Co-hosts of “Giants Talk,” Cole Kuiper and Alex Pavlovic, analyze the first MLB appearance of Matt Wilkinson with San Francisco and share what they anticipate from the left-handed pitcher.
Giants Talk: Analyzing the MLB debut of Matt Wilkinson and what lies ahead was first published on NBC Sports Bay Area
Video Dialogue
Let’s kick things off with perhaps the most exciting and entertaining story of the week, which is Tugboat Wilkinson’s debut.
That Giants prospect they acquired.
Tugboat has arrived, and I must say, his first game did not disappoint.
He certainly didn’t.
He was pretty much just what we anticipated.
He went two innings, allowing only one hit and forcing three pop-ups.
Kept them off the sweet spot of the bat.
I felt he did an excellent job painting the edges.
Of course, that’s crucial for him since his velocity sits between 89 and 91.
Topping out at 91 mph.
Still, I found it to be a very promising first appearance, and honestly, one of the genuine highlights of this season so far has been watching parents go absolutely wild during—that’s so true—the first hit, the opening inning, or the initial strikeout.
His folks were definitely matching that energy too.
The Wilkinson family was truly enjoying the moment.
I suppose the main question on everyone’s mind is why he was taken out after just two frames.
Clearly, that was pre-planned, as he was basically acting as an opener.
Exactly.
A quick two-inning opener, a brief start.
Here is my take on the situation.
I honestly believe if he didn’t have the moniker ‘Tugboat,’ nobody would have given a second thought to him being pulled after two.
You know, I think you’re absolutely spot on with that.
Well, he definitely has my interest.
I’m eager to see how his journey unfolds.
I’d love to watch him pitch more.
At the very least, he projects as a highly reliable left-handed bullpen option, especially since he fills the zone and racked up strikeouts in the minors.
He seemed incredibly poised working the inner half against hitters like Kwan and Ramirez.
He hasn’t typically been ranked as an elite prospect.
We aren’t talking about a high-profile name like Jackson Farr ascending the system.
So, it shouldn’t be seen as a negative that they allowed him to build some confidence, have a strong initial outing, and limit him to two innings.
I’m sure he was eager to keep going.
He certainly has the stamina for more.
But helping secure a victory and walking off with a positive experience after two frames is great, and we’ll see how they deploy him over the coming weekend.
Down the line, perhaps in the next month or so, they ought to let him build up his pitch count and see what he can do, because what he’s attempting is incredibly tough—especially since we grew up watching southpaws who relied on that style.
Right, pitchers who would say, “I’m throwing 89, but it’s going exactly where I want it.”
That style of pitching is practically extinct now.
Aside from unique exceptions like Tyler Rogers with his submarine delivery, almost no one survives at that velocity in today’s game.
So he definitely faces a challenging path.
I believe he is capable of succeeding since he’s already proven it throughout the minors.
Given the hurdle he has to clear, it makes total sense that they’d match him up against a run of left-handed batters to start things off.
I believe there were three consecutive lefties right at the top of the order.
And, you know, just find your rhythm.
The fan base went wild largely because of the hype around the ‘Tugboat’ persona, the viral memes, and all the social media buzz.
If we were discussing someone like Joe Whitman getting called up to throw two frames, it wouldn’t have caused any stir whatsoever.
Exactly, even if they had just referred to him as Matt Wilkinson.
If they just used his legal name.
People would just say, “Oh, neat.
Fine.
An opener.
We’ve actually been hoping for that setup.”
But you hit the nail on the head.
It really shows the influence of branding.
Marketing experts know how valuable a memorable name is, and it has worked absolute wonders for Tugboat Wilkinson.
