SF Giants spring training star is the odd man out with roster crunch looming

The SF Giants have a looming roster crunch and one player is the odd man out. Jared Oliva was arguably the most impressive player for the Giants back in spring training but he has wound up on the cutting room floor and was just designated for assignment.

Oliva made the team out of spring training thanks in large part to his speed. He led the Cactus League in steals and the hope was he could be a valuable asset as a pinch runner coming off the bench for San Francisco.

He only appeared in seven games for the Giants and stole one base while recording one hit in seven at-bats before he went on the IL with a left hamate bone fracture in his wrist which required surgery. 

Just recently Oliva began a rehab assignment in Sacramento with the Triple-A River Cats. In 14 games he hit .241/.288/.315 with no home runs and five runs batted in.

As our own Jeff Young noted on social media, his rehab assignment was coming to an end soon which meant the Giants had to make a decision on him. He could have been added back to the 40-man roster but being DFA'd was the much more likely outcome so it does not come as a huge shock.

There was no room for Oliva on the roster after rehab stint

Heliot Ramos is also about to return from the IL and began his rehab assignment last night with him hitting a home run so the Giants are already going to have to account for his spot on the roster. Plus, the Giants have already called up Jonah Cox and Victor Bericoto to the big leagues and they clearly want to get a longer look at them rather than Oliva since he’s a 30-year-old journeyman who hadn’t appeared in the big leagues since 2021 prior to this season.

There’s still a chance Oliva could sneak through waivers. They just DFA’d outfielder Will Brennan and no one claimed him so he is back in Triple-A Sacramento. Teams probably won’t be stumbling over each other to get an outfielder with one big league hit in the last five years so there’s a good chance he could be retained.

It’s a shame injuries derailed this season for Oliva but it always seemed like his fit on the roster was a bit odd. Cox has proven he can be a speedy pinch runner and late-game defensive replacement so there’s really no need for another guy like that on the big league roster right now.

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