The Giants are planning to start Kyle Harrison for his home debut on Monday against the Cincinnati Reds, multiple sources told KNBR.
Harrison, 22, will be on five days’ rest after his impressive MLB debut in which he threw 65 pitches in Philadelphia on Tuesday. San Francisco has TBAs listed as its starting pitchers for both this Saturday and Sunday against the Braves, but all signs point to Harrison skipping over the Atlanta series.
Giants manager Gabe Kapler, who rarely announces pitching plans before it’s necessary to, said “I’m pretty confident” SF will use its top prospect in the Cincinnati series when the skipper met with the media before Friday’s series opener.
Plans could always change. But the decision-making process the Giants are working through won’t.
The factors San Francisco is considering when it comes to Harrison’s next start, Kapler said, are twofold: Harrison’s health and the matchup.
“Number one: rest and recover, like always, is a big part of our decision-making,” Kapler said. “Although I think Kyle is going to be pretty rested and recovered soon here. Because he’s so physical and his body bounces back pretty quickly. And then number two: matchups. Strategy. You saw the Braves’ lineup today, I’m sure. It’s very, very right-handed. Some of the nastier right-handed hitters in the game. We have some right-handed pitchers on our roster and some guys who are pretty good at retiring right-handed hitters. Cincinnati’s got a few more left-handers in there, maybe some of their best hitters are left-handed. It’s a consideration. It’s not going to tell the whole story or make the decisions for us, but they’ll factor in.”
On the health front, it’s typically wise to treat young, electric arms like Harrison’s with care. Harrison hasn’t had significant injuries so far in his career, but is coming off a moderate hamstring strain that sidelined him for most of July. Giving Harrison an extra day between starts, particularly as he builds up, can’t hurt.
As for matchups, the Braves — who have statistically one of the best offenses in MLB history — feature righties like MVP-favorite Ronald Acuña Jr., Sean Murphy, Austin Riley and Marcell Ozuna.
In his debut, Harrison had tremendous success against Philadelphia’s righties, who went 0-for-9 against him. Conversely, lefties went 5-for-5 with Bryce Harper’s home run against Harrison.
That trend of reverse splits, though, is unlikely to continue. In the minors this year, Harrison has limited lefties to a .214 average and .646 OPS.
“If I had to bet based on the low slot and the carry to the fastball, I think he’s going to be a pretty neutral pitcher,” Kapler said. “But it could turn out otherwise.”
The Giants’ game against Atlanta that Harrison would be on schedule for is the series finale, which is the nationally televised Sunday Night Baseball game. Instead of those bright lights, Harrison is set to start the series against the Reds, who are fighting for the same wild card spots the Giants are.
Harrison struck out five in 3.1 innings against the Phillies, proving that his electric fastball plays at the Major League level. The Giants will continue to extend his pitch count out from the starting point of 65, though Kapler didn’t say exactly how much.
In a season partly defined by a wave of young talent reaching the big leagues, Harrison was the 11th Giants rookie to debut. His home debut on Monday is the most anticipated of them all.
