The Giants’ Punchless Early-Season Offense
The Giants are among the three teams off to a 6-11 start, tying them with the rebuilding Rockies and White Sox for the worst record in MLB through three weeks. It's much too early to write them off, but it has unquestionably been a rough start. They're riding a three-game losing skid into tonight's game in Cincinnati and have been outscored by 22 runs. Only the White Sox and an injury-riddled Blue Jays team have a worse run differential.
San Francisco has been mostly healthy. Their only rotation injury was losing projected sixth starter Hayden Birdsong to elbow surgery late in camp. Their position players had been fully healthy until this afternoon's injured list placements for center fielder Harrison Bader and pinch-runner/fifth outfielder Jared Oliva.
They do have a number of injured relievers, though most of those were known coming into the season. Randy Rodríguez went down to Tommy John surgery last September. They signed Sam Hentges and Jason Foley knowing neither player would be ready for Opening Day. They've lost a couple middle relievers (Reiver Sanmartin, Joel Peguero and José Buttó) since Spring Training, but that's about it. Their early-season struggles have been much more attributable to underperformance than injury.
That's especially true since the bullpen hasn't been the biggest culprit to the slow start. It hasn't been good, but they're 18th in ERA (4.39) and have blown two leads on the season. The pitching in general has been average, about what one would expect given the personnel. The offense has been the much bigger disappointment.
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Giants Place Harrison Bader, Jared Oliva On Injured List
The Giants have placed outfielders Harrison Bader and Jared Oliva on the 10-day injured list, per a club announcement. The former is dealing with a hamstring strain, while the latter was diagnosed with a hamate fracture, likely pointing to a somewhat notable absence. Bader’s IL placement is retroactive to April 12. Fellow outfielders Will Brennan and Drew Gilbert have been recalled from Triple-A in their place.
Bader, 31, has gotten out to a dismal start in his new environs. Signed to a two-year, $20.5MM contract in free agency, he’s started his Giants tenure with a .115/.145/.192 batting line and a glaring 30.9% strikeout rate in 55 turns at the plate. The longtime defensive standout had one of his best seasons at the plate in 2025, slashing a combined .277/.347/.449 with a career-best 17 homers in 501 plate appearances between Minnesota and Philadelphia.
It’s obviously a bit early to sound the alarm, but it’s a brutal stretch of 15 games for Bader, who hasn’t experienced strikeout troubles of this magnitude since 2018 with the Cardinals. Bader’s chase rate on balls off the plate is up six percentage points this year, while his contact rate on balls within the strike zone is down more than three percentage points. He’s been extremely aggressive early in his plate appearances and has too often found himself behind in the count as a result.
The Giants haven’t provided a firm timetable, but Bader will be down for the next week-plus at the very least. If it’s a lengthy enough stay on the IL, he could require a minor league rehab stint. For the time being, San Francisco can either slide Jung Hoo Lee back to center field or give some of that workload to Gilbert and Brennan. Lee hasn’t graded out well in his time as a center fielder in the majors — which was surely part of the Giants’ motivation in signing Bader, who perennially ranks as one of the game’s top outfield defenders. Gilbert has played all three outfield slots in Triple-A this season, spending the bulk of his time in center. Brennan has played the corners only in 2026 but has nearly 1800 professional innings in center.
As for the 30-year-old Oliva, this is his first big league action since 2021 with the Pirates. He’s appeared in seven games but been primarily a defensive replacement and pinch-runner. He’s had seven at-bats and tallied one single in that time.
Oliva impressed the Giants with plus speed and outfield range in camp this spring. In 20 games/46 plate appearances, he swiped a ludicrous 14 bags while also turning in a robust .375/.444/.550 batting line. That was more than enough for Oliva to earn a spot on the roster, even pushing out-of-options former top prospect Luis Matos out the door in the process.
Hamate fractures typically require surgery and come with a recovery period between four and eight weeks. Every instance is different, of course, but that general framework is at least worth noting. It’s doubtful Oliva will be back any earlier than mid-May, and his absence could push into early-to-mid June. Assuming Bader returns to the fold before Oliva, Gilbert stands as a natural option to fill the backup outfield role that Oliva has held throughout the season.
NL West Notes: Tatis, Arraez, Hentges, Snell, Edman
Fernando Tatis Jr. was 3-for-4 with a walk and an RBI in yesterday’s 9-5 Padres win over the Rockies, but the most notable aspect of Tatis’ game was his role as San Diego’s starting second baseman. It was just Tatis’ second career big league game at second base and his first start at the position, and the move came about since shortstop Xander Bogaerts had a day off. “We felt like Tatis was the best option at second base, and the most fun and exciting option at second base,” manager Craig Stammen told The Athletic’s Dennis Lin and other reporters, as the Padres look for ways to juggle their lineup, find at-bats for everyone, and keep their players fresh.
Needless to say, Tatis isn’t leaving his regular right field spot any time soon, but getting the odd game in at the keystone can add to his already high defensive value. Stammen also suggested that the position change might get Tatis rolling after a slow start at the plate, and Tatis’ three-hit night indicates that the tactic may have worked.
More from around the NL West…
- X-rays were negative on Luis Arraez‘s right wrist after the Giants second baseman was removed from yesterday’s game. An unusual play at second base saw Dylan Beavers accidentally kick Arraez in the hand while trying to avoid a tag in the bottom of the fourth inning, and Arraez was removed before the bottom of the fifth. Arraez is day-to-day for now, and since the Giants don’t play on Monday, it seems likely that he’ll be held out of today’s lineup to get two full days of recuperation. After signing a one-year, $12MM free agent deal with San Francisco, Arraez is off to a nice start with his new team, hitting .304/.339/.393 over his first 63 plate appearances.
- Sam Hentges also joined the Giants on a one-year, $1.4MM deal this offseason, and the reliever looks to finally be nearing his first game action of any kind since August 2024, as the A-level San Jose Giants announced that Hentges is joining the team on a rehab assignment. Hentges posted a 2.93 ERA, 27.7% strikeout rate, and 7.5% walk rate over 138 innings out of the Guardians’ pen in 2022-24, but his career was then put on hold by a shoulder surgery in September 2024, and then an arthroscopic right knee surgery last September. The left-hander’s rehab assignment figures to be pretty lengthy given how long Hentges has been sidelined, but he could be an intriguing x-factor in San Francisco’s bullpen when healthy.
- Blake Snell threw a 15-pitch simulated inning yesterday, facing live batters for the first time since Game 7 of the World Series. Snell began the season on the Dodgers‘ 15-day injured list due to shoulder fatigue, and he said a month ago following his first Spring Training bullpen session that he was aiming to make his season debut before the end of April. That timeline might be delayed slightly, as manager Dave Roberts told MLB.com’s Courtney Hollmon and other reporters that the team wants to see Snell built up in throwing sessions to the equivalent of four innings before Snell goes on a rehab assignment.
- Tommy Edman was one of the batters at the plate during Snell’s sim inning, which also marked the first time Edman had faced live pitching since he underwent ankle surgery last November. Edman began the season on the 10-day injured list but Roberts told Hollmon and company that the Dodgers aren’t expecting Edman back until closer to the end of May since he is “not at full speed” yet in terms of running. The timing means that Edman could be shifted to the 60-day IL at some point if Los Angeles needs a 40-man roster spot, though that decision won’t be made until Edman is deeper into the recovery process.
Blue Jays Acquire Tyler Fitzgerald
The Blue Jays and Giants have each announced that utilityman Tyler Fitzgerald has been traded to the Jays in exchange for cash considerations. Fitzgerald has been optioned to the Jays’ Triple-A affiliate. Toronto has an open spot on its 40-man roster, so no corresponding move was necessary.
San Francisco designated Fitzgerald for assignment earlier this week, and today’s deal officially ends a tenure that began when the Giants made Fitzgerald a fourth-round pick in the 2019 draft. He made his MLB debut in the form of 10 games in 2023, and seemingly had a breakout in 2024 when he hit .280/.334/.497 over 341 plate appearances. Fitzgerald also hit 15 homers and stole 17 bases in 21 attempts, and he finished the season with a 132 wRC+ and 3.0 fWAR.
Perhaps the key statistic, however, was Fitzgerald’s .380 BABIP. Reality may have sunk in last season, as Fitzgerald’s BABIP fell to a more standard .299, and his offensive production cratered. Fitzgerald hit .217/.278/.327 over 243 PA in 2025, translating to a 72 wRC+. The Giants used Fitzgerald as their regular starting second baseman in the early part of the season, but he was optioned to Triple-A in June, and played in only 15 MLB games after June 29 after being repeatedly called up and sent back down to the minors.
A left rib fracture sent Fitzgerald to the 10-day injured list for a little over two weeks at the start of May, which ended up being the demarcation line of his season. Fitzgerald was hitting a respectable .284/.341/.432 in 90 PA before the IL trip, so he was never the same after his rib issue.
The Giants’ offseason signing of Luis Arraez to play second base assured that Fitzgerald would be a bench option at best in San Francisco this season. The team started him at Triple-A to begin the season, and then decided to move on entirely via the DFA route.
The big majority of Fitzgerald’s MLB playing time has come at shortstop, but he has seen time at every position on the diamond except catcher. This versatility makes him a useful depth option for a Blue Jays club that doesn’t really have a true backup infielder on their current 26-man roster. Toronto has a set everyday infield of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Ernie Clement, Andres Gimenez, and Kazuma Okamoto. Davis Schneider and Addison Barger can respectively play second or third base when they’re not in the outfield, and Clement can be a backup shortstop if Schneider is at second base.
After the out-of-options Leo Jimenez was traded to the Marlins, Rafael Lantigua and prospect Josh Kasevich (both at Triple-A Buffalo) became Toronto’s top utility infield options, though neither player is on the 40-man roster. Fitzgerald’s addition gives the Jays a player they can move back and forth between Triple-A and the bigs, as Fitzgerald has one more minor league option year remaining.
Giants Re-Sign Eric Haase To Minor League Deal
The Giants have apparently re-signed catcher Eric Haase to a minor league contract. The Warner Sports Management client is in the lineup tonight for Triple-A Sacramento. Haase had been released from his previous minor league deal at the end of Spring Training.
He was competing with Rule 5 pick Daniel Susac and prospect Jesús Rodríguez for the backup job behind Patrick Bailey. The 33-year-old Haase hit .286 with a couple home runs while striking out 14 times in 32 plate appearances this spring. San Francisco stuck with Susac in the backup role. They optioned Rodríguez while granting Haase his release.
After a few days on the open market, Haase returns to the club. He’ll work alongside Rodríguez and Logan Porter as part of the Triple-A catching group. Haase has easily the most MLB experience of any catcher in the organization aside from Bailey. He has just over four years of service time and has taken more than 1200 plate appearances in a little under 400 games.
Haase is a lifetime .228/.278/.396 hitter at the big league level. He has plus power from the right side that comes with a lot of swing and miss. Haase has always been a bat-first option who probably profiles best in the third catcher role he’ll play now that he’s back with San Francisco.
Padres Notes: Arraez, Adam, Song
Luis Arraez made his return to San Diego yesterday for the first time since signing with the division rival Giants in free agency. Speaking to reporters (including Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune), Arraez revealed that he “talked a lot” with the Padres during free agency before ultimately signing in San Francisco.
It’s a decision that Arraez chalks up to his desire to play second base, which wasn’t on the table in San Diego due to the presence of Jake Cronenworth. The Giants afforded him that opportunity, and Sanders notes that the $12MM salary he received from his new club was more than the Padres could offer. Considering that Michael King is San Diego’s only offseason addition making even $3MM in 2026, that certainly seems like a fair assessment.
Even if the team’s financial situation made a reunion all but impossible, Arraez’s strong desire to play second base this year does shed some light on his free agency. The soon-to-be 29-year-old posted the worst season of his career last year, hitting just .292 with a 104 wRC+. It seemed as though that left Arraez to sit through a very quiet offseason where his name rarely appeared in the rumor mill, if ever. Perhaps, however, Arraez’s desire to play second limited his market more than it otherwise would have. Teams like the Mariners, Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Diamondbacks, and the Padres themselves were all looking for help at first base this offseason, while teams on the hunt for second base help were far more limited. The Red Sox, Giants, and A’s were three of the only clubs looking to add at the keystone this winter, and Boston was known to be prioritizing defense.
That surely left Arraez with a very limited market in terms of teams willing to hand him the second base job, but that list could expand if he turns in a strong season this year. Of course, a tough season or even one where he doesn’t prove himself capable of handling the keystone could leave him looking at an even softer market next year. As Arraez himself pointed out to Sanders, his contract with San Francisco is for just one year.
“I don’t know what (will happen) later,” Arraez said of his future after the 2026 campaign (as relayed by Sanders).
In other Padres news, Sanders writes that right-hander Jason Adam threw 1 1/3 scoreless frames on a rehab assignment over the weekend and is making good progress as he looks to return from quadriceps surgery. The righty is poised to throw in a simulated game today before making back-to-back rehab appearances on Friday and Saturday. If those outings all go well, that could set him up for a return not long after his minimum IL stint date of April 8. When he does return, Adam will be a huge boon to the Padres’ bullpen. The veteran righty has been one of the best relief arms in baseball over the past few years, with a 2.07 ERA and 3.20 FIP since the start of the 2022 campaign. He’ll join a crowded high leverage mix alongside Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon, and Jeremiah Estrada once he’s back in action.
Speaking of rehab assignments, infielder Sung Mun Song is rehabbing after opening the year on the shelf due to oblique tightness. MLB.com notes that he began a rehab assignment last week, and he’s appeared in three games since. That includes appearances at second base and shortstop, suggesting that he might not be too far from being healthy enough to return. The 29-year-old is waiting to make his big league debut after signing out of the KBO with the Padres on a four-year, $15MM pact over the offseason. He figures to factor heavily into the club’s bench mix once healthy, seeing time all over the infield and perhaps even in the outfield corners this year.
Brewers Acquire Luis Matos
The Brewers announced that they have acquired outfielder Luis Matos from the Giants in exchange for cash considerations. San Francisco had designated Matos for assignment last week when setting their Opening Day roster. To open a 40-man spot for him, Milwaukee has designated left-hander Sammy Peralta for assignment. Matos is out of options, so the Brewers will also need to open an active roster spot for him when he reports to the team.
Milwaukee is buying low on a former top prospect. Matos was a fairly high profile international signing out of Venezuela and he performed well against lower-level pitching. Going into 2022, Baseball America ranked him the #73 prospect in all of baseball. In November of that year, the Giants added him to their 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.
He hasn’t been able to click in the majors. Over the past three seasons, the Giants sent him to the plate 593 times. His 14.2% strikeout rate was quite low but he also drew a walk at a subpar rate of 6.1%. He hit 15 home runs but his 231/.281/.369 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 80, putting him 20% below league average. He may have been held back by a .247 batting average on balls in play but his batted ball data wasn’t popping off the charts. His defensive metrics have been quite poor, though he’s been better in the corners than in center.
His minor league offense has been better in that time. In 823 minor league plate appearances over the past three years, he has 33 home runs and a .290/.354/.495 line. Even though most of those numbers were put up in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, wRC+ still considered him to have been 19% above league average in that time.
As he was shuttled between Triple-A and the minors, he exhausted his option years. That made it harder for the Giants to keep committing a roster spot to him. They preferred to use their bench spots to keep the power bat of Jerar Encarnación and the speed of Jared Oliva.
The Brewers will take a shot on him. They have recently gotten good results from a few guys that other clubs gave up on, with Andrew Vaughn and Jake Bauers being a couple of examples. Perhaps they can get a similar post-hype breakout from Matos. He has under two years of club control, so he can be retained through 2030 if that pans out. He will qualify for arbitration at the end of this year as a Super Two guy if he holds his spot all year.
For now, he’ll have to find some playing time in the outfield. For the moment, Milwaukee has Jackson Chourio, Steward Berroa and Akil Baddoo on the injured list. That leaves them with Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, Brandon Lockridge and Blake Perkins, with Christian Yelich perhaps playing the field on occasion when he’s not the designated hitter. One of them could be optioned to the minors to open a spot for Matos. Perkins started the season on optional assignment and was recalled when Chourio got hurt, so perhaps he will be the move.
Matos is a righty bat and he has better numbers against southpaws, so perhaps he can carve out a short-side platoon role as Mitchell and Frelick are lefties. Matos has a .238/.302/.411 line against lefties in his big league career, compared to a .226/.267/.342 slash against righties.
Peralta, 28 in May, was just claimed off waivers from the Angels in October. He was optioned to Triple-A Nashville earlier this month and therefore hasn’t appeared in a big league game for the Brewers. He has 45 2/3 innings on his track record from the previous three seasons with a 5.12 earned run average, 17.3% strikeout rate, 11.2% walk rate and 40.8% ground ball rate.
The lefty tossed 70 2/3 Triple-A innings last year. His 4.33 ERA wasn’t especially impressive but that performance came in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. His 24.1% strikeout rate, 4.8% walk rate and 45.5% ground ball rate were all decent figures. He still has an option remaining and could appeal to a club looking for some pitching depth. DFA limbo can last as long as a week but the waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Brewers could take a maximum of five days to explore trade talks.
Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images
Giants Designate Tyler Fitzgerald For Assignment
The Giants announced that infielder/outfielder Tyler Fitzgerald has been designated for assignment. That opens a 40-man spot for right-hander Dylan Smith. It was reported earlier that San Francisco would be acquiring Smith from the Tigers. Smith has been optioned to Triple-A Sacramento.
Fitzgerald had a breakout performance at the plate in 2024, his age-26 and rookie season. After a strong 2023 season in which he ripped 22 homers and swiped 32 bags in the minors, he hit the ground running in San Francisco. Through 96 games and 341 plate appearances that season. Fitzgerald hit .280/.334/.497 with 15 homers and 17 steals. A .380 average on balls in play was ripe for regression, and Fitzgerald’s 31.7% strikeout rate only further cast doubt on his ability to sustain that year’s level of production. He fell off more substantially in 2025 than one might have reasonably anticipated, however.
In 2025, Fitzgerald opened the season as the Giants’ top option at second base. He got out to a slow start, however, and hit the injured list in early May due to a rib fracture. He only missed 12 days. Fitzgerald returned and continued to struggle at the plate. By late June, he’d been optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. He was recalled a week later and spent most of the remaining time on the ’25 calendar oscillating between Sacramento and San Francisco. Overall, Fitzgerald finished out the season with a .217/.278/.327 slash line and a 28.8% strikeout rate.
Now 28 years old and with no clear path to playing time, Fitzgerald has lost not only his starting job but his grip on a roster spot entirely. His 2025 struggles contributed to the Giants’ offseason signing of Luis Arraez to serve as new skipper Tony Vitello’s second baseman. With Matt Chapman at third, Willy Adames at shortstop and Arraez at second base, none of Fitzgerald’s primary positions are available. He’s logged a bit of time in the outfield corners, but the Giants have Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee handling those roles, with newly signed Harrison Bader in center.
Though Fitzgerald could factor into the bench mix, in theory, the Giants have Christian Koss in an infield/outfield role. He outperformed Fitzgerald in the majors last year (after a big 2024 in the minor leagues). Jerar Encarnacion is out of minor league options and can’t be sent down. Minor league signee Jared Oliva offers plus-plus speed and a good glove across all three outfield spots. One spot, of course, is earmarked for the backup catcher (currently Daniel Susac). And whenever top prospect Bryce Eldridge returns to the majors, that’ll push Casey Schmitt — who’s surprisingly played three games at first base thus far — into a utility role.
Increasingly, Fitzgerald just feels like a man without a true role on the roster. He’d be a nice depth option to have in the event of an injury, but the Giants are well-stocked with players who have a combination of comparable versatility, youth and more minor league options than Fitzgerald, who’s in his final option year.
Based on Fitzgerald’s versatility and 2024 production, another club would take an interest now that he’s in DFA limbo. He doesn’t have strong defensive grades at shortstop in the majors but does have plus marks at second base. He can handle third base or the outfield corners as well, and even while he struggled at the plate last season, Fitzgerald landed in the 97th percentile of big leaguers in terms of average sprint speed (29.7 feet/sec), per Statcast.
The Giants have five days to trade Fitzgerald or place him on waivers. Running him through waivers would be another 48-hour process. Within a week’s time, his DFA will be formally resolved. There’s a good chance he’ll land with another club. It’s easy to imagine some teams having interest in a small trade, and at the very least, it’d be surprising if all 29 other clubs passed via waivers.
Giants To Acquire Dylan Smith
The Giants are acquiring right-hander Dylan Smith from the Tigers, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. Detroit designated him for assignment when setting their Opening Day roster last week and will get cash considerations in return. San Francisco will need to make a corresponding move to open a 40-man spot for this to become official.
Smith, 26 in May, has a limited major league track record. The Tigers added him to their 40-man roster in May of last year. He spent most of the remainder of the seasons on optional assignment and was also on the minor league injured list for a while. His major league work consisted of 13 innings over seven appearances, allowing two earned runs while surrendering six hits, five walks, hitting three batters and striking out four opponents.
His minor league track record as a reliever is also fairly limited. After being drafted in 2021, the Tigers had him working as a starter for a while. Thanks to some injuries and some mediocre numbers, he was moved to the bullpen in 2025. Around his stints in the majors and his time on the IL, he tossed 39 2/3 minor league innings with a 2.27 earned run average. His 37.7% strikeout rate was massive and his 45.5% ground ball rate was also pretty good, though his 11.3% walk rate was on the high side. His four-seamer and sinker both averaged in the mid-90s while his splitter and slider both averaged in the mid-80s.
Due to his recent move to relief work and his subpar control last year, Smith may be a bit of a project. He got squeezed off the Detroit roster but San Francisco will be the beneficiary. Smith still has a couple of options, so they can shuttle him to the minors and back fairly freely as he tries to rein in his stuff. He has just a handful of service days and could stick with the club for years to come if he takes a step forward and continues to justify a roster spot.
The Giants don’t have a lot of certainty in their bullpen. They traded away Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval last year then lost Randy Rodríguez to Tommy John surgery. They added some guys via small deals but didn’t make any massive moves to upgrade the relief corps, so there’s room for some young guys to flourish.
Photo courtesy of Junfu Han, Imagn Images
Giants Select Caleb Kilian
The Giants announced their Opening Day roster moves today. Outfielder Jared Oliva and right-hander Caleb Kilian were selected to the 40-man. In corresponding moves, left-hander Reiver Sanmartin was placed on the 60-day injured list and outfielder Luis Matos has been designated for assignment. It had been reported yesterday that the Giants were likely to select Oliva and designate Matos. The Giants also announced that catcher Eric Haase has been released from his minor league deal and that Rule 5 catcher Daniel Susac has made the team.
Kilian, 29 in June, was signed to a minor league deal in the offseason. He had an impressive camp, tossing 9 1/3 innings while only allowing one earned run. He racked up 11 strikeouts while only issuing two walks.
That strong performance will allow him to make the roster of his original organization. Kilian was drafted by the Giants in 2019 but was flipped to the Cubs as part of the Kris Bryant trade in 2021. He only got to make eight appearances for the Cubs from 2022 to 2024. He was injured for most of 2025 and only made 11 minor league appearances.
Now that he appears to be healthy and pitching well, he’ll make it back to the big leagues. He is out of options and will have to be kept on the active roster or else removed from the 40-man entirely. He has less than a year of service time, so he can be retained for the long term if this season goes especially well.
The San Francisco bullpen has opportunities available because they traded Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval last year and then lost Randy Rodríguez to Tommy John surgery. Their moves to replace those losses were mostly injury reclamation projects, such as Kilian himself.
Sanmartin’s transfer is not a surprise. A waiver claimee from November, it was reported a few weeks ago that he had suffered a significant hip flexor strain that was going to keep him out of action for at least three months.
Behind the plate, the Giants have Patrick Bailey but the backup job was up for grabs. In December’s Rule 5 draft, the Giants got Susac via a trade. The Twins technically selected him from the Athletics fourth overall in that draft but then immediately flipped him to the Giants for minor league catcher Miguel Caraballo.
The fact that the Giants actually gave up a player in order to jump the Rule 5 queue suggested they felt good about Susac’s chances of being an impact guy for them. He helped his own cause by putting up a .350/.386/.550 line in spring training. That was helped by an unsustainable .400 batting average on balls in play but it was enough to get him the job regardless.
As a Rule 5 guy, he can’t be optioned to the minors and will have to stay on the active roster all year long for the Giants to fully acquire his rights. If they want to cut him at any point this year, he could be traded or put on waivers. Any claiming team would take on the same Rule 5 restrictions. If he were to clear waivers, he would have to be offered back to the A’s.
Susac getting the job squeezes out Haase, who had signed a minor league deal in January. He had a huge spring, slashing .286/.375/.536, but also struck out in 14 of his 32 plate appearances. That’s fairly reflective of his big league career, as he has 48 home runs in 1,224 plate appearances but has been punched out at a 30.7% clip. He’ll head out to the open market to see what opportunities are available this week as all clubs shuffle their rosters.
Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images