The SF Giants officially recalled outfielder Heliot Ramos ( Giants #17 prospect) from Triple-A Sacramento prior to their game on Sunday against the Kansas City Royals, optioning first baseman/left fielder Matt Beaty to Triple-A. Giants Baseball Insider reported that Ramos was traveling to join the team on Saturday night. Beaty appeared in two games with the Giants, recording one hit in two plate appearances.
The Giants 2017 first-round pick, Ramos was once a consensus top-100 prospect in baseball. Drafted out of high school in Puerto Rico, Ramos turned heads as a teenager in 2019, hitting .306/.385/.500 with the organization's High-A affiliate. While his production dipped after more challenging appearances in Double-A and the Arizona Fall League, many expected Ramos to adjust in time.
Perhaps hampered by the canceled 2020 minor-league season, Ramos has never been able to replicate his High-A production in the upper minors. He posted a passable .237/.323/.432 line at Double-A in 2021, and was promoted to Triple-A before the end of the season. Over the past three years, Ramos has hit just .246/.313/.366at the highest level of the minors, .
Ramos has above-average power potential, but has a swing that has prevented him from maximizing his pop. The 23-year-old outfielder consistently generates some of the best exit velocities in the organization, but the vast majority of his balls in play are on the ground.
Ramos has made several adjustments over the past couple of seasons and notably improved both his strikeout and walk rates at Triple-A in 2022, but he has yet to show the ability to consistently get the ball in the air. This spring, Ramos hit .191/.217/.238 with one double, one walk, and five strikeouts in 21 plate appearances. However, he has hit better in his short time at Triple-A, recording a .333/.355/.370 line in 31 trips to the plate.
Beaty, who was acquired in a minor trade on Opening Day, is a left-handed hitter and has an option remaining. The SF Giants likely slated to face left-handed starting pitchers Kris Bubic, Clayton Kershaw, and Julio Urías in three of their next four games. However, the team's best right-handed hitting outfielders (Mitch Haniger and Austin Slater) are both on the injured list. So, in their place, Heliot Ramos will get the call to give manager Gabe Kapler a right-handed bat to deploy.
More must-reads: