SF Giants add former Yankees, Brewers lefty pitching prospect on a minors pact

A left-handed reliever remains an immediate need for the SF Giants. They added to the mix by signing former New York Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers pitching prospect Clayton Andrews to a minor league deal, per the team's transaction log.

SF Giants add former Yankees, Brewers lefty pitching prospect on a minors pact

The Giants have a pair of lefty relievers on the major league roster in Erik Miller and Taylor Rogers. Miller is having a quality rookie season with a 3.35 ERA in 43 innings. He is generally Bob Melvin's first lefty out of the bullpen.

On the other hand, Rogers has strong numbers with a 2.15 ERA in 37.2 frames for San Francisco this season. However, he has rarely been used in leverage spots.

It remains to be seen as to whether Andrews could be added to the major league roster, but there are seemingly innings available for another southpaw reliever. Andrews was originally a 17th-round pick by the Brewers out of Long Beach State University. Prior to that, he attended Maria Carrillo High School in Santa Rosa, California.

The 27-year-old has put together solid numbers in the minors, posting a 3.66 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 12.2 K/9, and a 2.64 SO/W rate across six minor league seasons. This includes a solid 3.66 ERA in 75 appearances in Triple-A. One thing is for certain and it is that Andrews records a healthy number of strikeouts.

Andrews was shipped to the Yankees before the start of the 2024 season in exchange for pitching prospect Joshua Quezada. He made only one appearance for New York, allowing a home run while recording just one out before he was optioned back to Triple-A and eventually placed on waivers. In total, he has allowed 11 earned runs in 3.2 innings in the majors split between the Yankees and Brewers.

On the mound, Andrews features a low 90's fastball with a changeup and an occasional slider. The changeup is his go-to pitcher as it gets late, fading action and is used often against right-handed hitters.

The Yankees placed Andrews on waivers in June where he went unclaimed and elected free agency. For the time being, he will join the ACL Giants before he, presumably, gets moved up to Triple-A.