Giants Place Heliot Ramos On 10-Day Injured List
9:44 PM: Vitello said that Ramos will miss a minimum of two weeks, but more likely a “handful of weeks,” according to Justice de los Santos.
5:44 PM: The Giants are placing outfielder Heliot Ramos on the 10-day injured list, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Per Justice de los Santos of The Mercury News, Ramos has a right quad strain. The team is also activating Erik Miller from his rehab assignment, optioning Tristan Beck to Triple-A, and recalling Will Brennan.
Ramos suffered the injury in the fifth inning of yesterday’s 5-2 loss to the Athletics. He attempted a sliding catch on a line drive from Jeff McNeil and came up short, with McNeil reaching on a single. Ramos looked uncomfortable in his at-bat in the sixth, striking out swinging before leaving the game with a trainer. Casey Schmitt replaced Ramos in left field.
Ramos underwent an MRI today, and evidently the quad strain was severe enough to warrant a trip to the injured list. It’s only the second time Ramos has been on the IL in his career. The first was in 2023, when he missed two months with a right oblique strain. As for his current injury, Ramos can expect to miss a couple of weeks for a mild quad strain, or several months if it’s severe. The precise timeline should be known in the coming days as the team reviews the test results.
In the meantime, the Giants will be without their everyday left fielder and a slightly above-average bat. Ramos broke out with a 120 wRC+ in 121 games in 2024. He declined to a 106 wRC+ last year, though he still hit 21 home runs and was still plenty productive. Ramos was out to a similar start this year, with a .267/.307/.424 line in his first 176 plate appearances. That amounts to a 105 wRC+, indicating Ramos is 5% better than average at the plate. Even accounting for his poor defense (-9 Outs Above Average in left field last year), Ramos is a serviceable all-around player for the Giants.
The team has a few options for left field in Ramos’ absence. Drew Gilbert was a first-round draft pick by the Astros four years ago, but he has a 70 wRC+ through his first 189 career plate appearances. Utilityman Jesus Rodriguez hit well at Triple-A last year, though he’s a catcher by trade and only has 41 innings of outfield experience at Triple-A (and only nine innings in the Majors). Brennan is now up from Triple-A, but he’s only taken 22 big league plate appearances since the start of 2025, so he won’t be trusted with regular at-bats.
It’s telling that the Giants turned to Schmitt in left after taking Ramos out of the game. It was reported a week ago that the club was considering using Schmitt in the outfield to keep his bat in the lineup. Schmitt has a team-leading 129 wRC+ at the moment, so the struggling Giants are playing it smart by exploring all options for him. Statcast has Schmitt’s arm strength and sprint speed as above-average, so his athleticism and current offensive prowess make him an appealing option compared to Gilbert, Rodriguez, and Brennan. Indeed, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports confirms that Schmitt will be part of the left field mix, based on comments from manager Tony Vitello.
Meanwhile, Miller returns from a minimum stint on the IL with a lower back strain. The 6’5″ lefty has thrown 108 2/3 innings as a reliever and opener since debuting in 2024. Miller has a 3.15 ERA in that time, with a solid 27.4% strikeout rate but also a 13.9% walk rate that’s worse than average. In light of those metrics, Miller thrives by leveraging a high-90s sinker to generate groundballs 50.2% of the time, which is well above league average.
Miller’s return will be a boon to the Giants’ bullpen. In his place, Beck will go back to Triple-A five days after being recalled. The right-hander showed impressive control in 56 2/3 innings last year but had a middling 4.61 ERA. Beck only made two appearances during this latest stint in the Majors, allowing two hits in three scoreless innings and striking out one. He’ll serve as depth at Triple-A and is likely to be called up again at some point.
Photo courtesy of Gary A. Vasquez, Imagn Images
MLBTR Podcast: Patrick Bailey To Cleveland, The Struggling Astros, And Arizona’s Outfield Changes
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The Giants trading Patrick Bailey to the Guardians (1:25)
- The Astros losing Carlos Correa to season-ending ankle surgery (18:40)
- The Diamondbacks calling up Ryan Waldschmidt and trading Alek Thomas to the Dodgers (28:05)
- The Mets calling up A.J. Ewing (38:25)
- The Marlins calling up Robby Snelling (42:55)
Plus, we answer your questions, including…
- Are the Tigers struggling due to injuries and will be fine as guys get healthy? Or should fans be more worried? (49:30)
- Which starting pitchers can the Cubs pursue? (53:25)
- When will the Yankees realize they need to upgrade on David Bednar as the closer? (58:20)
Check out our past episodes!
- Skubal’s Injury, The Marlins’ Catchers, Eldridge Called Up, And Volpe Sent Down – listen here
- The Alex Cora Situation, Lucas Giolito Signs, And The Phillies Fire Rob Thomson – listen here
- Kevin McGonigle, The Padres’ Franchise Valuation, And Edwin Díaz To Miss Time – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Photo courtesy of David Dermer, Imagn Images
The Giants’ Long-Term Contracts Are Becoming A Big Problem
The Giants are in a real tough spot right now. They are 16-24 on the season, one of the worst records in baseball. An individual season being disappointing is something that happens to most teams but the current struggles are casting shadows over the long-term outlook since a lot of the disappointment is coming from the long-term core.
Aside from a stunning 107-win season in 2021, the Giants have been a .500 club or worse for a decade now. They have tried to get more aggressive recently, adding a number of large contracts to their books. Their three longest remaining commitments are to Rafael Devers, Willy Adames and Matt Chapman. All three are performing poorly, which could limit the club’s flexibility going forward. One major underwater contract is usually bad news for a team but three is obviously a much greater concern.
Devers is easily having the worst season of his career so far. He has a .232/.276/.364 batting line and 79 wRC+, indicating he’s been 21% worse than the league average hitter. That’s miles south of his career line, which is .274/.347/.502 and translates to a 125 wRC+. His 30.1% strikeout rate is more than three ticks worse than his previous career high. His 6.1% walk rate would be his lowest in a full season. The struggles can’t really be blamed on poor luck. Devers has a .310 batting average on balls in play. That’s a bit south of his .315 career rate but barely, and still above the .289 league average.
The Giants probably have to be hoping Devers is hurt. If not, the trends are gloomy. Though he was still a productive hitter as recently as last year, there have been some worrying things under the hood for a while. His bat speed was in the 68th percentile of qualified hitters in 2023 but that dropped to 61st in 2024 and 42nd last year. He’s down to 38th so far in 2026.
At the same time, he’s been getting attacked more and taking advantage less. 45% of the pitches Devers saw in 2023 were in the strike zone. That ticked up to 47.2% in 2024, 48.6% last year and 50.6% this year. He’s also been seeing more fastballs and less offspeed stuff. In 2023, he was getting 59.8% fastballs and 16.3% offspeed. That ratio has shifted to be 64.9% fastballs and 12.6% offspeed this year. He made contact on 76.2% of pitches in the zone in 2023, but that dropped to 71.9%, 71.4% and 69.4% in subsequent seasons.
Devers’ exit velocity and hard-hit rate stayed strong for most of that stretch but have nosedived this year. He is averaging 90.3 miles per hour off the bat this year, more than three points below last year’s 93.5 mph. His 46.2% hard hit rate is well below last year’s 56.1% clip. Last year, he still damaged four-seam fastballs. Statcast gave him a run value of 13 as he hit .249 with a .512 slug. This year, he’s at a -2 run value with a .192 batting average and .462 slug.
In short, teams don’t seem too scared of Devers and he’s not making them pay for that. Perhaps there is some ailment that explains this. Devers has dealt with back, shoulder and hamstring issues in his career. A disk injury in his lower back was hampering him last year, though he didn’t go on the injured list for it.
If that’s not what’s going on here and Devers is just suddenly hitting a decline phase at age 29, that’s extremely worrisome for the Giants. He’s not a burner on the basepaths and doesn’t provide defensive value. He was never a good third baseman and doesn’t seem likely to play there again (at least not with any kind of regularity). He’s still getting accustomed to first base and hasn’t received good grades there so far. He needs to hit to be useful to the Giants.
Adames is having an even worse season at the plate. He has a .209/.242/.342 line and 64 wRC+. His 3.6% walk rate is awful and about half of his previous career low, which was 7.9% in 2022. He has always had a somewhat high strikeout rate but this year’s 29.7% clip would easily be his worst in a full season. His hard hit rate, exit velocity and barrel rate are all down relative to last year.
The issue for Adames is perhaps one of aggression. He’s actually getting pitched in the zone less while making more contact on the whole. However, he is only swinging at the first pitch 26.1% of the time, compared to a 30.9% career rate. He is also only swinging at 65.1% of pitches in the zone, compared to a 70.2% career clip.
However you chop it up, it’s not good, but Adames at least covers a premium position at shortstop. Outs Above Average thinks he’s a bit worse defensively this year but Defensive Runs Saved has him trending up. Though Adames and Devers are both struggling to hit, Adames should be less of a concern due to his ability to cover shortstop, at least for now.
Chapman’s offense isn’t quite as dire as the other two but it’s still not good. His 9% walk rate and 22.9% strikeout rate are both near league average, but he has just one home run, a .235/.313/.322 line and an 86 wRC+. His 31.5% hard-hit rate is way down from last year’s 47.6% clip. Chapman’s glovework is still getting strong reviews, however, so he hasn’t been totally useless.
The club’s results aren’t entirely due to these three, as the pitching has also been lackluster. However, in a sense, that is connected to these three big contracts. The Giants have seemingly been loath to spend on pitching lately, presumably because so much of their payroll is already tied up. In the past two offseasons, their two-year, $22MM deal with Adrian Houser has been their largest pitching investment.
Making any kind of pivot is going to be very difficult, if not impossible. Chapman and Adames both have full no-trade protection. Even putting that aside, it’s not as though they have a ton of value. Adames will make $28MM annually from 2027 to 2031, leaving $140MM still to be paid out after the current season. Given his current performance, no club will be eager to take that on. Chapman is making $25MM annually through 2030, leaving $100MM on the deal after this season. He’s still picking it at third but he just turned 33, so teams know decline is coming eventually.
Devers does not have no-trade protection in his deal, which is why the Giants were able to get him from the Red Sox. But the deal runs through 2033 and isn’t cheap. Nominally, he’s getting paid about $30MM a year for the remainder, though $7.5MM is deferred annually and to be paid out through 2043. Even if some team were willing to acquire him, the optics for the Giants would be rough. Since his stock is down, they would receive something less than what they just gave up to get Devers last year, when they sent out Kyle Harrison, James Tibbs III, Jose Bello and Jordan Hicks. At this point, they would likely have to eat a substantial portion of the deal just to get anything of note.
It’s a rough spot for president of baseball operations Buster Posey, whose fingerprints are on all three deals, even though just one of them was technically signed under his watch. The Giants originally signed Chapman to a three-year deal with opt-outs heading into the 2024 season. At that time, Posey was on the club’s ownership board and Farhan Zaidi was still president of baseball operations. In September of 2024, the Giants signed Chapman to a six-year, $151MM extension. Reporting at the time indicating that Posey was instrumental in negotiating that deal with Chapman. Posey replaced Zaidi not long after. Adames was signed a few months later. The Giants traded for Devers a few months after that.
There aren’t easy answers. Presumably, the Giants don’t want to start a big rebuild when they have already been scuffling for most of the past decade. Even if they wanted to, they are fairly committed to the present. In addition to the three really big deals, they are paying Jung Hoo Lee a good amount of money through 2029 and Logan Webb through 2028. Houser and Harrison Bader are going to make hefty salaries through next year. They spent a bunch of money to hire Tony Vitello as their manager this year. In addition to his $3.5MM salary, they paid the University of Tennessee $3MM to buy out his contract and are still paying $4MM to Bob Melvin this year after picking up his contract option and then firing him.
Internal help may not be likely. The farm isn’t considered a disaster but is generally ranked in the middle of the 30 teams in the league. Most of their top prospects are in the lower levels. Addressing the weak spots of the roster via free agency is perhaps not plausible either, based on the way the club has seemingly pumped the brakes since adding Chapman, Adames and Devers to the books.
It seems Posey may be stuck trying to work around these three. He made one such move this weekend, flipping Patrick Bailey to the Guardians for a pitching prospect and a draft pick. Bailey is the best defensive catcher in the game but his offense has been poor and worsened this year. His limp bat may have been more tolerable if the rest of the lineup was producing but that was not the case.
That return won’t help the club in the near term. Rather, they have to hope that players like Jesús Rodríguez and Daniel Susac form adequate replacements for Bailey, with less value on defense but hopefully far more on offense.
If the club can’t climb back in the race in the coming months, more future-focused moves will be forthcoming this summer. Rental players like Robbie Ray, Luis Arraez and Tyler Mahle will be available but without huge value. Mahle has a 5.18 ERA. Ray is pitching well but his $25MM salary is hefty. Arraez is also having a good season but is making $12MM. A bigger sell-off will be difficult. Houser and Bader are both having poor seasons. The longer deals will be ever harder to move.
When Posey first got his current job, he spoke of wanting to get the Giants back into the memory-making business. The implication seemed to be a pivot towards big-name players. He has since hitched his wagon to Chapman, Adames and Devers. Now that all three horses are stuck in the mud, he may not be able to do much more than hope they dig themselves out.
Photo courtesy of Vincent Carchietta, Imagn Images
Giants Notes: Bader, Schmitt, Hentges
4:24PM: Hentges was indeed activated from the 15-day IL today, and San Francisco also called up right-hander Dylan Smith from Triple-A. In corresponding moves, right-hander Ryan Walker and Gregory Santos were optioned to Triple-A. Walker entered the season as perhaps the Giants’ top choice at closer, but his struggles have left the team still looking for any kind of stability in the ninth inning.
11:19AM: The 15-24 Giants are currently tied with the Mets for the worst record in the National League. The Giants’ offense and pitching staff have both been below-average to start the year, with the offense being the bigger culprit of the two for the team’s woes. On the whole, San Francisco is batting .241/.284/.357 with an 81 wRC+, the latter tying the Mets for worst in the Majors. On the plus side, Casey Schmitt has a 144 wRC+ through 128 plate appearances, while Luis Arraez is pairing his old-school hitting style with surprisingly strong defense. However, Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman, and Willy Adames are all hitting poorly. Chapman “leads” those three with a 79 wRC+ in 160 plate appearances.
An X-factor in the Giants’ offense is center fielder Harrison Bader. The 31-year-old has been on the injured list since April 15 with a left hamstring strain, though Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that Bader is likely to come off the IL soon. If so, that would amount to about a month of missed time for the outfielder. Bader only made 55 plate appearances before he went down, but the club is hoping he can show some of his form from last year when he returns. In 501 plate appearances between the Twins and Phillies in 2025, Bader had career-best marks in wRC+ (122), wOBA (.346), and home runs (17).
There were some signs that Bader was lucky to hit so well. He batted .359 on balls in play, which was well above the league average. Bader’s .297 expected wOBA was also well below his actual mark of .346, while his 87.2 MPH average exit velocity ranked in just the 12th percentile in the Majors. There is also the matter that Bader has been a below-average hitter in most seasons, including every season from 2022-24 leading up to his 2025 breakout. In other words, Bader had a career season at the plate in 2025, but no one was expecting him to suddenly become a generational hitter.
The Giants would be happy if Bader was simply an average hitter. Between their starting outfield of Heliot Ramos, Drew Gilbert, and Jung Hoo Lee, only Ramos is even an average hitter. He currently has an even 100 wRC+ through 150 plate appearances, along with an unsustainable .368 average on balls in play. Lee is slightly below-average with a 96 wRC+, and his subpar defense isn’t helping his value either. Gilbert was a first-round draft pick by the Astros in 2022 and has some promise, but he has so far been outmatched in the Majors. The return of Bader wouldn’t be a huge upgrade for the team’s offense, whose fortunes depend on Chapman, Adames, and especially Devers returning to their career norms. That said, swapping in Bader for Gilbert in center would hopefully deepen the lineup with an average hitter, to say nothing of Bader’s exceptional defense.
Amid the struggles of the Giants’ star hitters, one of the bright spots has been the performance of Schmitt. With a 144 wRC+ in 129 plate appearances, Schmitt has been far and away the Giants’ best hitter of 2026. At the same time, he has mostly served as a DH, and those plate appearances may be hard to come by in the wake of Bryce Eldridge‘s recent promotion. That said, Slusser writes that Schmitt has been taking outfield reps during batting practice this week. That builds on prior comments from manager Tony Vitello, who said that Schmitt is athletic enough to handle the corner outfield if the team handles it “intelligently.”
Slusser clarifies that Schmitt is still an emergency option, and there are no immediate plans to play him in the outfield. Still, giving him outfield reps, even in a low-pressure setting, is a smart move on the part of the Giants. As tantalizing as Eldridge’s potential is, the club simply cannot afford to take Schmitt out of the lineup. For what it’s worth, the six-foot, 215-pound Schmitt’s sprint speed is in the 72nd percentile according to Statcast. He also has above-average arm strength. It remains to be seen how he might take to the outfield, but converting Schmitt into a utility player might be the best way to get him regular reps and leverage his defensive strengths.
Turning to the Giants’ pitching staff, Slusser reports that reliever Sam Hentges‘ rehab assignment is ending today. He is likely to be activated soon. The Giants’ bullpen has a decent-enough 3.85 ERA, although their combined 0.1 fWAR places them in the bottom ten relief units in the Majors. It remains to be seen how Hentges will impact that picture. The 6’8″ lefty pitched for Cleveland from 2021-24 and was generally solid in the latter three years. He underwent shoulder surgery in September 2024 and arthroscopic knee surgery in September 2025, but he now appears fully healthy. The keys to Hentges’ success will be generating groundballs, which he has done 53.4% of the time in his career, and recovering his mid-90s four-seam velocity.
Photo courtesy of Robert Edwards, Imagn Images
Jerar Encarnacion Clears Waivers, Elects Free Agency
TODAY: Encarnacion has cleared waivers and elected free agency, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
May 4: The Giants announced that outfielder Jerar Encarnacion has been designated for assignment and fellow outfielder Will Brennan has been optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. Those are the corresponding moves for the recalls of Bryce Eldridge and Jesús Rodríguez, moves that were reported yesterday. The Giants also recalled right-hander Trevor McDonald and placed left-hander Erik Miller on the 15-day injured list with a low back strain, retroactive to May 1st.
Encarnacion signed a minor league deal with the Giants in May of 2024. At that time, he had just come off a massive .366/.439/.989 showing in 26 Mexican League games. That’s a hitter-friendly league but that line was impressive regardless. He then put up a .352/.438/.616 showing in Triple-A and got added to the big league roster in August.
He has been on the 40-man ever since. Due to him being out of options, he has also been on the active roster that whole time, apart from IL stints. He spent a lot of 2025 on the IL, with stints due to a hand fracture, an oblique strain and a hamstring strain.
His numbers against major league hitting haven’t been nearly as impressive as his work in the minors or in Mexico. He has stepped to the plate 210 times as a Giant. His 3.3% walk rate and 27.1% strikeout rate in that time are both poor numbers. His .223/.248/.371 line in the sample leads to a wRC+ of 71, indicating he’s been 29% below league average overall. That includes a dismal .176/.200/.206 line here in 2026.
The San Francisco offense as a whole has been underwhelming. Encarnacion has been just a small part of that but he is the casualty for the club trying to shake things up. Since he’s out of options, he’s been bumped into DFA limbo, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Giants could take five days to field trade interest, but they could also put him on waivers sooner than that.
Based on how much he’s been struggling, it seems fair to expect him to clear waivers. He has flashed talent in the past but not in the majors. Even the exciting numbers he put up in Mexico and in the minors are two years old at this point. He has a previous career outright and would therefore have the right to elect free agency if he is outrighted again in the coming days.
Turning to the pitching moves, it’s unclear how long Miller will need to be shelved, but the Giants lose one of their more interesting relievers. Miller walks too many batters but has high-90s velocity and can get guys out. His 35.4% strikeout rate and 56% ground ball rate this year are both huge, though he has given free passes to 12.5% of opponents. With Miller out, the Giants are down to Matt Gage and Ryan Borucki as their southpaw relievers.
McDonald is starting tonight’s game and it appears to be a spot start. The Giants had to play a doubleheader on Thursday, with Logan Webb and Adrian Houser starting the two contests. Then Robbie Ray, Landen Roupp and Tyler Mahle started the three subsequent games. No one in that quintet would be available on regular rest tonight. After McDonald starts tonight’s game, it’s possible he gets sent back down to the minors, with a fresh arm coming up to join the bullpen.
Photo courtesy of Justine Willard, Imagn Images
Giants Place Logan Webb On 15-Day IL, Recall Trevor McDonald
Giants right-hander Logan Webb is heading to the injured list with right knee bursitis, the team announced. Fellow righty Trevor McDonald is coming back up to the big leagues. The Webb move is retroactive to May 6. San Francisco expects the ace to return when he’s first eligible, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports.
The Padres pounded Webb for six earned runs over four innings in his most recent start. The two-time All-Star was forced to depart after the knee injury flared up. “I’ve dealt with it for a little while, but it’s still no excuse,” Webb told reporters, including Henry Schulman of MLB.com. Webb will now get a couple of weeks to recover from the issue.
Webb has been one of the more durable starters in the league since becoming a permanent member of the Giants’ rotation. He’s made at least 32 starts in each of the past four seasons. The righty has paced the National League in innings for three straight years. Webb’s last IL stint was back in 2021, when he missed time with shoulder and back injuries.
The volume has been there for Webb this year, but the production has been underwhelming, even before the rough showing against San Diego. He’s posted a 5.06 ERA across eight starts. Webb’s strikeout rate has ticked down to a below-average 20.2%. A 7.2% walk rate would be a solid outcome for a lot of pitchers, though it’s Webb’s worst mark since the shortened 2020 season. The veteran is still getting groundballs at a massive clip (58.5%). His xFIP and SIERA are right around 3.50, which suggests Webb has pitched better than his results.
McDonald was sent down after his lone start on Monday. He’s right back with the Giants after a few days at Triple-A. McDonald is lined up to make his next appearance against the Dodgers in a series that kicks off on Monday. San Francisco was off on Thursday, so Webb wasn’t scheduled to pitch again this week.
The 25-year-old McDonald has excelled in his brief big-league chances. He tossed three hitless innings in his 2024 debut. The righty delivered a 3.60 ERA over three appearances last season. In his two starts, he held the Dodgers to a run over six innings, then piled up 10 strikeouts against the Rockies. The strong close to the year wasn’t enough to earn McDonald a roster spot out of camp. A 6.94 ERA in Spring Training didn’t help matters. McDonald will now get a couple of starts to make his case to stay in the majors.
Photo courtesy of Stan Szeto, Imagn Images
Guardians Acquire Patrick Bailey
11:35AM: Both teams have announced the trade. 7 News’ Ari Alexander adds the detail that the Giants are calling catcher Logan Porter up from Triple-A to take Bailey’s spot on the active roster, so San Francisco will be continuing with a three-catcher depth chart for the time being.
10:10AM: The Guardians have acquired catcher Patrick Bailey from the Giants, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports. San Francisco will receive left-handed pitching prospect Matt Wilkinson and the 29th overall pick of the 2026 draft (the first selection of Competitive Balance Round A, which are the only types of picks that can be dealt). Cleveland has an open spot on its 40-man roster for Bailey, and The Athletic’s Zack Meisel adds that the Guards will option catcher Bo Naylor to make room for Bailey on the active roster.
Bailey has won the last two Fielding Bible Awards and NL Gold Glove Awards, cementing his case as the sport’s best defensive catcher. Between Bailey and backup Austin Hedges, the Guardians now have the best defensive catching tandem in recent memory, and have doubled down on their commitment to prioritizing glovework over offense from their backstops. Obviously the Guards were hoping Naylor would add more pop from behind the plate, but after an impressive debut in his 2023 rookie season, Naylor has hit only .192/.266/.351 over 893 plate appearances since Opening Day 2024.
Those numbers aren’t far below the .224/.282/.329 slash line Bailey has posted over 1342 career PA. Bailey’s lackluster offense took an even sharper nosedive this year, as he has hit only .146/.213/.183 over his first 89 trips to the plate in 2026. The situation became dire enough that the Giants were reducing Bailey’s playing time, at first because Rule 5 pick Daniel Susac (currently on the 10-day IL) was on fire at the plate, and then since prospect Jesus Rodriguez was recalled earlier this week from Triple-A.
San Francisco will now go forward with Rodriguez and Susac when he’s healthy, and Eric Haase is also on the 26-man roster. Because Rodriguez can play multiple positions, the Giants might keep all three players even when Susac is activated from the injured list, if the team wants to keep Haase on hand for some veteran experience.
While this trade isn’t as seismic as the Rafael Devers blockbuster last June, it does represent another aggressive early-season move from Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey. Even if Bailey was losing playing time, seeing the Giants move on from the catcher entirely counts as something of a surprise.
The desire for change may stem from the Giants’ 15-23 start, as San Francisco is tied with the Angels and Mets for the fewest wins in all of baseball. For as little as Bailey was contributing, getting less offense than expected from a defensive specialist hasn’t been as much of a lineup issue as the cold starts from Devers, Willy Adames, Matt Chapman, and Harrison Bader (who is also currently on the IL). That said, the club is clearly looking for runs wherever they can find them, and clearing the path for Susac and Rodriguez is one way of pursuing upside.
Obviously there’s still a lot of baseball to be played before the trade deadline, yet today’s move is perhaps also the first sign that the Giants may already be looking beyond the 2026 season. Between the Dodgers’ ongoing dominance and the Padres’ strong start, the Giants are looking at a wild card berth at best even if they’re able to dig their way out of this early-season hole. If the struggles continue, more selling will take place before the deadline, and possibly even well in advance of the deadline given Posey’s willingness to swing a prominent deal at any time on the calendar.
From a pure trade-value standpoint, it’s also not a bad outcome for Posey to move an increasingly expendable catcher for both a starting pitching prospect and a high draft pick. The 29th overall selection is the first pick of CBR-A, and thus the highest selection available to be traded. Acquiring this CBR-A pick adds to what is already going to be a particularly important draft for the Giants, as the team got lucky in landing the fourth overall pick in the draft lottery last December.
Wilkinson was a 10th-round pick for the Guardians in the 2023 draft, and isn’t considered a top-30 prospect in either the Baseball America or MLB Pipeline rankings of the Cleveland farm system. Nonetheless, Wilkinson has posted some solid numbers across his four pro seasons, including a 1.59 ERA, 33.6% strikeout rate, and an 8.4% walk rate across 28 1/3 innings for Double-A Akron this season. This marked Wilkinson’s first taste of Double-A action, and a promotion to Triple-A doesn’t seem out of the question before 2026 is over. Nicknamed “Tugboat,” Wilkinson received some higher-profile work when he pitched for Canada’s team in this spring’s World Baseball Classic.
The Guardians have enough other pitchers ahead of Wilkinson on the depth chart that the organization apparently felt comfortable moving the southpaw. Dealing the CBR-A pick is more of an eye-opener, as the low-payroll Guards have traditionally relied so heavily on building from within.
Moving that pick for Bailey in particular is also intriguing, as adding Bailey doesn’t help Cleveland’s biggest need of more offense. The Guardians’ lineup has been better than the near rock-bottom numbers posted in 2025, and this improvement has come even with Jose Ramirez and Steven Kwan off to slow starts. On paper, however, one might have expected the Guards to seek out more of a proven bat if they were going to make any kind of a notable change to their everyday lineup.
Bailey isn’t eligible for arbitration until the coming offseason, so the Guardians have control over his services through the 2029 campaign. With one defensive specialist under longer-term control, it is possible the Guards might end their cycle of one-year, $4MM contracts to retain Hedges’ services. Since top prospect Cooper Ingle is expected to make his MLB debut before 2026 is over, the Guardians may be making the move from the Naylor/Hedges era to Bailey and Ingle as their regular catching tandem.
Giants Infield Notes: Arraez, Schmitt
Luis Arraez has been a rare bright spot amidst a tough start to the season for the Giants. The three-time batting champion is out to a .316/.340/.398 start with a grand total of six strikeouts over his first 144 plate appearances.
That’s about what one expects from the game’s top contact hitter. More surprising is how well he’s taken to a move back to second base. Arraez had graded as a well below-average defender for his entire career and had mostly moved off the keystone last year in San Diego. He prioritized signing with a team that would allow him to return to second base. The Giants obliged, at least in part because of their faith in one of the sport’s most respected infield coaches, Ron Washington.
Even the front office probably didn’t anticipate Arraez playing this well defensively. Statcast has credited him with nine Outs Above Average, the best mark for a second baseman in MLB. Defensive Runs Saved has him at +5, tied for tops in the National League (with Washington’s Nasim Nuñez) and second in the Majors behind Seattle’s Cole Young. Arraez has recorded 110 assists and played nearly 300 innings without committing an error.
The whole package has made him San Francisco’s most valuable player through six weeks. The team around him has not played up to expectations. The Giants have lost eight of their last nine games and sit a season-high nine games below .500.
Their 14-23 record is tied with that of the Mets for worst in the National League. They’re already facing what seems like an insurmountable gap behind the Dodgers and Padres in the NL West. Every team in the NL Central is above .500, cluttering the path for underperforming teams like San Francisco, New York and Philadelphia to pull back from slow starts.
Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle observes that the player’s and team’s respective trajectories point toward Arraez being a valuable trade chip closer to the deadline. They’ve gotten a strong return on their one-year, $12MM deal. Arraez will return to the market next winter in advance of his age-30 season. He’d be a candidate for a qualifying offer if he keeps up this kind of defense and the Giants hang onto him beyond the deadline.
The QO would give the Giants some leverage if they’re on the fence about an Arraez trade. Still, if they get close to the deadline without erasing a good chunk of the early-season hole they’ve dug themselves, they should at least see what’s available on the trade front as a matter of diligence.
Arraez is one of their few obvious potential chips. A lot of their struggles come from underperforming veterans on contracts that’d be difficult or impossible to move. Their top impending free agents are Arraez and mid-rotation starter Robbie Ray, though the latter is playing on a heftier $25MM salary. Tyler Mahle is on a $10MM deal that’d be easier for an acquiring team to eat, but he’s alternating good and bad starts and having a difficult time missing bats.
In the short term, Arraez is part of a fairly rigid infield. The Giants brought up top prospect Bryce Eldridge to split time with Rafael Devers between first base and designated hitter. Matt Chapman and Willy Adames, neither of whom has hit well of late, are locked in on the left side.
That leaves Casey Schmitt without an obvious spot in the order. He has easily been the team’s best offensive player, batting .296/.344/.539 with six homers — twice as many as anyone else on the club. They obviously can’t afford to take him out of a lineup that has scored 17 fewer runs than any other.
Schmitt has started the past two games at second base while Arraez nurses a bruised thumb. The latter is expected to return to the lineup for this weekend’s series against the Pirates. That might be a precursor to the first outfield work of Schmitt’s career.
President of baseball operations Buster Posey and manager Tony Vitello each said this week that Schmitt would bounce around the diamond to get continued playing time (link via Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area). The first-year skipper said that he feels Schmitt is athletic enough to handle the corner outfield, though he cautioned the team would “need to do (that) intelligently.”
Schmitt hasn’t logged a single inning of outfield work at San Diego State or at any point in his minor league or MLB career. He told Pavlovic he’s open to playing anywhere necessary to stay in the lineup. Schmitt is a plus runner who has shown the versatility to bounce around the infield. It’s certainly not out of the question that he could be a capable or better outfielder, though Oracle Park isn’t the easiest home park in which to pick that up.
The Giants made a point of improving the outfield defense with the Harrison Bader signing. That pushed Jung Hoo Lee from center to right field. Bader started ice cold offensively and landed on the injured list on April 12 with a left hamstring strain. Lee has picked up a few starts in center as a result, but he’s still mostly playing right field. Drew Gilbert has been the primary fill-in up the middle. Heliot Ramos has started all but three games in left field.
Lee and Ramos have each struggled offensively. Despite nearly average contributions from Gilbert, the Giants have had one of the game’s weakest center field groups (.176/.212/.272 in 133 PAs). Using Schmitt on the grass could be one of their only immediate options for trying to spark some life into the offense.
MLBTR Podcast: Skubal’s Injury, The Marlins’ Catchers, Eldridge Called Up, And Volpe Sent Down
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- Tigers ace Tarik Skubal requiring elbow surgery (1:25)
- The Marlins calling up Joe Mack, optioning Agustín Ramírez and designating Chris Paddack for assignment (8:35)
- The Giants calling up Bryce Eldridge (21:50)
- The Yankees optioning Anthony Volpe (33:15)
- The Red Sox dealing with injuries to Garrett Crochet and others (41:55)
Plus, we answer your questions, including…
- What kind of package could the Rockies get if they traded Chase Dollander? (46:20)
- What can the Brewers do to address the left side of the infield? (56:50)
- Instead of using guys like Scott Kingery or Nicky Lopez on the bench, shouldn’t the Cubs call up a better player from the minors? (59:35)
Check out our past episodes!
- The Alex Cora Situation, Lucas Giolito Signs, And The Phillies Fire Rob Thomson – listen here
- Kevin McGonigle, The Padres’ Franchise Valuation, And Edwin Díaz To Miss Time – listen here
- Lenyn Sosa Traded, And Injury Concerns For The Astros, Cubs And Orioles – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Photo courtesy of Evan Petzold, Imagn Images
Giants To Promote Bryce Eldridge, Jesus Rodriguez
The Giants will promote prospects Bryce Eldridge and Jesus Rodriguez prior to Monday’s game with the Padres, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Slusser wrote earlier today that the Giants were giving “serious consideration” to bringing the duo up to the Show, and neither Eldridge or Rodriguez were in the lineup today for Triple-A Sacramento.
Both players are already on the 40-man roster, so the Giants will just need to make two 26-man roster adjustments to create space. Eldridge made his MLB debut in the form of 10 games last season, while Rodriguez is on the verge of his big league debut.
While nobody expects two rookies to instantly change the team’s fortunes, it isn’t surprising that the Giants are looking for any kind of spark for their dismal offense. Heading into Sunday’s action, San Francisco ranked 30th of 30 teams in runs (105), home runs (19), and stolen bases (eight), while ranking 29th in OBP (.289) and OPS (.646).
The lineup sputtered again in today’s 2-1 loss to the Rays in 10 innings, and the Giants have now lost six straight games. The 12-win Mets are the only team in baseball with fewer victories than the 13-21 Giants, underlining San Francisco’s struggles over the first five weeks of play.
Eldridge has been a consensus top-30 prospect for the last couple of years, though the 16th overall pick of the 2023 draft hit only .107/.297/.179 over his first 37 plate appearances in the Show. He struck out in 13 of those 37 trips to the dish, and the Giants’ decision to start Eldridge’s 2026 campaign at Triple-A was due in part to the team’s desire to see the 21-year-old correct those contact issues. This specific problem hasn’t been solved since Eldridge has whiffed 41 times in 137 PA so far in Sacramento this season, but he is crushing the ball to the tune of a .333/.445/.518 slash line and five home runs.
Though Eldridge played 23 games in right field during his first minor league season, he has since played only first base. That means the Giants would have to use Eldridge and Rafael Devers in some combination as the first baseman and DH. Casey Schmitt has been in that timeshare with Devers so far, and removing Schmitt from the lineup is an issue since Schmitt has (surprisingly) been far and away the Giants’ best hitter in the early going.
Schmitt has experience at all four infield positions, but inserting him elsewhere around the diamond would mean the Giants would have to sit one of Devers, Luis Arraez, Matt Chapman, or Willy Adames. Arraez is the only member of that group who is hitting well, but the Giants may be hesitant to take at-bats away from any their highest-paid veterans even despite their slumps.
Rodriguez would bring much more defensive versatility to Tony Vitello’s roster. The 24-year-old has played mostly as a catcher and third baseman over his minor league career, with some time in left field and at both corner outfield slots. Rodriguez has primarily stayed behind the plate this season in Sacramento, but he has made two appearances at second base and five appearances in left field.
As much as this extra versatility adds to Rodriguez’s resume, he might just end up at the catcher position. Patrick Bailey is hitting even less than usual, and the Giants may want to get more pop in the lineup even if it means a downgrade in terms of catcher defense. Rule 5 pick Daniel Susac was off to a blazing start at the plate, but is expected to miss perhaps another week on the 10-day IL while he recovers from elbow neuritis. Veteran Eric Haase had his minor league contract selected in the wake of Susac’s injury and is probably a DFA candidate tomorrow when Rodriguez is called up.
For all of Rodriguez’s multi-positional usage, he isn’t considered much of a defender at any position. As a catcher, Rodriguez has subpar blocking and receiving skills, though he is a good pitch-framer and he has a good throwing arm.
At the plate, Rodriguez has posted at least solid hitting numbers at all levels of the minors, including a .330/.400/.440 slash line with two home runs over 115 Triple-A plate appearances this year. Rodriguez has a knack for getting on base and making a lot of solid contact, yet the MLB Pipeline and Baseball America scouting reports note that his contact ability can work against him to some extent — Rodriguez goes after a lot of pitches outside the strike zone, resulting in less-than-ideal contact.
Pipeline ranks Rodriguez 18th on their list of Giants prospects, and Baseball America puts him 19th. He began his career as an international prospect in the Yankees’ farm system, and Rodriguez was one of the four minor leaguers acquired at last year’s trade deadline as San Francisco’s return for sending Camilo Doval to the Bronx.