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Giants Re-Sign Cody Stashak To Minor League Deal

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The Giants have re-signed right-hander Cody Stashak to a minor league deal, per Matt Eddy of Baseball America. He had signed a minor league deal with the club in August of last year but will now return to the organization for this year.

Stashak, 30 in June, made his major league debut with the Twins in 2019 and the start of his big league career went well. He threw 25 innings for the Twins that year and another 15 in the shortened 2020 season. He had a 3.15 earned run average after those two campaigns, having paired a strong 26.1% strikeout rate with a tiny 2.5% walk rate.

In 2021, he made 15 appearances with his ERA jumping to 6.89, though bad luck may have played a role in that small sample. His walk rate jumped to 13.3% but he also punched out 34.7% of hitters. A .389 batting average on balls in play and 62% strand rate were both on the unfortunate side of average. He didn’t get a chance for those numbers to regress as a left back disc injury prevented him from making an appearance after the month of May.

He made 11 appearances in 2022, with his ERA falling to 3.86 in those, but then he required season-ending surgery to repair a labrum tear in his throwing shoulder. He was outrighted by the Twins at the end of the year and then joined the Lancaster Barnstormers of the independent Atlantic League, but signed with the Giants after just a couple of appearances. He made five appearances for Triple-A Sacramento late last year, allowing seven earned runs in five innings.

Though the results weren’t ideal in that brief look, the Giants were nonetheless intrigued enough to bring him back. After so much missed time, it’s hard to know what form he will be in, but he has generally had strong strikeout and walk numbers all throughout his career. In 383 minor league contests, he has punched out 25.3% of batters faced while giving out free passes at just a 5.8% clip. If he gets over his recent health woes, he’ll provide the Giants with some non-roster depth. If he gets added to the roster, he still has a couple of options and just over three years of service time.

The club’s bullpen figures to have a core of Camilo Doval, Luke Jackson and the brothers Tyler Rogers and Taylor Rogers. But the remaining spots could be taken by guys with options and limited experience, such as Ryan Walker, Sean Hjelle, Erik Miller or Randy Rodríguez. If Stashak is healthy and throwing well, there could be a path open for him to get back to the majors.

Five Potential Trade Fits For Joey Bart

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Joey Bart has been a speculative trade candidate for at least a year. The Giants selected him with the #2 overall pick in the 2018 draft. A few months later, they changed front offices, tabbing Farhan Zaidi to lead baseball operations. Two seasons thereafter, the front office drafted another catcher in the top 15.

That player, Patrick Bailey, now seems the organization’s long-term answer. He reached the big leagues last year and impressed defensively. Bailey rated as a high-end framer and cut down an excellent 28.4% of basestealers. His bat faded after a hot start, but he was impressive enough behind the dish to secure a seventh-place finish in NL Rookie of the Year balloting.

Bart, on the other hand, has not performed at the level expected of such a high draft choice. He has rated as a below-average defender by most public metrics. In 503 MLB plate appearances spread over the last four seasons, he’s hitting .219/.288/.335. Bart has hit 11 home runs but has punched out in over 35% of his trips to the plate.

As a result, he hasn’t secured a lasting spot on the MLB roster. He spent most of last year’s second half on optional assignment to Triple-A Sacramento. Bart’s .248/.357/.393 showing in 244 plate appearances at the top minor league level was below-average. Having turned 27 last month, he’s running out of opportunities to establish himself.

With Bailey having clearly surpassed Bart on the depth chart, the latter was floated as a trade candidate last winter and in advance of the ’23 deadline. San Francisco never found an offer to their liking and held him as minor league depth. That’s no longer possible. Last season was Bart’s final option year. The Giants can’t send him back to Triple-A without first exposing him to waivers.

They have three possibilities: carry him on the MLB roster, waive him, or trade him. It’s unlikely they’ll choose the first course of action. The Giants added Tom Murphy on a two-year, $8.25MM free agent deal to serve as Bailey’s backup. Last year’s Rule 5 selection Blake Sabol is still on the 40-man roster, although he can now be optioned to the minors (which isn’t possible for a Rule 5 pick in their rookie season). Bart is arguably fourth on the organizational hierarchy. Unless San Francisco plans to carry three catchers, he’s not going to make the team barring a spring injury to Bailey or Murphy.

While there’s some chance that his stock has fallen to the point that San Francisco could simply run him through waivers, they’d surely prefer to recoup something in trade rather than risk losing him for nothing. While this isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list, we’ll highlight a few teams that might consider Bart an upgrade over their current backup catcher.

  • Brewers: Milwaukee lost Víctor Caratini to the Astros in free agency. They already have their franchise catcher in William Contreras but could consider a depth addition. Milwaukee signed Eric Haase to a big league free agent deal. He’s currently penciled in for the job, but he signed for just $1MM and is coming off a dismal .201/.247/.281 showing in 89 games between the Tigers and Guardians. Haase is already 31 and not a highly-regarded defensive catcher, so the Brewers probably aren’t firmly committed to him holding the backup job. Bart’s mediocre framing metrics might not be a huge concern for a team that has done an excellent job developing the receiving skills of Omar Narváez and Contreras in recent years.
  • Diamondbacks: Arizona is going into camp with a competition for the backup job behind Gabriel Moreno. The Snakes have added Tucker Barnhart and former highly-regarded prospect Ronaldo Hernández on minor league deals. They’re trying to push José Herrera, who is on the 40-man roster but only carries a .198/.272/.231 slash line at the MLB level. Herrera has one more option year.
  • Marlins: New president of baseball operations Peter Bendix has made one addition behind the plate, acquiring Christian Bethancourt in a cash trade with the Guardians. He joins Nick Fortes, who hit just .204/.263/.299 last season, as the only catchers on the 40-man roster. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote last week the Fish would be content with a Bethancourt-Fortes tandem, but they could jump on an opportunity to add Bart for a minimal cost. Fortes still has two options remaining.
  • Pirates: Pittsburgh lost presumptive starter Endy Rodríguez for the season thanks to an elbow injury suffered in winter ball. Former first overall pick Henry Davis should get the majority of the playing time behind the dish. Pittsburgh’s backup options are Ali Sánchez (who is out of options but signed a major league deal in December) and Jason Delay. The Bucs would probably have to waive Sánchez if they add Bart. The question is whether they prefer the former’s defensive stability over the latter’s potentially higher ceiling.
  • Rays: Tampa Bay is going to do something at catcher. Waiving Bethancourt left them with defensive specialist René Pinto as the only backstop on their 40-man roster. Rob Brantly and Alex Jackson are in the organization as non-roster players. The Rays typically emphasize defense behind the dish, so perhaps they’re not enamored with Bart, but no one has a clearer ability to carry him on the MLB team.

Teams Showing Interest In Brandon Crawford

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To this point in the winter, the market surrounding Brandon Crawford has been all but silent in the public sphere, with no rumors of note connecting the longtime shortstop to interested clubs throughout the offseason. That doesn’t mean there hasn’t been interest in the 13-year MLB veteran’s services, however. In fact, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported this morning that Crawford has drawn interest from multiple teams this winter. Rosenthal adds that while Crawford would consider a move off shortstop to second or third base this winter, he could decide to retire “if the right opportunity does not arise.”

Crawford, who celebrated his 37th birthday last week, is coming off a difficult 2023 season where he missed time throughout the campaign with calf, hamstring, forearm, and knee issues that surely hampered his performance throughout the year. The veteran slashed a paltry .194/.273/.314 in 320 trips to the plate with the Giants. He remained a quality defender per Statcast with +6 Outs Above Average at shortstop in spite of the offensive struggles, though Fielding Bible’s Defensive Runs Saved were far more skeptical of his performance, grading him at a brutal -14 figure that was bottom three among shortstops last season.

Despite the varied opinions on his defensive chops at shortstop at this point in his career and his recent struggles at the plate, it’s not hard to see why some teams would have interest in adding Crawford to their infield mix. After all, the veteran is just two seasons removed from an explosive 2021 campaign where he slashed .298/.377/.522 while finishing fourth in NL MVP voting. What’s more, as a left-handed hitting infielder with a career .249/.323/.403 slash line against right-handers, Crawford could perhaps provide a counterbalance to the infield mix of a club heavy on right-handed hitters.

Perhaps the strongest point in Crawford’s favor as he seeks a role in the majors for the 2024 campaign is the dearth of shortstop options available this winter. As things stand, the class is led by Tim Anderson, who is coming off a platform season even weaker on both sides of the ball than that of Crawford, and Amed Rosario, who pairs a below-average offensive season with defense at shortstop that routinely ranks among the worst in the majors according to defensive metrics. While second and third base offer some stronger options, this winter’s infield class as a whole is unusually thing, particularly for a club who can’t afford to make a run for third baseman Matt Chapman.

Rosenthal does not mention which specific teams have interest in Crawford’s services, though he does make clear that a reunion between Crawford and the Giants “appears out of the question.” That’s not necessarily a surprise, as the Giants have been frequently connected to Chapman this winter and appear poised to give top prospect Marco Luciano the keys to shortstop after he made his big league debut late last year.

As Crawford searches for a new organization for the first time in his 16-year professional career, there are a few speculative fits that could make sense for his services. Should Crawford wish to finish out his career in the bay area, crossing the bay to play for the A’s during their final season in Oakland could allow him to do that while offering the young A’s roster a veteran leader who can plug the club’s obvious hole at shortstop, where Nick Allen and Rule 5 pick Darell Hernaiz appear to be the best remaining options. Looking beyond the bay area, the Marlins, Mariners, Rays, and Pirates are among the teams who could use additional infield help that wouldn’t break the bank.

Robbie Ray Discusses Rehab

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  • Newly-acquired Giants southpaw Robbie Ray spoke to reporters (including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle) as he rehabs from UCL and flexor tendon surgery. The 32-year-old southpaw said it feels as though he has a “brand new elbow,” and that he hopes to begin throwing off a mound early on during Spring Training. In terms of a timetable for his return to the big league pitching staff, Ray suggests that a return around the All-Star break would be a “best-case scenario.” The 2021 AL Cy Young award winner, Ray posted a 3.31 ERA and 3.94 FIP in 65 starts with the Blue Jays and Mariners the past three seasons, though only one of those starts came in 2023 before Ray went under the knife back in May of last year. His eventual return should bolster a San Francisco rotation that currently figures to feature Logan Webb, Ross Stripling, and newly-signed righty Jordan Hicks alongside youngsters Kyle Harrison and Keaton Winn.

Giants Sign Tommy Romero To Minor League Deal

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The Giants have signed right-hander Tommy Romero to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The Beverly Hills Sports Council client has been assigned to Triple-A Sacramento but could perhaps receive an invite to big league Spring Training.

Romero, 26, is not too far removed from being a notable prospect in the Rays system. In 2021, he tossed 110 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A, with a combined 2.61 earned run average that year. He paired a 33.3% strikeout rate with a 7.1% walk rate. The Rays added him to their 40-man roster that November to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft and Baseball America ranked him the #21 prospect in the organization going into 2022.

He was able to make his MLB debut in 2022, logging 8 1/3 innings over four appearances. He allowed 10 earned runs in that time, walking nine while striking out seven. He was claimed off waivers by the Nationals in August and one of those four appearances was with the Nats. He spent the rest of the year in Triple-A, between those two orgs, with a 3.24 ERA in 86 innings. His peripherals backed up a bit, with his strikeout rate falling to 20.2% and his walk rate ticking up to 9.6%.

The Nats non-tendered Romero at the end of 2022 and re-signed him to a minor league deal for 2023. He tossed 87 2/3 innings over 10 starts and 26 relief appearances last year with a 5.44 ERA. His 20.4% strikeout rate was somewhat similar to the year before but he gave out free passes at a huge 15.2% clip.

It obviously wasn’t his strongest season but he is still fairly young and was a well-regarded prospect in the recent past. For the Giants, there’s no risk in signing him to a minor league deal to get an up-close look at him. He has worked both as a starter and a reliever in his career and the Giants have shown a strong willingness to abandon the distinction between those two jobs. Logan Webb, Alex Cobb and Kyle Harrison were the only hurlers on the club to be used exclusively in the rotation last year, as guys like Sean Manaea, Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, Jakob Junis and others were moved back and forth between starting and relieving.

Manaea and DeSclafani are now on different clubs while Wood and Junis are free agents and Cobb is set to begin the year on the injured list due to hip surgery. Robbie Ray was recently acquired from the Mariners but is still recovering from last year’s Tommy John surgery and will also start the season on the IL. There’s little certainty in the Opening Day rotation beyond Webb. Stripling is still there but coming off a poor season. Harrison is still lacking in experience, as are guys like Tristan Beck and Keaton Winn. The club is going to give reliever Jordan Hicks a chance to start but it’s unclear if that will yield positive results. The bullpen has a solid foursome with Camilo Doval, Luke Jackson and the Rogers brothers but no one else with even one year of major league service time.

The club could still bolster that mix between now and Opening Day but there could be a path to logging some innings for depth guys. If Romero makes it onto the roster at any point this season, he has a couple of option years, allowing him to potentially provide the club with some roster flexibility.

Latest On Giants’ Offseason Targets

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The Giants’ offseason hasn’t necessarily been inactive, but it also hardly hasn’t played out as many fans would’ve expected when president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi kicked off the winter by stating a need to think differently, specifically with regard to the team’s roster construction.

The Giants made one big splash with their December signing of star KBO outfielder Jung Hoo Lee on a six-year deal, but the rest of their additions have been smaller scale in nature. Jordan Hicks, the hardest-throwing reliever on the market, was signed to a four-year deal. The Giants, despite having just one dependable source of innings (ace Logan Webb), plan to stretch the oft-injured Hicks out as a starter. Last year’s 65 2/3 innings were his most since a career-high 77 2/3 frames as a rookie in 2018. San Francisco also added backup catcher Tom Murphy on a two-year deal and acquired former AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray (who’s rehabbing from Tommy John surgery) in a trade with the Mariners that dumped the contracts of Mitch Haniger and Anthony DeSclafani.

That’s a fair bit of activity, but the Giants are still teeming with questions about the composition of both the lineup and the rotation. It doesn’t appear they consider their offense to be a finished product, however. San Francisco made a “late run” at Rhys Hoskins before he signed with the Brewers, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle hears the same but cautions that their offer “wasn’t close” to the two-year, $34MM deal Hoskins inked in Milwaukee. That pact also contains an opt-out provision following the 2024 season.

While the Giants have given opt-out clauses perhaps more regularly than any other team in MLB in recent years — e.g. Haniger, Carlos Rodon, Michael Conforto, Sean Manaea, Ross Stripling — Slusser reports that the team is trying to move away from that contract mold. (Lee’s deal also contains an opt-out, though that comes after four years as opposed to the short-term nature of the others just listed.) Whether it was the lack of an opt-out or reluctance to match the years/dollars on the deal, Hoskins preferred the Brewers’ offer and will spend at least the 2024 season in Milwaukee.

The Giants may have missed on Hoskins — an all too familiar refrain for their fans — but mere interest in the longtime Phillies slugger shows that the Giants remain interested in the possibility of adding a bat to the lineup at either first base or designated hitter. The market still offers quite a few options at both positions. MLBTR’s Anthony Franco ran through some of the top unsigned first basemen earlier today (including old friend Brandon Belt), while DH types still on the market include Justin Turner, J.D. Martinez and Jorge Soler. Last year’s primary designated hitter, Joc Pederson, agreed to a one-year deal with the division-rival Diamondbacks just yesterday.

That said, Slusser also writes that third baseman Matt Chapman remains the Giants’ “top position-player target.” The 30-year-old, two-time Platinum Glove winner has ties to multiple Giants higher-ups; he was drafted by the Athletics when Zaidi was still an assistant GM in Oakland, and new Giants skipper Bob Melvin is obviously quite familiar with Chapman after managing him for the first five seasons of the third baseman’s career with the A’s. Zaidi has been focused on upgrading the team’s defense in addition to deepening his lineup, and Chapman could potentially check both boxes — particularly if he’s able to bounce back from the finger injury he sustained in the weight room in early August, which surely contributed to a disastrous finish at the plate (.183/.259/.318 over his final 139 plate appearances).

There’s still a fair bit of offseason left, but San Francisco’s options — particularly on the free agent market — have dwindled while quite a few needs remain unaddressed. The club hasn’t meaningfully upgraded its power production or added any stable innings behind Webb. The rotation behind the Cy Young runner-up is currently a hodgepodge of swingman Ross Stripling, top prospect Kyle Harrison, 26-year-old Keaton Winn (42 1/3 career innings) and the aforementioned Hicks, who’s made all of eight starts in his MLB career. Alex Cobb should be back in the first half, and Ray could return after the All-Star break, but the Giants have spent more than $165MM in free agency so far and the roster doesn’t look definitively better than it did in 2023 when they lost 83 games.

Tigers Claim Devin Sweet, Designate Tyler Nevin

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The Tigers announced Thursday that they’ve claimed right-hander Devin Sweet off waivers from the Giants and opened a spot on their 40-man roster by designating infielder Tyler Nevin for assignment.

Detroit will be Sweet’s fourth organization in as many months. The right-hander went from the Mariners to the A’s in early September, from the A’s to the Giants in December and now to the Tigers — all via waiver claims. San Francisco hadn’t previously indicated that Sweet had been designated for assignment, but last week’s agreement with Jordan Hicks and acquisition of catcher/outfielder Cooper Hummel pushed the team’s roster up to 41 players.

Sweet, 27, yielded 10 runs in 8 2/3 innings for the Mariners during this past season’s MLB debut. His minor league track record is far more impressive, however. In 44 innings between the Double-A and Triple-A levels this past season, the formerly undrafted free agent notched a pristine 2.25 ERA with a 32.6% strikeout rate and 6.3% walk rate. Sweet isn’t a flamethrower — he averaged 93 mph on his heater with Seattle — but has consistently missed bats and avoided walks as a professional. In five minor league seasons, he’s whiffed 29% of his opponents against a 7% walk rate. He has a pair of minor league options remaining, too, which could make him a valuable and flexible relief option for the Tigers if he can stick on their 40-man roster.

As for Nevin, he’ll lose his hold on a 40-man roster spot after a season that saw him bat just .200/.306/.316 through 111 trips to the plate. The son of former MLB All-Star and Angels skipper Phil Nevin, Tyler has appeared in three MLB seasons and thus far managed only a .203/.310/.301 batting line. The Rockies originally selected Nevin 38th overall in 2015, and he’s posted a solid .276/.355/.464 slash in 242 games at the Triple-A level. That includes a huge .326/.400/.543 slash (136 wRC+) in 385 Triple-A plate appearances this past season.

Nevin has experience at all four corner positions, with the bulk of his big league time coming at the hot corner. He’s out of minor league options, so any team that wants to bet on his pedigree and solid Triple-A performance will have to carry him on the 40-man roster or expose him to waivers before he can be sent down to the minors. The Tigers will have a week to trade Nevin or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.

MLBTR Podcast: The Cubs’ Activity, Marcus Stroman And Jordan Hicks

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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 Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • Ben Cherington of the Pirates has repeatedly said that he would be active in the market for another starting pitcher and another outfielder. With Spring Training starting in about one month, has he given up on this quest? (25:35)
  • Why do general managers not come out and say reports are B.S.? Use the Jays as example. They are not interested in Blake Snell but their name gets thrown in for leverage. Should GMs step in and say this report is false? The endless number of sources is ridiculous and leads nowhere except larger pay days or trade hauls because of fake competition. (27:30)
  • I think most of the baseball world is getting really sick of the Dodgers and Yankees buying all the major names. It’s terrible for parity and makes for season after season of “wash, rinse, repeat” storylines. Is the league ever going to enact a salary cap? It’s done great things for the other three major sports leagues. What is the reason for the resistance to it? (31:40)

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Giants Acquire Cooper Hummel From Mets

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The Mets announced that they have traded catcher/outfielder Cooper Hummel to the Giants in exchange for cash considerations. The Mets had designated him for assignment last week. MLB Transactions Daily reported that the Giants were acquiring Hummel prior to the official announcement. The Giants will now have a full 40-man roster and will need to make a corresponding move when they make their signing of Jordan Hicks official.

Hummel, 29, has received 227 major league plate appearances thus far in his career, spending time with the 2022 Diamondbacks and 2023 Mariners. He has drawn walks at a 11% clip but has also been struck out in 32.2% of those trips to the plate, leading to a batting line of .166/.264/.286. His offense has been much better at Triple-A. In 977 appearances at that level over the past three years, he has paired a 17.3% walk rate with a 21.2% strikeout rate. His .288/.420/.492 slash line in that time translates to a wRC+ of 132.

That kind of Triple-A production is surely enticing, as is Hummel’s defensive versatility. In the major leagues, he’s mostly split his time between catcher and left field, with a little bit of work in right field as well. He’s also played those three positions in the minors, along with a decent amount of time at first base and some brief looks at third base. He also still has an option year remaining and can be kept in the minors if the Giants don’t have a spot for him on the active roster.

The Giants already showed an affinity for this type of player when they utilized catcher/outfielder Blake Sabol on their club last year. Sabol struck out in 34% of his plate appearances but still managed to hit .235/.301/.394 for a wRC+ of 92, splitting his time almost evenly between catcher and left field. He was under Rule 5 restraints in 2023 but the club has now obtained his full rights and can option him going forward.

Patrick Bailey figures to be the primary catcher while Tom Murphy was signed to be the backup. Murphy is generally considered to be on the bat-first side of things and also has significant health concerns, having never surpassed 325 plate appearances in any big league season. Perhaps one of Sabol or Hummel could secure a job as a utility player that takes on part-time catching duties and allows Murphy to spend some time as the designated hitter. But since each of them are optionable, they could also be in Triple-A as depth until their services are required. The club also has Joey Bart in its catching mix but he is now out of options and may get squeezed from the roster at some point.

Jung Hoo Lee, Michael Conforto and Mike Yastrzemski project as the everyday outfielders with Austin Slater likely to be in a fourth outfielder role. Wilmer Flores and Murphy will perhaps get the lion’s share of DH time. Outfielders like Heliot Ramos and Luis Matos are also on the 40-man roster but have options and could get regular playing time in the minors while Hummel and/or Sabol serve in bench jobs at the big league level. Since Hummel has spent a bit of time at the infield corners, an injury to either LaMonte Wade Jr. or J.D. Davis could also open up some playing time for him.

Giants Hire Dusty Baker As Special Assistant

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The Giants are hiring Dusty Baker as a special assistant, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today (X link). He’ll add an experienced voice to work with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi; Nightengale adds that Baker will also assist CEO Larry Baer on certain business operations.

It’s an unsurprising development. Baker revealed last month that he was in talks with the Giants about some kind of non-coaching role. It allows the baseball lifer to remain involved with the game in a less demanding capacity than the managerial position in Houston from which he stepped down after the 2023 campaign. Changing teams also allows Baker to work closer to his home in Sacramento.

Baker is plenty familiar with the Giants. He managed for a decade in San Francisco, winning a trio of Manager of the Year honors along the way. Baker led the Giants to an 840-715 showing from 1993-2002. He helmed them to an NL pennant in ’02. Baker capped off what’ll very likely be a Hall of Fame career when he led Houston to a World Series in 2022.

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