SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — In Bob Melvin’s mind, there’s one spot up for grabs in the San Francisco Giants’ starting rotation.
“I have four in my head right now,” Melvin said Tuesday morning.
Behind their ace, Logan Webb, and the only arm they signed in free agency, Jordan Hicks, is a pair of rookies. While Melvin would prefer the young arms prove themselves in camp, Kyle Harrison and Keaton Winn can safely be penciled in to the starting five.
“I have an idea,” Melvin said of the fifth man. “I’d prefer not to say that right now. We’re early in camp and I want guys to think there is quite a bit of competition for it.”
There is one slot to be fought over — or filled by one of the free-agent pitchers who remain available, a group that includes Blake Snell, whom Melvin managed in San Diego on his way to winning the National League Cy Young last season.
But, for now, let’s focus on the pitchers in camp.
Every spring, the arrangement of lockers offers a hint at the pecking order of certain position groups.
When Webb took over Brandon Crawford’s old locker, next to the DJ controls, he brought the rest of the rotation with him. To his left are Harrison and Winn. The other corner locker in the cluster belongs to Hicks, the second-most veteran of the group, behind Alex Cobb, who has two stalls facing the others.
The other two lockers belong to Tristan Beck and Sean Hjelle.
Melvin showed his hand somewhat, saying “there’s a pretty good chance” Beck is the fifth starter.
Hjelle has been told that he will work out of the bullpen this year. The other young arms in camp closest to the majors — Kei-Wei Teng and Mason Black — have an uphill battle, given their lack of major-league experience compared to Beck, who posted a 3.92 ERA last season while performing every duty from starter to mop-up man to closer.
“He did everything. He pitched well. He developed. He was asked to do certain things and embraced all of it,” Melvin said. “I’m not sitting here saying he’s in the rotation … (but) he’s a real competitor. He knows what works for him. Maybe doesn’t throw as hard as some of the other guys do, but it’s not always about striking guys out.”
Beck, 27, ended last season in the rotation alongside Harrison and Winn and said his objective entering this year would be to start.
Although he missed time with elbow tightness Winn, 26, turned in arguably the most impressive starts from any of the three last season. He was the only one to complete six innings more than once, the second time striking out nine without issuing a walk while coming on the heels of another start of five shutout innings.
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“You hear a lot about pitchers here, and Harrison and Winn are the two guys you hear about the most as far as starters,” Melvin said. “(Winn) has got a really good fastball and a really good split. It’s what he does with his breaking pitches that are going to kind of make him who he is. … But he’s built a foundation of two pitches that he can lean on, and that’s important.”
What has been the talk of camp so far hasn’t so much been the competition for the major-league rotation — realistically, the group looks pretty well set barring injuries or another addition — but the contingent of homegrown arms experiencing their first big-league spring training.
While those such as Carson Whisenhunt, Hayden Birdsong and Reggie Crawford are further from the majors, they possess some of the most upside of any of the pitchers in camp. Landen Roupp, 26, Carson Seymour, 25, and Trevor McDonald, 22, have also drawn rave reviews.
“It’s exciting to see a lot of the Giants’ young pitchers here, too,” Melvin said. “And not just here to be here, too. To actually get to pitch and potentially vie for a rotation spot.”
