SF Giants World Series champ Pablo Sandoval to continue playing career in Atlantic League

Before being released by the SF Giants, four-time World Series champion Pablo Sandoval signaled that he intended to continue his playing career. His next stop will be in the Atlantic League as the Staten Island FerryHawks announced that they have signed the corner infielder.

SF Giants World Series champ Pablo Sandoval to continue playing career in Atlantic League

It is a shame that the Giants could not find a way to keep Sandoval. Minor League Baseball recently agreed to its first Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in 2023. This led to substantial raises for minor leaguers but also resulted in the reduction of minor league headcount from 175 players to 165 players.

If you are wondering why the Giants were less active in minor league free agency this past winter, the new CBA played a pretty big role. Minor league roster spots have become more scarce, so teams have become more selective in who they keep. This is why the Giants were unable to keep Sandoval despite his longstanding ties with the organization.

The Giants signed the 14-year veteran to a minor league deal in February. This included a camp invite. It was a great morale boost for the club and Sandoval was a positive influence on some of the Giants' younger position players.

At the time of the signing, there was no direct path to making the Opening Day roster. That was only exacerbated with the signing of Matt Chapman at the beginning of March. Sandoval tallied seven hits in 28 at-bats in the Cactus League. This did include adding a hit in his final at-bat at Oracle Park in an exhibition game against the Oakland A's. The veteran bat got a chance to walk off the field to a standing ovation.

However, that will not be his final time on a baseball field. At this stage in his career, Sandoval has appeared in just about every professional league with a move to the Atlantic League being a first in his long career.

The Staten Island FerryHawks are coming off of a season in which they registered a 48-68 record. They are led by former minor leaguer Mark Minicozzi. The Atlantic League has become the test league for baseball when it is considering implementing new rules. They will usually employ new rules in that league first and work through the results to get the desired effect.

For Sandoval, he gets a chance to continue his playing career and should quickly become a popular player and main attraction in the league.