SAN FRANCISCO, CA: According to Grant Brisbee and Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic, the Giants placed lefty relievers Taylor Rogers and Tyler Matzek, as well as second baseman Thairo Estrada, on waivers. As fringe contenders try to offload some payroll, these are the most recent experienced players known to have been added to the waiver wire.Rogers, Matzek, and Estrada weren't assigned anything.
They can play for the Giants going forward, provided the waiver process is completed. San Francisco can (and probably will) leave them on the roster for the remainder of the season if they are unclaimed. Waivers, however, cannot be reversed. The Giants cannot withdraw a player's placement if another team makes a claim on them.
If the Giants weren't expecting that an other team would make a claim, they obviously wouldn't have placed the guys on waivers.This is only an attempt to reduce payroll. Of the group, Estrada most likely has the highest chance of being claimed. On a $4.7MM arbitration salary, he is competing.
Roughly $810K must be paid starting tomorrow and continuing through the conclusion of the season. The 28-year-old Estrada's defensive prowess is widely recognized. He has never had a great defensive run save percentage, but Statcast's Outs Above Average gives him an excellent score. This year, that hasn't altered, but his offense has drastically declined.
During his first three seasons with the Giants, Estrada hit .266/.320/.416 as a hitter, batting average or better. In 2022 and 2023, he amassed more than 20 stolen bases and hit 14 home runs each. Estrada has been among the game's worst hitters this season. His career line through 374 plate appearances is .216/.246/.345.
Estrada has never walked a lot and hasn't had very good hit ball analytics, though that may be somewhat explained by his career-low.245 average on balls in play. The only players with a lower on-base percentage among batters with 300 or more plate appearances are Eddie Rosario and Adam Duvall.
Comments