Giants’ Carson Whisenhunt Overwhelms Class A Competition

Lefthander Carson Whisenhunt racked up 20 strikeouts in 13.2 innings spread over four starts with Low-A San Jose in April, earning him a promotion to High-A Eugene.

“The hitters were just simply no match for him (in Low-A),” Giants farm director Kyle Haines said.

“The way he was attacking the strike zone and the way the hitters responded, it was very apparent that he would be better off facing some more advanced players and . . . taking on a new challenge for himself—which hasn’t really been much of a challenge, either.”

High-A hitters, through Whisenhunt’s first four starts, had even less success against him. In his fourth start for Eugene, against Hillsboro on May 18, Whisenhunt struck out eight in 4.1 no-hit innings. His Eugene totals to that point: 17.1 innings, one run, three hits and 24 strikeouts.

“There are some really, really good hitters who he’s making look foolish,” Haines said. “He’s taken to a lot of our organizational stuff really quick, as far as the culture of attacking the strike zone with plus stuff.”

Whisenhunt’s plus stuff includes a fastball in the low-to-mid 90s, a solid breaking ball and his best pitch, a changeup that was ranked third in a summary of best tools in the minor leagues entering the season.

The 22-year-old Whisenhunt was the Giants’ second-round pick last year. He had 79 strikeouts in 62 innings as a sophomore at East Carolina but was suspended for the 2022 season after a positive test for a performance-enhancing drug.

He made up for some of that lost time in the Cape Cod League.

On the night of the draft, Giants scouting director Michael Holmes discussed why the suspension didn’t deter the Giants.

“We’ve known about him dating back to high school,” Holmes said in July. “So, it was enough that we felt comfortable.”

Missing that season apparently hasn’t adversely affected Whisenhunt.

“He’s a polished, very advanced lefthanded pitcher, regardless of his past inning totals,” Haines said. “He’s getting better very quickly. It seems like he gets better and better almost every week.”