appearances. Given his lack of experience above the low Class-A level, Casilla is a candidate to return to San Jose to begin the 2011 season.
Edlefsen enjoyed a solid 2010 campaign while working out of the Fresno bullpen en route to earning Pacific Coast League All-Star honors. The 25-year old right-hander compiled a 7-2 record with a 2.38 ERA and six saves in 49 games. Edlefsen held the opposition to a .239 batting average and featured a 3.19-to-1 groundout-to-flyout ratio - the highest on the Grizzlies pitching staff. With his hard sinking fastball, Edlefsen figures to have the tools needed to succeed in a big league bullpen, perhaps as soon as the 2011 season.
Edlefsen pitched in San Jose during both the 2008 and 2009 seasons combining for a 9-6 record with a 2.74 ERA and seven saves.
Tanner spent two full seasons in the California League during the '08 and '09 campaigns as a member of San Jose's starting rotation. The Bay Area native finished 10-8 with a 3.69 ERA in 24 starts two years ago before improving to a 12-6 record with a 3.17 ERA over 26 appearances (23 starts) in 2009. His career 22 wins are tied for the most of any pitcher in San Jose Giants history.
Last season, Tanner pitched for the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels amassing a 9-9 record with a 3.68 ERA in 27 starts. The 22-year old left-hander may earn a promotion to Fresno for the 2011 season.
With Friday's transactions, San Francisco now has 37 players on their 40-man roster. 23 of the 37 players are former San Jose Giants. The remaining spots are likely being saved to re-sign or acquire big league free agents.
Pill remains in the organization albeit not currently on the 40-man roster. The 2008 San Jose Giant first baseman spent all of last season in Fresno where he hit .275 with 16 home runs and 84 RBI's. A strong defensive player, Pill could still have a future in the organization, but has clearly been passed by Brandon Belt on the first-base depth chart.
Joaquin spent the majority of the 2010 season in Fresno compiling a 4.93 ERA and a 1-2 record in 23 games (five starts). He also appeared in four games out of the San Francisco bullpen, but struggled to a 9.64 ERA (5 ER/4.2 IP). Joaquin underwent surgery on his lower back earlier this month.
The Rule 5 draft is scheduled for December 9 at Baseball's Winter Meetings in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
Three players from San Jose's 2010 championship team are now on San Francisco's 40-man roster in Adrianza, Casilla and Francisco Peguero.
Notable Rule 5 eligible players left unprotected by the San Francisco Giants include catchers Johnny Monell and Jackson Williams, infielder Brock Bond and pitchers Joe Paterson, David Mixon and David Quinowski. Top minor league prospects such as Belt, Zack Wheeler, Brandon Crawford and Charlie Culberson are not yet Rule 5 draft eligible and thus don't have to be protected on the 40-man roster this offseason.