SF Giants DFA 7 players at roster deadline

All around Major League Baseball, teams were mixing and matching to set up their rosters by Tuesday evening's deadline for Rule 5 Draft protection, and the SF Giants were no different. A total of seven players were designated for assignment before the deadline to create room for young players who needed to be added to the 40-man roster or would be at risk for getting plucked by another team in December's Rule 5 draft.

The players ranged from experienced big-leaguers to a few who haven't reached the show yet, and from three-plus years with the Orange and Black to just being picked up in the last week.

A number of releases were expected thanks to the talent needing to be protected from the Rule 5, which allows players with over four or five years in the minor leagues under their belts (depending on the age they entered pro ball) to get a chance to make the Major Leagues with another organization if they hadn't been put on the 40-man roster yet. Top prospects such as Marco Luciano, Luis Matos and others reaching that status were the reason the Giants had a number of tough decisions to make.

Dependable southpaw Garcia among the cuts

Most notable among the players DFA'd was left-handed reliever Jarlin Garcia. A steady member of the team's bullpen since 2020, Garcia's 2022 was his worst of three in San Francisco as he was hit with a 3.74 ERA in 58 appearances out of the bullpen.

Infielder Jason Vosler was the only other player in the group who had appeared in the Majors with the Giants; he played sparingly in 2021 and 2022 for the squad and batted .228 in 171 plate appearances with an OPS+ of 100, exactly league-average.

Right-hander Sam Delaplane and infielder Colton Welker were among a group recently moved from the 60-day injured list to the 40-man roster. Welker played briefly for the Colorado Rockies in 2021 but missed 2022 with an injury, and Delaplane was in Seattle's system from 2017-2021 without a Major League appearance before pitching for Single-A San Jose in the Giants' organization in 2022.

The other three players, Strotman, Viloria and Nunez, were all acquired off waivers recently. Strotman and Viloria were claimed on the same day from the Rangers, and Nunez was a Rockie until a week ago.