SF Giants lose young catcher to Minnesota Twins through waivers

The SF Giants announced the signing of Joc Pederson to a one-year, $6 million contract on Thursday. Given that the 40-man roster was full, they had to make a corresponding roster move to officially add Pederson to the roster.

SF Giants lose young catcher to Minnesota Twins through waivers

That move was placing catcher José Godoy on waivers after a very brief stint in the Giants organization. The Minnesota Twins claimed the 27-year-old backstop.

Godoy made sense as a third catcher on the 40-man roster for a couple of reasons including that he had two minor league options remaining and that he hit from the left side. The current contingent at catcher includes a pair of righties in Joey Bart and Curt Casali, so Godoy would have been a natural complement if one hit the injured list.

Godoy has accumulated a total of 40 major league appearances where he has slashed .162/.225/.189 with one extra-base hit, two runs scored, and three RBI. That is too small of a sample to analyze, but the left-handed bat has fared better in the minors, slashing .276/.357/.366 with a 9.5 percent walk rate against a 13.6 percent strikeout rate.

He does not hit for a lot of power as his swing is designed more for line drives than driving the ball over the fence, but he does excel at putting the ball in play. That said, Godoy's value on a 40-man roster comes from his defensive acumen as he has proven to be a good receiver with a strong arm.

For the Giants, they will still be in search for catching depth, especially in the upper minors. Outside of Bart and Casali, there are a handful of intriguing catching prospects including Patrick Bailey, Ricardo Genovés, and Adrian Sugastey. However, Genovés is the only one of the three who has experience above High-A.

The Giants did bring in Jhonny Pereda on a minor league deal, so they have some coverage behind the plate, but there is still more work to be done. San Francisco has been as aggressive as any team in recent years on the waiver wire, so that will be one area the Giants look to bolster depth.