Forgotten SF Giants southpaw (briefly) resurfaces in the big leagues with Cubs

The SF Giants have had plenty of players come and go over the years and it’s easy to forget some of them or at least go quite a while without thinking of them. Ty Blach was a southpaw pitcher for the Giants for years before he joined the Colorado Rockies. He was not in the big leagues last season but he has resurfaced with the Chicago Cubs who called him up to the big leagues over the weekend but he was just designated for assignment by Chicago on Tuesday. 

Blach just made his debut with the Cubs on Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers and pitched well. He went three innings and allowed just one hit while striking out two batters. Blach isn't the first ex-Giant to randomly pop up with the Cubs. Drew Pomeranz did that last year and had a great season in Chicago. Forever Giant Tyler Austin was signed by the Cubs in the offseason. Even Tyler Beede is in the Cubs' organization.

Blach debuted with San Francisco back in 2016 four years after the Giants drafted him in the fifth round of the 2012 MLB Draft. In his second career big league start he outdueled Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw by pitching eight shutout innings and even recorded two hits against the great lefty as the Giants won 3-0.

He went on to be a playoff contributor as well. In 2016 he was the winning pitcher in Game 3 of the NLDS against the Cubs and pitched 3 and 1/3 scoreless innings for the Giants in that series. 

That 2016 outing wasn’t the only time Blach owned the Dodgers. He was forced to start Opening Day against the Dodgers in 2018 and outdueled Kershaw yet again by pitching five shutout innings and the Giants won 1-0 thanks to a solo home run by Joe Panik.

Blach's Giants career was memorable even if stats are unremarkable

Blach put up respectable numbers for the Giants from 2016 to 2018, sporting a 4.36 ERA in 85 outings, 39 of which were starts, and 299 innings pitched total.

Unfortunately 2019 was a bit more of a struggle for him as he had a 12.00 ERA in seven appearances and was designated for assignment in July. He spent a little time with the Baltimore Orioles that season after they claimed him off waivers but he was cut loose by them as well.

That offseason, the Rockies brought in Blach which had to have been nice for him considering he’s a Colorado native. His numbers from 2022 to 2024 with Colorado were not great as he had a 6.13 ERA in 64 appearances. That’s pitching in Coors Field for you.

He spent 2025 in the minors with the Texas Rangers but he never got promoted to the big league team which is a shame since he would have had a chance to reunite with skipper Bruce Bochy.

The Cubs scooped him up on a minor league deal and while his numbers down in Triple-A weren’t exceptional he did enough to get back to the big leagues even if it was just for one game.

Blach is one of those fun Giants who bring back fond memories of beating the Dodgers so he’s a Good Giant in my book. His tenure with the Cubs was short-lived but maybe he will pop up with another big league team. 

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