Schuylkill County natives Reggie Crawford and Travis Blankenhorn each received non-roster invites to their respective teams’ Spring Training camps.
The San Francisco Giants recently announced their Cactus League non-roster invite list, which includes the prized two-way prospect, Crawford.
Crawford, a North Schuylkill graduate and former first-round draft pick of San Francisco, is quickly rising through the Giants organization. In 2023, his first year in Minor League Baseball, Crawford split time between the Single-A San Jose Giants and High-A Eugene Emeralds. He also played for the Scottsdale Scorpions of the Arizona Fall League.
He appeared in 13 games as a pitcher with the Giants and Emeralds combined, throwing 19 innings and posting a 2.84 ERA. Crawford did not pitch while on the Scorpions.
At the plate, Crawford saw limited action with San Jose and Eugene but did crack his first professional home run with the Giants. He hit 2 more with the Scorpions.
While the Giants appear to still tout Crawford as a two-way player, the organization has him as a pitcher on their NRI list.
Pottsville’s Blankenhorn also recently received a non-roster invite to the Washington Nationals Spring Training camp. He signed a minor-league contract with the Nats this offseason.
Blankenhorn, 27, appeared in 10 games with the Nationals in 2023, hitting 1 home run in 37 plate appearances.
He was named Team MVP of the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings, batting .262 while slugging 23 homers and driving in 75 runs.
Blankenhorn made his Major League debut with the Minnesota Twins in 2020 and has appeared in games with the Twins, New York Mets, and Nationals since then.
The Twins drafted Blankenhorn in the 3rd round of the 2015 MLB Draft.
Organizations send out non-roster invites to players who aren’t currently on their 40-man rosters for an opportunity to compete for a roster spot.
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