SF Giants bolster catching depth by claiming former top-100 prospect, DFA pitcher Austin Warren

The SF Giants have not quite finalized the Justin Verlander deal yet, but they did make a roster move on Wednesday. They claimed former top catching prospect Sam Huff from the Texas Rangers while designated Austin Warren for assignment according to the team's transaction log.

SF Giants bolster catching depth by claiming former top-100 prospect, DFA pitcher Austin Warren

Backup catcher is typically a low priority for teams in the offseason. That said, the Giants have a concerning lack of depth at the position and would like to avoid the situation they encountered last year where they had to pull players from outside of the organization.

There is no question that Patrick Bailey is the starter. Huff joins Tom Murphy and Max Stassi as the other catchers vying for that backup role. Blake Sabol is still listed as a catcher but the coaching staff does not seem too committed in continuing that experiment.

Stassi has only played in five rehab games over the past two seasons due to personal and injury absences, whereas Murphy tallied just 38 plate appearances before sustaining a season-ending knee injury. Adding Huff should create an added sense of competition in camp.

The Rangers originally drafted Huff in the seventh round of the 2016 draft out of Arcadia High School in Phoenix, Arizona. As is the case with many high school draftees, he made a deliberate climb up the minor league ladder. In eight minor league seasons, he has slashed .263/.334/.480 while reaching double-digit home runs in six of those years. Earlier in his career, he was regarded as one of the best prospects in baseball, ranking as high as No. 74 according to MLB.Com prior to the 2020 season.

Huff debuted with the Rangers in 2020 and has appeared in parts of four seasons with the club. During this time, he has registered a .258/.313/.455 line with a 7.5 percent walk rate, 33.6 percent strikeout rate, and .197 ISO.

The 26-year-old backstop has a lot of experience behind the plate and has done adequately defensively in the majors. That is typically a fine benchmark for a backup catcher. In the batter's box, he will strike out a lot, hit a few home runs, and make a good amount of loud contact.

On the other side of the transaction, the Giants placed Austin Warren on waivers. He posted a 1.69 ERA in six appearances last season.