SF Giants: How Tristan Beck unlocked his potential by 'trusting' his arsenal

Tristan Beck has been a pivotal part of the SF Giants turnaround. GBI chatted with him, Patrick Bailey, and Blake Sabol about his recipe for success.

The SF Giants have been the best team in MLB since May 1st. While every player on the roster has contributed to the team's turnaround, there's no denying the impact several rookies have had. Several of the organization's top prospects have carved out roles with the big-league team, but Giants manager Gabe Kapler does not want rookie right-handed pitcher Tristan Beck (Giants preseason #19 prospect) to be overshadowed.

SF Giants starting pitcher Tristan Beck throws a pitch against the Mets. (2023) / John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

"Tristan's been every bit as good as those guys and hasn't gotten nearly the same amount of attention," Kapler said following the Giants' comeback 4-3 victory over the Padres last Tuesday. "It's normal. He's coming in relief in games. He's pitching in down-one or down-two games, but he's giving us a lot of length. You look up at the scoreboard; he's got tons of innings. He's got a low ERA. He's got a high strikeout rate. He's got a low walk rate. It's the makings of a good major league pitcher and deserves a lot of credit for where we are right now."

It's no coincidence that the Giants' hot streak has coincided with Beck's emergence alongside fellow rookie righty Keaton Winn in the team's bullpen. San Francisco's starting rotation has been plagued by injuries and poor performances. Entering play on Friday, Logan Webb is the only Giants starting pitcher who has posted an ERA below 4.00 and not landed on the injured list.

So, Kapler and the Giants have turned to a cavalcade of bullpen games, where Beck has found his time to shine. He has made 17 appearances with the Giants this season, all out of the bullpen, recording a 3.38 ERA across 42.2 innings pitched with 34 strikeouts and 11 walks.

"I was able to face him in college and last year in Double-A, so I know he's tough to square up," fellow Giants rookie catcher Blake Sabol told Giants Baseball Insider about Beck. "One thing that makes him special is he's an any count, any pitch kind of guy. So that's something you have to keep in mind with him when you're back there catching. I have full confidence, even if it's 3-0, we can go offspeed and probably land a strike there."

The Giants are just 7-10 in games where Beck has pitched, but they are 9-2 the day after Beck has made a multi-inning outing. Obviously, it's a small sample of work, but Beck has consistently enabled Kapler to give his relievers a day off in blowout victories or losses.

Entering the season, it was far from a foregone conclusion that Beck would be ready to make an impact. Beck, who the Giants acquired from Atlanta in a 2019 MLB trade deadline deal for veteran reliever Mark Melancon, was coming off a rocky 2022 season. While Beck spent the majority of the season at Triple-A, he posted a 5.64 ERA at the highest level of the minors.

"At this point last year, I still don't think I'd turned the corner yet," Beck recalled in a conversation with GBI. "I had a pretty rough intro to Sacramento, that's for sure. Definitely not alone, that's kind of how it goes in that league, but the biggest adjustment I had to make last year was just trusting my stuff and committing to filling up the strike zone."

Beck, whose development has been stalled by injuries dating back to his days at Stanford, was finally healthy enough to make more than 20 starts and accrue more than 100 innings last season for the first time in his career. Finally able to stay on the field, Beck was able to work through his struggles and take some significant steps forward.

When Beck first arrived at Triple-A, in the hitter-friendly confines of the Pacific Coast League, he was intimidated by the league's reputation. Making matters worse, the Giants affiliate was playing in Albuquerque when he arrived, a notoriously difficult pitching environment at an even higher elevation than Colorado Rockies' home ballpark Coors Field.

"I got up there and said 'I'm gonna keep the ball in the yard today,'" Beck said. "And I did. I didn't give up a single home run. But I did give up nine runs in 3.1 just because I was nibbling, nibbling, and 'oh look' it's 3-0, 2-0, 3-1, and led these guys to tee off on me."

Beck's numbers across his first eight outings at Triple-A reflect a pitcher scared to make a mistake. Beck walked or hit more than 11.2% of the batters he faced and still surrendered plenty of hard contact. Opposing batters were hitting .324 against him and had driven his ERA up to an abysmal 8.65 ERA. Eventually, with the help of pitching coach Garvin Alston and analyst Danny Boessenecker, Beck learned to trust his arsenal.

"You gotta learn how to avoid guys' hot spots and almost not be concerned about giving up a home run," Beck said. "They're gonna get there's, but if I stick to my process, I'm going to have more success in the long run."

In his final 10 outings of the season at Triple-A, Beck posted a 3.91 ERA in 53 innings pitched with 56 strikeouts, and 10 walks. He completed at least five innings in nine of those outings, flashing the consistency that has helped the Giants this season. All in a league where the average pitcher's ERA was 5.39.

Those early struggles at Triple-A forced Beck to delve deep into understanding what makes him stand out as a pitcher. Despite a fastball that has been quite effective with above-average velocity (94.5 mph), he's embraced viewing himself as a junkballer who consistently needs to find another edge. It's pushed him to continue adding new dimensions to his arsenal, making him an exciting batterymate for catchers.

"It's awesome," Bailey told GBI when asked about working with Beck. "He's got 4+ pitches that he pretty much throws for a strike whenever he wants. He spins the crap out of it: tight slider, cutter, sweeper, really good curveball, and locates the fastball well. He's just a great pitcher."

Heading into 2023, it was hard to imagine the SF Giants remaining competitive if Alex Cobb and Alex Wood landed on the injured list while Ross Stripling and Sean Manaea posted ERAs north of 5.00. However, rookie pitcher Tristan Beck has capitalized on the opportunity and proven he belongs on a big-league pitching staff.