The Giants placed the second baseman Thairo Estrada and left-handed relief pitcher Taylor Rogers And Tyler Matzek on waivers, The Athletic’s Grant Brisbee and Ken Rosenthal report. They are the latest veteran players to hit waivers as outsiders look to unload some salary.
Estrada, Rogers and Matzek were not designated for transfer. They can continue to play for the Giants until the waiver process is cleared. If they go unclaimed, San Francisco can (and likely will) simply keep them on the roster for the rest of the season. However, waivers are irrevocable. If another team claims someone, the Giants cannot revoke the placement.
Of course, the Giants wouldn’t have put the players on waivers if they weren’t hoping another team would claim. This is purely an attempt to reduce payroll. Estrada probably has the best chance of claiming out of the group. He’s playing on an arbitration salary of $4.7 million. He’ll be paid about $810,000 from tomorrow through the end of the season.
Estrada, 28, is widely respected for his defensive sense. Defensive Runs Saved has never been his favorite, but he ranks very high on Statcast’s Outs Above Average. While that hasn’t changed this year, his offense has fallen precipitously. Estrada was an average or better hitter in his first three seasons with the Giants, combining for a slash line of .266/.320/.416. He managed over 20 stolen bases and hit 14 home runs in each of 2022 and 2023.
This season, Estrada has been one of the worst hitters in the game. He has a .216/.246/.345 record in 374 at-bats. That is partly due to his career-low .245 in balls in play, but Estrada has never run much or had particularly good batted ball numbers. Among hitters with over 300 at-bats, only Eddie Rosario And Adam Duval have a lower on-base percentage.
That performance makes it likely that the Giants will trade Estrada next offseason, even if he stays on the roster for the rest of the year. He would be eligible for a small raise this year, likely in the $5-6 million range. The Giants have apparently decided not to offer him a contract, so they will make him available to other teams a month early to see if they can get rid of the final month of his 2024 salary.
Rogers is having a much better season than Estrada, but he would be a far more expensive signing. The veteran left-hander is in the second season of a three-year, $33 million free agent contract. It’s a backloaded contract that will pay him $12 million this year and next. He’s due just over $2 million for the final month of the season. A claiming team would also have to take on his $12 million salary for the 2025 season. That’s not an excessive amount for a reliever of Rogers’ caliber, but it represents a significant amount to take on via a waiver claim during the season.
Rogers, 33, is a former All-Star closer with the Twins. He has maintained his production in his two seasons in San Francisco. After posting a 3.83 earned run average in 51 2/3 innings last year, he is at 2.45 in 51 1/3 innings this season. Rogers has struck out opponents at an above-average rate of 28.2%, with a solid 7.7% walk rate. He has been solid overall all year, but has not pitched his way into new manager Bob Melvin’s circle of trust.
As measured by the Leverage Index, Rogers was No. 8 in San Francisco’s bullpen hierarchy (among relievers with at least 10 innings). That hasn’t changed over the course of the season despite Rogers’ numbers. It’s understandable that the Giants wouldn’t want to pay $12 million next season for a reliever who Melvin believes is best suited for the middle innings.
Matzek is the cheapest of the trio. He was acquired by the Braves as a salary compensation in the Jorge Soler After the deadline deal, he is playing on a $1.9 million contract. Matzek was on the injured list at the time of the trade and has yet to throw a single pitch as a Giant. He missed all of last year recovering from Tommy John surgery. Matzek returned this season before landing on the injured list again in May with elbow inflammation.
The 33-year-old left-hander had a rough first month in Atlanta, allowing 11 runs in 10 innings. The Giants sent him down to Triple-A for rehab a few weeks ago. He made five appearances and allowed four runs in 4 2/3 innings. Matzek should be able to return in September, although it’s not yet clear whether a contender will want to add him to their bullpen after a five-month layoff.
Matzek is due about $330,000 for the remainder of the year. His contract includes a team option for next season worth $5.5 million with no severance pay. It’s unlikely the Giants or a hypothetical claiming team will pick up that option.
