SF Giants faced off against little-known pitcher who occupied 40-man roster spot in 2022

The SF Giants faced off against pitcher Tobias Myers on Thursday afternoon. In a weird way, it was a return to somewhat familiar territory, as Myers briefly occupied a spot on the Giants' 40-man roster in 2022.

SF Giants faced off against little-known pitcher who occupied 40-man roster spot in 2022

Okay, you can say that about half the league at this point. You may have occupied a spot on the 40-man roster and did not even know it! The Giants churned the back-end of the 40-man roster more than any team in baseball for a good stretch of time. Part of this strategy was to build depth in the upper minors by sneaking players through waivers.

There were certainly some successes with this strategy. However, the success was often realized with another team, as the Giants were too aggressive in churning the roster. Did they have a real eye for talent, or was it a function of the odds improving with every new waiver claim or minor trade?

Myers is one of those players who has vague ties to the Giants organization and experienced success later on. He was acquired in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians in July of 2022. At the time of the deal, he was on waivers, so the Giants sidestepped the waiver line by working out a trade.

The right-handed pitcher made just two appearances with the Sacramento River Cats before he was designated for assignment later that month. They needed a roster spot to make room for Dixon Machado, as they ran out of shortstop depth entirely.

The Chicago White Sox claimed Myers. A few weeks later, he was outrighted and released. That turned out to be a good thing for him, as he caught on with the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers are a well-run organization that seems to get good value despite limited resources.

The 26-year-old pitcher debuted for the Brewers in 2024 and posted a 3.00 ERA in 27 appearances, including 25 starts. The Brewers quietly had one of the better rotations in baseball last year, and did so from unexpectedly strong performances from pitchers like Myers.

The young pitcher faced off against the Giants in his first start of the year on Thursday and yielded two earned runs across four frames. The Brewers dropped that game by a score of 6-5, but Myers gave them a chance to win the game. It was a reminder that Myers briefly had a stint in the Giants organization before finding success with Milwaukee.