Jairo Pomares Is A Natural-Born Hitter
Through Aug. 15, corner outfielder Jairo Pomares had put together numbers with Low-A San Jose that ranked somewhere between ridiculous and sublime. He had hit .372 in 199 at-bats, with 14 homers and a 1.122 OPS.
During an Aug. 16 phone interview, Giants farm director Kyle Haines was asked how quickly the lefthanded hitter could progress through the organization’s system.
“You just never know with guys like this,” Haines said. “He’s probably going to run into levels that slow him down a little bit, but nothing that Pomares does with the bat would surprise me.”
Sure enough, Pomares got promoted to High-A Eugene on Aug. 17, and—no surprise—he went 3-for-4 with a double in his first game with the Emeralds.
“He just seems to barrel up everything really hard,” Haines said.
The Giants signed Pomares out of Cuba in 2018. He tore through Rookie ball in 2019 with a slash line of .368/.401/.542.
Between the pandemic and visa issues, Pomares was limited to the Giants’ instructional league in the Dominican Republic in 2020.
A back problem slowed him in spring training this year, and he didn’t make his debut with San Jose until June 15. Listed at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, Pomares quickly made an impression on San Jose manager Lenn Sakata.
“He’s a definite power guy and also finds ways to get hits,” Sakata said via email. “. . . He’s had a hit to every part of the baseball field.”
Among his offensive highlights with San Jose: back-to-back 4-for-4 games, with a double and homer in each; and an 8-for-12 stretch over his final three games in Low-A West.
Sakata termed Pomares’ play in the outfield as “tentative at the beginning” but improving.
“He’s only going to get better, and can certainly end up as an above-average outfielder—an extremely reliable one at the least.”
The 21-year-old Pomares is a “a quiet, steady kid,” Haines said. Sakata said Pomares is “serene. Nothing seems to bother him.”
Of course, Pomares’ bat speaks loudly and clearly.
“This guy’s just one of those natural-born hitters,” Haines said.
GIANTICS
— Because of a reported back problem, reliever R.J. Dabovich went on the seven-day injured list with Double-A Richmond in August. The righthander, the Giants’ fourth-round pick last year from Arizona State, had racked up a combined 53 strikeouts in 27.1 innings with High-A Eugene and Richmond this season.
— Through Aug. 17, San Jose righthander Prelander Berroa led Low-A West with a 2.89 ERA. The 21-year-old had struck out 107 hitters in 74.2 innings. He ranked fourth in Low-A West in strikeouts; the three pitchers ahead of him at the time—Carson Ragsdale (126) and Kyle Harrison and Ryan Murphy (116 apiece)—all were San Jose teammates. Murphy was promoted to Eugene on July 29.
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