Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
The Giants hope this signing is much larger than it sounds.
San Francisco is bringing righty Zack Littell into major league camp on a minor league deal, as the Chronicle first reported and Larry Krueger confirmed, adding potential swing-man depth for a season in which eating innings will be crucial.
Littell, a former well-regarded rotation prospect for the Mariners and Yankees, pitched three seasons for the Twins mostly in relief. His 2019 campaign was solid, posting a 2.68 ERA in 37 innings in which he struck out 32 with a 1.162 WHIP. In the abbreviated 2020 season, Littell struggled in allowing seven runs in 6 1/3 innings — including five homers. The Giants will hope their pitching minds can right him again, especially after a season in which pitching was particularly volatile.
The 25-year-old follows a trend of the Giants importing pitchers with arsenals that don’t rely heavily on fastballs. Littell’s best pitch is his slider, as is the case with Matt Wisler, another former Twins reliever San Francisco signed. They also poached J.P. Martinez from the Twins’ system to become assistant pitching coach, so a pipeline is intact.
Pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to Scottsdale for spring training on Feb. 15, which will begin a full, 162-game season after a 60-game campaign. The more pitchers, the better.