Drafted in the 29th round by Mariners in the 2014 MLB Draft, Herb was recently traded to the Giants (for cash) on July 3 and assigned to Richmond. Throwing just over six innings per start this season, he is a workhorse on the mound, averaging 140.0 innings the past two seasons, and he is on pace to top that total this season, while having landed on the DL only once during his career (in 2015). 2080’s Dave DeFreitas wrote about him last year when he was with the High A Bakersfield Blaze.

In my view of Herb on July 14 versus Harrisburg, he displayed an average fastball ranging from 89-to-92 mph (T93), showing the ability to hit to all quadrants with average command. The pitch missed over the plate at times resulting in hard contact, but his ability to keep the ball down in the zone limits the damage. He used a below-average cutter which sat 86-to-89 mph, but lacked enough feel for it to be effective. His above-average curveball sat 76-to-79 mph with good deception and 11-to-5 break, and he used it mostly to the lefties in the lineup.

Expected to reach over 450 innings for his career in the minor leagues by the end of the 2017 season, Herb is at a critical point in his career – with overall below-average numbers at this point, he will need to show the Giants he has consistent feel and command to limit hard contact in order to earn a promotion beyond his current level. Even if he finds some renewed success with his new team, he still may only top out as a Role 30 organizational player.