Three of the San Francisco Giants’ top-30 prospects and a pair of former Eastern League All-Stars are slated to take the field under the direction of Richmond Flying Squirrels manager José Alguacil to begin the 2021 season.
Under the new Player Development License structure, Double-A active rosters include 28 players, up from 25 in the previous system. The Flying Squirrels initial roster includes 15 pitchers and 13 position players.
Eight players are back with Richmond after calling The Diamond home in previous seasons, including outfielder Heliot Ramos, who is currently rated by both Baseball America and MLB.com as the Giants’ No. 3 prospect. Ramos first joined the Flying Squirrels in August of 2019, hitting .242 with three homers and 15 RBIs over 25 games in his first swings at Double-A.
That year, the 2017 first-round draft pick became the first teenager to play for the Flying Squirrels when he debuted at age 19. Now 21 years old, Ramos enters the year as Baseball America’s No. 83 overall prospect.
Sean Hjelle, currently ranked by Baseball America as the Giants’ No. 13 prospect and No. 11 by MLB.com, returns to the Richmond pitching staff for 2021 after making five starts at Double-A in 2019. The 6-foot-11 right-hander was selected in the second round of the 2018 MLB Draft by the Giants out of the University of Kentucky.
A pair of Eastern League All-Stars are back with the Flying Squirrels this year. Jacob Heyward was named the MVP of the 2019 Eastern League All-Star Game at The Diamond in 2019 prior to setting a new franchise record for walks in a season. 2018 Eastern League All-Star Ryan Howard returns for his third overall season in Richmond. He will be joined on the infield by Peter Maris, who saw time with the Flying Squirrels in 2019.
Three right-handed relievers who previously pitched for the Flying Squirrels are back to open this season. Frank Rubio and Raffi Vizcaino were both in the Richmond bullpen in 2019. Patrick Ruotolo was with the Flying Squirrels in 2018 before undergoing Tommy John surgery, which kept him sidelined for most of 2019.
This year’s initial Richmond roster includes several new faces, including right-hander Tristan Beck, who is ranked by Baseball America as the Giants’ No. 12 prospect and No. 20 by MLB.com. Beck joined the Giants organization in 2019 when he was traded from the Braves as part of the deal that sent reliever Mark Melancon to Atlanta.
2021 Richmond Flying Squirrels Initial Roster
Pitchers: Luis Amaya, Tristan Beck, Matthew Frisbee, Gerson Garabito, Norwith Gudino, Sean Hjelle, Sam Long, Joey Marciano, Mac Marshall, Frank Rubio, Patrick Ruotolo, Matt Seelinger, Trenton Toplikar, Raffi Vizcaino, Ronnie Williams
Catchers: Andres Angulo, Bryan Torres
Infielders: Ryan Howard, Peter Maris, Shane Matheny, Kyle Mottice, David Villar
Outfielders: Sandro Fabian, Vince Fernandez, Jacob Heyward, Heliot Ramos, Andy Sugilio, Francisco Tostado
The Flying Squirrels open the 2021 season on Tuesday night at The Diamond against the Hartford Yard Goats at 6:35 p.m.
Tickets are currently available for the remaining games of the season-opening homestand at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets, by phone at 804-359-3866 or at the Flying Squirrels ticket office.
Fans are encouraged to review the 2021 Protocols & Guidelines prior to heading to The Diamond for games this season.
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Chris Graham
