The Eugene Emeralds are back, but not quite how you’ve seen them before.
After the 2020 Minor League Baseball season was cancelled, the minors underwent a drastic realignment in order to return in 2021. Forty minor league teams were cut, and the rest were repositioned.
The Emeralds, who had been the short-season Class-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs since the 2015 season, were cut from the Cubs’ affiliation. However, they were invited to be the High-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants and placed in a new division called the High-A West. They accepted the offer, so for the first time since 2014, the Emeralds are a full-season affiliate.
The full realignment can be viewed here.
The Emeralds will take the field on May 4 for the first time since August 31, 2019. They announced their roster on Saturday, and it is chock full of intriguing prospects.
The roster includes three former first-round picks: outfielder Hunter Bishop, catcher Patrick Bailey (who will be making his professional debut) and infielder Will Wilson. The three first-rounders are ranked as the No. 4, No. 6 and No. 12 prospects in the Giants’ farm system, respectively, according to MLB.com.
On the pitching side, left-hander Seth Corry will look to anchor the Emeralds’ rotation. Corry is the No. 5 prospect in the Giants’ system, and posted a 1.76 ERA in Class-A Augusta as a 20-year-old in 2019. Right-hander Kai-Wei Teng, the Giants’ No. 18 prospect, will join him in the rotation.
In total, Eugene’s roster features seven players drafted in the top five rounds of the MLB Draft, and six of the Giants’ top 20 prospects.
The Emeralds also welcome a new manager, Dennis Pelfrey. Pelfrey joined the Giants organization in 2020 when he was hired to manage their High-A affiliate in San Jose before the season was canceled.
He spent the prior five years with the Florence Freedom of the Independent Frontier League, leading the team to two trips to the League Championship Series. He played six seasons in independent ball himself as well, from 1999 to 2004.
The coaching staff also includes pitching coach Alain Quijano, hitting coach Jake Fox and fundamentals coach Lipso Nava. They will be joined by athletic trainer Tim Vigue and strength and conditioning coach Matt Jordan.
The Emeralds went 33-43 in 2019 as a Cubs affiliate. But, of course, that was with an entirely different set of players. The Giants’ previous High-A affiliate, the San Jose Giants, went 66-73 in 2019.
The team will open its season on May 4 on the road against the Spokane Indians. The home opener is scheduled for May 13 against the Hillsboro Hops. The season consists of six-game series with off-days on Mondays.
With a batch of talented prospects and a new affiliation, there should be plenty of reasons for Giants fans and Emeralds fans alike to be excited about this year’s squad. Most importantly: Minor League Baseball is back.
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May 02, 2021 at 01:07AM
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