As a non-roster invitee to last year’s Spring Training, Tyler Beede gave the Giants a taste of his true potential. The Giants’ No. 2 prospect went 2-0 with a 2.03 ERA in two starts and 13.1 innings pitched. Beede held the A’s to two runs and five hits over four innings with five strikeouts at Oakland Coliseum in his final start last spring, and he headed to Triple-A Sacramento confident that his Major League debut was right around the corner.
However, what followed was a tough season for Beede, who was 6-7 with a 4.79 ERA with the River Cats and ultimately ended the year with a strained groin.
“It was an up-and-down year,” Beede told MLB Pipeline. “Started great from Spring Training, kind of setting the tone. [I got] some experience pitching in Oakland in the Bay series, getting my feet wet there. Going into Sacramento and hearing a lot about what the PCL was about, I sort of learned it just by getting in and experiencing the ups and downs of playing in elevation and how my stuff kind of compared pitching in the PCL.”
With a recent opportunity to reflect on 2017, Beede confessed that his struggles came in part from his lack of focus on his present situation.
“I think the whole year I was anticipating the phone call,” Beede said. “Maybe if I had a good start, sitting there by the phone waiting for the phone call and that sort of got into my head. I think I needed a new perspective on why I was playing, my routine, my mindset. I think the injury put me in that new state of mind where I don’t take for granted where I’m at. You’re a phone call away, and it’s frustrating that you got hurt on the verge of being called up, but it’s an opportunity to get better, to take each start as it is and improve.”
Beede added a hopeful note that “being able to pitch in the Fall League after coming off the injury, getting healthy and building my confidence back by tweaking some things mechanically and my routine helped build that confidence. So, heading in 2018 I feel really good and confident with what I’m doing.”
