The Giants protected Luis Matos, and it paid off in his MLB debut

street. Lewis — Before the Giants dropped $171 million on six free agents last winter, before they single-handedly met up with Carlos Correa or an on-call radiologist, and before they began the process of revitalizing their roster with electric nudges from an emerging player development system, key decision makers had to make A seemingly minor decision.

Whether to protect a 20-year-old who hit . 211 in A-ball.

The Giants decided to add Luis Matos to their 40-man roster in November, and now that simple decision seems monumental. Matos worked his way through the top two minor league levels in just two months, setting himself up as an obvious replacement when outfielder Mitch Hanegger fractured his arm on Tuesday, and made his major league debut on Wednesday as the starting quarterback and first baseman. 2 hits, and one whistle on the second pitch saw him in the Giants’ 8-5, 10-run victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

Matos, who turned 21 in December, became the youngest player to play for the first time since Madison Bumgarner in 2009. The right-handed batting quarterback is the second-youngest player in the major leagues behind Jordan Walker for the Cardinals. His debut was probably the most anticipated by a Giants player in a generation, or maybe two, depending on how old Chili Davis makes you feel.

Matos arrived after collecting 43 hits in 107 at bats for Triple-A Sacramento. He hit six homers in his last six games with the River Cats, including one in his first game on Tuesday before he was pulled from the lineup. His welcome text from manager Gabe Kapler on Tuesday night was a mix of Spanish, English and fire emojis. (“Like, a roaring fire,” Kapler explained.) Matos caught a late-evening flight to St. Louis, arrived at his locker at the Giants’ club Wednesday morning, and was flanked by Spanish interpreter Erwin Higueros as he met with reporters. He was asked: Are you ready for this?

He did not wait for the question to be translated. And he didn’t need her to answer.

“Yes,” he said in English, with almost shy confidence. “I am ready.”

But the decision to protect Matos in November was not without question or debate. Every one of those sites on the list is precious. Drafting a low-level prospect, even one with tremendous skill and ascent, is like putting a cookie jar on the top shelf. If that player is still out of reach for your help in the big leagues, he takes a 40-player room without offering a benefit. If the Giants’ 107-win 2021 team has taught us anything, it’s the utility value of the full roster.

Then there is the game theory according to which eligible players in any organization risk being exposed to the Rule 5 draft each December. Could another team really snag a young player like Matos when there was so little in his 2022 performance to hint at big-league readiness? Will this team really stick to the condition of keeping him on the active roster all season?

Giants didn’t think so. But they also didn’t want to experience weeks of indigestion that wouldn’t have anything to do with Thanksgiving overconsumption. Some risks are not worth taking.

“Overall pedigree and bullishness factored in, but there are two things that incline us to protect him and think someone can roll the dice at him,” Giants president Farhan Zaidi said via text message Wednesday.

“First, his defensive metrics last year were really good. And second, despite the overall base line, his call rate was still excellent. Both things made us feel like he could get to the big leagues and contribute faster than it looked on the surface last season.”

Here’s the other wrinkle: When you’re able to fill out your own farm system, you’re less dependent on every last bit of 40-man flexibility to pounce on waiver claims. Last year, the Giants took 15 players off waivers. This year, they have yet to claim their first. Sure, there was a little Matt Petty deal here, and Cal Stephenson there. Darren Roof returned to salute while the Giants had several right-handed hitters off duty. But for the most part, the Giants have patched roster holes — cosmetic scrapes and major abrasions — from players within their system.

Matos was the eighth Giant to debut in the league this season. Only the Cincinnati Reds have debuted in more players. Matos joins Casey Schmitt, Patrick Bailey, Blake Sabol, Ryan Walker, Keaton Winn, Tristan Beck, Ryan Walker and Brett Wisely, all of whom have contributed wins and whose performance points to the upside ahead. There is no quarterback or arranger on that list. Going into Wednesday, the eight junior teams are combined for a combined 2.7 pari. Wisely was the only one of them with a negative input (-0.1 bWAR), and he probably could have been on the positive side with slightly better batball luck.

And there’s still Kyle Harrison, arguably the best left-handed player in Triple A and who most club officials still expect to make the biggest rookie impact on a major league club this season. And there’s the Giants player who still tops most prospect lists, shortstop Marco Luciano, who is finally healthy at Double-A Richmond after a back injury.

The only thing more impressive than the amount of rookie contributions is these rookies’ path to the major leagues. Wednesday’s lineup included three players — Matos, Bailey, and Schmidt — who were at High-A Eugene for most or all of last season. Wayne, who was picked off one day after hitting a four-run save in his major league debut, started last season in Eugene. But no one burned more rocket fuel than Matos, who last season struggled with a quadriceps injury and his overly aggressive on the plate.

When Matos started to get everything together, there wasn’t much in the upper minors to block his rise. And by protecting him in November, the Giants let themselves imagine that was possible.

“We all knew that player development can happen very quickly, especially with players of great pedigree,” said Kapler. “When I first got to San Francisco, in the very, very early stages of my time here, I heard about a kid who had a nice swing who could drive baseballs all over the field and who could play defense and was a good-about athlete.

“As I mentioned, it happened very quickly for him. It’s going to be not a great year. So we weren’t sure what we’d have in 2023. But it’s really good for the organization that these guys have moved so quickly. It’s also a good reminder that player development is what It still happens. And it wouldn’t be without its bumps and turns. I think we see with Casey that there will be moments of struggle even for players who do well right away. I’m sure Patrick Bailey won’t be perfect all year.

“But it’s a really good reminder that we’re going to stay with our guys and give them more chances even when they’re struggling, because it’s worth it. The players who develop at the major league level and get better assists for teams win. I don’t think there’s anything that would be more impactful for us to win and maybe Going into the postseason from some of our young players doing the work they’re doing now.”

The Giants did not pitch Matos to provide a temporary spark. They have a surprising shortage of right-handed batters now as Haniger, last winter’s highest-priced free acquisition, is headed for season-threatening surgery on his broken forearm. Austin Slater is the only other batter on the roster, unless the Giants are going to stick Tero Estrada in left field. So Mattos is here to fill a constant need with her looks.

Matos was a hand-clap picture of glee on his way to first base after hitting a clean single into left field on Wednesday’s first. He lined up to second base on his next at-bat. Barrel barely missed the bat’s end trip to left field in the sixth. Then, as Kapler described it with a laugh, “He was introduced to Giants baseball. We hit you here for your first game.”

The Giants were trailing 5-3 in the seventh after Mike Yastrzemski’s RBI single. Kapler singled the game left against Jordan Hicks and fielded Pirates hitter Michael Conforto, who was grounded.

“I wasn’t surprised,” said Matos through Higueros. “I know that’s what the team does. The manager spoke to me and explained the logic and strategy behind it, and I understand: get someone else in there who has more experience that can help the team come back and win.”

Until their last strike, they did. Yastrzemski’s two-run home run tied the score and made famous Cardinals fans into bird-boos. Estrada then knocked home Yastrzemsky, who was the machine runner in tenth place. With the win, the Giants passed four games above . 500 for the first time this season and clinched their first-ever three-game sweep at Busch Stadium. You have to go back to the previous version of Busch Stadium (which was across the street from the current joint) and the 1998 season to find the Giants’ last three games in St. Louis.

In 1998, Matos was three years away from entering the world.

It’s fully arrived now. A group of uncles, aunts, and cousins ​​drove the all-night 12-hour drive from Denver to attend the game. They held handmade banners on a neon green poster: The current Mattos family And De Bobures for the MLB.

The Mattos family is here. From the Bobures to the big leagues.

His most important fans, the people he called first and who wiped their tears after learning of his promotion, are back in Popures, a small town on the southern shores of Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela. He’s saving a baseball from his first hit to give to his father, Jose Luis, and his mother, Yoelis. They were not there to witness their son’s debut. They may not get to see him play in person for quite some time.

There is no US consulate in Caracas, and with the mass exodus of Venezuelans due to years of political and economic instability, US immigration policy severely limits the number of tourist visas required to enter the country. Matos said his parents have an appointment next month to review their application at the US Consulate in Brazil. They must travel to Brasilia and attend the interview in person. Matos hopes his 15-year-old brother, Louis David, can accompany them.

As Matos said of his father in an interview last week in Sacramento, “He says he’s going to live on the field.”

An hour or so before the field start on Wednesday, when the Giants finished their early work, QC coach Nick Ortiz noticed that the Giants had three Venezuelan players — Matos, Wilmer Flores and Estrada — batting back-to-back. in the lineup. After being told of the problems Matos’ parents were having with their travel documents, Ortiz stared at the grassy expanse. He said he hopes the Giants can pull some strings now that Matos is a big player with elevated looks. It’s not just a big paycheck that can change lives.

“Getting into the big leagues is important to everyone, but it doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone,” Ortiz said. “He’s not the only one who makes it.”

(Photo: Jeff Curry/USA Today)