SF Giants reassign four players to minor-league camp

The SF Giants roster cuts continued on Wednesday. As the team pares down to a 26-man roster for Opening Day, the organization reassigned right-handed pitcher Rico Garcia, RHP Silvino Bracho, left-handed pitcher Phil Pfeifer, and corner bat Joe McCarthy to minor-league spring training. The moves bring the Giants’ spring training roster down to 36.

Garcia and Pfeifer have barely appeared in preseason play, but both McCarthy and Bracho did see a fair share of playing time in Scottsdale. McCarthy posted a .212/.333/.364 triple-slash with one home run in 39 plate appearances. Bracho had seemed like a possible sleeper to make the Opening Day roster. The right-handed reliever struck out 12 batters against just 2 walks in 7.1 innings across 7 appearances.

The SF Giants reassigned Silvino Bracho, Rico Garcia, Joe McCarthy, and Phil Pfeifer to minor-league camp on Wednesday.

Garcia was a part of the Giants bullpen last season, alternating between the big-league roster and the alternate site. He finished 2020 with 12 appearances, 10 innings, 7 strikeouts, a 5.40 ERA, and 4.29 FIP. The Giants re-signed him on a minor-league deal this offseason to offer further reliever depth, but he is now out for the season after suffering a UCL injury.

McCarthy broke camp with the Giants and started in left field on Opening Day last season, but after going 0-10 with 5 strikeouts and no walks, he was soon optioned to the alternate site. He should get ample playing time at Triple-A but has yet to have sustained success against upper minor-league competition at the plate.

The Giants added Bracho on a minor-league deal this offseason. He has pitched in parts of five big-league seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks before he was outrighted off the 40-man roster at the end of last season. Bracho has posted a 4.82 ERA (4.86 FIP) across 89.2 MLB frames. However, in the minors, Bracho has posted a dominant 2.97 ERA with a strikeout rate north of 35%.

The Giants inked Pfeifer to a minor-league deal less than a week ago. The 28-year-old Vanderbilt product has minor-league experience as a reliever and starter. He never appeared in a spring training game and will likely factor into the Triple-A pitching staff.

The SF Giants will still need to cut ten more players from the team’s spring training roster. For now, fans know Rico Garcia, Silvino Bracho, Joe McCarthy, and Phil Pfeifer will not factor into the team’s big-league roster on Opening Day.