Giants, Nuts Meet In North Division Series
GIANTS, NUTS MEET IN DIVISION SERIES: The San Jose Giants play the Modesto Nuts (Mariners affiliate) this week in the best-of-three North Division Series. Modesto hosts Game 1 on Tuesday night at John Thurman Field before the series shifts to Excite Ballpark in San Jose for Games 2 and 3 on Thursday and Friday. The winner advances to the best-of-three California League Championship Series beginning on Sunday.
BROADCAST INFORMATION: All San Jose Giants postseason games will be broadcast live on sjgiants.com with Joe Ritzo and Justin Allegri calling the action. Radio broadcasts begin 30 minutes prior to first pitch with the Giants Pregame Show. Additionally, a live video feed of all home playoff games through MiLB.TV will be available.
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HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Giants went 14–16 against Modesto during the regular season. The road team won 20 out of the 30 meetings between the teams this year. San Jose went 8–4 in Modesto taking four of six games in both of their series’ at John Thurman Field in April and May. The Giants though went just 6–12 versus the Nuts at Excite Ballpark, including a 2–10 mark in the second half. Modesto swept a six-game series against San Jose in their most recent regular season meeting from August 22–27 (in San Jose). The Nuts scored 55 runs during the six-game set. The matchup this week features the two highest-scoring teams in the California League this season (Modesto 6.0 runs/game, San Jose 5.8 runs/game). This playoff series marks the first postseason matchup between San Jose and Modesto since 2012 (Nuts def. Giants in North Mini-Series).
PLAYOFF HISTORY: The Giants are in the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season (2019, 2021–23) and are attempting to win their second California League title in the last three years. San Jose swept Fresno in the 2021 Championship Series to claim their first league title since 2010. The Giants were then swept by the Grizzlies in the Division Series last season. San Jose has reached the playoffs 16 times in the last 19 seasons overall.
REGULAR SEASON REVIEW: The Giants finished the regular season with a 68–64 overall record and qualified for the playoffs after winning the first half North Division title. San Jose went 40–26 in the first half and won the North Division by four games over second-place Fresno and six games over third-place Modesto. The Giants were in first place for the final 48 days of the half (May 6-June 22). San Jose’s first half title this season was their first since 2013. The Giants then went 28–38 in the second half and finished 15 games behind the first-place Nuts in the division. San Jose’s last series win came from August 8–13 when they took four of six games against the visiting Fresno Grizzlies. The Giants ended the regular season with a 5–13 record in their last 18 games dating back to August 22.
IT’S HAPPENED BEFORE: Both the 2007 and 2010 San Jose Giants championships teams won the league title after finishing under .500 in the second half — a feat the current Giants club will also be looking to accomplish. In both 2007 and 2010, San Jose won the first half title in the North Division, but were under .500 in the second half before rallying to the league championship. In 2010, the Giants defeated Modesto in the North Division Series.
LEAGUE LEADERS: The Giants led the California League in several notable statistical categories this season. San Jose finished first in the league in batting average (.266) and stolen bases. The Giants’ 222 steals this year ranked as the second-most in club history (record: 233 SB in 1989). San Jose’s pitching staff also boasted a league-best 4.20 team ERA. It marked the third consecutive season that the Giants led the California League in ERA.
BATTING CHAMP: Giants infielder Diego Velasquez had an outstanding regular season capped off by winning the California League batting title last weekend. Velasquez finished the season with a .298 batting average — tops among all qualifying hitters in the league. He was also first in the league in hits (127) and doubles (32) while ranking fourth in RBI’s (69), seventh in on-base percentage (.387), seventh in OPS (.821) and ninth in stolen bases (23). Velasquez was named San Jose’s team MVP last week.
FRESH FACES: The Giants saw significant change to their roster late in the year with 13 players from the 2023 San Francisco Giants draft joining the club over July, August and September. Among the newcomers were first round pick Bryce Eldridge, a two-way player who has only seen action as a hitter this season. Eldridge batted .293 with one home run and a .406 OBP in 15 games for San Jose during the regular season. Second round selection Joe Whitman made three appearances (two starts) for the Giants late in the year (5 2/3 IP, 2 ER, 9 SO). Third rounder Cole Foster (.230 AVG, 4 HR, 15 RBI in 25 games) and fifth round pick Quinn McDaniel (.267 AVG, 3 HR, 8 RBI in 13 games) have taken on key roles for the club while sixth round selection Luke Shliger (.298 AVG/.403 OBP in 16 games) tied a San Jose single-game record with five hits last Friday against Stockton.
MERCEDES GETS GAME 1 NOD: Manuel Mercedes is the Giants’ scheduled starting pitcher for Game 1 of the Division Series on Tuesday night. Mercedes spent the entire season in San Jose and was named the club’s co-Pitcher of the Year along with Dylan Cumming. Over a team-high 106 1/3 innings pitched this season, Mercedes fashioned a 3.64 ERA and allowed only two home runs. The right-hander surrendered two earned runs or fewer in 14 out of his 21 starts. The 20-year old showed significant improvement in his second season with the Giants averaging 3.6 walks/9 innings this year after averaging 7.0 walks/9 innings in the California League in 2022 (5.13 ERA). Mercedes posted a 2.84 ERA in six appearances (four starts) against Modesto this season (8 ER allowed in 25 1/3 IP). The Giants have yet to announce probable starting pitchers for Games 2 and 3 of the Division Series.
ODDS AND ENDS: The Giants went 44–22 (.667) during the regular season when scoring first in a game compared to 24–42 (.364) when their opponent scores first … San Jose knocked out a season-high 22 hits in their final win of the regular season on September 8 vs. Stockton (14–1 victory) … The Giants went 14–4 in one-run games during the first half on their way to a division title, but only 6–13 in one-run contests during the second half (20–17 overall) … 72 players saw action with the San Jose Giants during the 2023 regular season (10 of which were players on rehab assignments).
NUTS NOTES: Modesto finished the regular season with a 77–55 overall record and won the second half North Division by one game over Fresno. The Nuts won 17 of their final 19 games of the regular season, including a remarkable 16-game winning streak from August 20-September 7 that vaulted the club into first place. Michael Morales (5–4, 4.53 ERA) is Modesto’s Game 1 scheduled starting pitcher. The Nuts last won a California League title in 2017 — their first year as an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners.
