Former SF Giants Farhan Zaidi pet project released by the Chicago White Sox

As the SF Giants gear up for a big offseason in which they will try to address a number of key needs, we have a chance to keep tabs on some familiar faces around the league as roster moves get made. Former Giants catcher Blake Sabol was just released by the Chicago White Sox.

Giants fans will remember Sabol from the time he spent with the Giants in 2023 and 2024. He is on the list of every Opening Day left fielder the team has had since Barry Bonds retired. The Giants threw him out there in left field against the New York Yankees in 2023 which was odd considering he was mainly thought of as a catcher.

Former SF Giants catcher Blake Sabol released by the White Sox

Sabol did not hit too bad for the Giants in 2023 as he slashed .235/.301/.394 with 13 home runs and 44 runs batted in. One of those homers was a memorable one as it was an improbable walk-off homer against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Despite that respectable rookie campaign, Sabol did not see very much playing time at all in 2024. He appeared in just 11 games and recorded 10 hits in 32 at-bats. That lack of playing time made it seem like he was going to be the odd man out in 2025.

That ended up being the case as the Giants designated him for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Justin Verlander.

Shortly thereafter the Giants traded him to the Boston Red Sox where he saw a little bit of playing time in 2025. In just eight games he had only two hits in 16 at-bats and was eventually designated for assignment by Boston as well.

The Chicago White Sox scooped him up off waivers and he spent the rest of the year in Triple-A. Apparently they felt they did not have enough room for him with other catcher options which is why he got released.

Ultimately, Sabol may never get another chance like the one he got with the Giants in 2023. Former president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi clearly liked Sabol and thought he could turn him into a versatile player who could play catcher and play the outfield and be moved all around like a chess piece.

Sometimes these Farhan Zaidi pet projects worked out, but a lot of times they did not. The Sabol experiment is an example of one that didn't pan out even though he showed some promise with the Giants.