SF Giants retain experienced catcher after clearing waivers

The SF Giants designated Sam Huff for assignment earlier this week. His status is now resolved, as he cleared waivers and was sent outright to Sacramento according to the team's transaction log.

SF Giants retain experienced catcher after clearing waivers

It is a mild surprise that Huff cleared waivers. Catcher is a big need for a lot of teams around this time of year. The Giants just faced off against the San Diego Padres earlier this week, and Martín Maldonado appeared in three games during that series.

Maldonado is known as a glove-first catcher, but he has struggled to a .443 OPS in 85 plate appearances. Teams will make the tradeoff between defense and offense at catcher, but Maldonado's lack of offensive production puts that theory to the test. At the very least, Huff would have been a notable offensive upgrade at backup catcher for San Diego and a lot of other teams.

Nevertheless, Huff cleared and will remain with the organization. That is his first time clearing waivers, so he did not have an opportunity to reject a minor league assignment in favor of free agency.

The Giants were likely hoping that Huff would go unclaimed, as catching depth has been stretched a little thin in recent days. Andrew Knizner replaced Huff on the major league roster, but that left a void with the Sacramento River Cats.

Logan Porter continues to see a lot of time behind the plate, but veteran backstop Max Stassi just returned to the injured list. In his place, the Giants moved Fernando Gonzalez up from the San Jose Giants.

Until Stassi returns, Huff and Porter will serve as the primary backstops on Sacramento's roster. The Giants claimed Huff from the Texas Rangers in the offseason. He put together a strong camp and made the Opening Day roster. That was not too surprising, as he already occupied a spot on the 40-man roster and was out of options.

The right-handed bat slashed .208/.259/.340 (68 wRC+) with two home runs and four RBI in 58 plate appearances this season. He does have good power, but it comes with a high strikeout rate. Huff did catch Robbie Ray quite a bit this season, and was passable behind the plate. For now, he will be in Sacramento and could re-emerge as an option later in the year if the need arises.