SF Giants surprisingly cut ties with resurgent southpaw amidst roster moves

Friday was the non-tender deadline in MLB and the SF Giants had three arbitration-eligible players who were in danger of not being tendered a contract. They surprisingly decided to cut ties with left-handed reliever Joey Lucchesi amidst these moves.

The Giants designated catcher Andrew Knizner for assignment in order to make room for newly acquired outfielder Joey Wiemer on the 40-man roster, and they did not tender a contract to Lucchesi. The Giants reportedly did tender a contract to right-handed pitcher JT Brubaker which was also a bit of a surprise.

SF Giants surprisingly non-tender Joey Lucchesi amidst roster moves

The reason non-tendering Lucchesi doesn’t make a lot of sense is because he was solid for the Giants in 2025 and was only projected to earn $2 million. After spending most of his career as a starting pitcher, he was thrust into a relief role and did quite well.

In 38 appearances, Lucchesi had a 3.76 ERA in 38 and 1/3 innings pitched with 31 strikeouts compared to 12 walks. Those numbers will not blow anyone away, but they are respectable especially since he had to adjust to a new role after the bullpen was decimated by trades and injuries. Plus, it was a nice rebound from the 5.23 ERA he had in limited appearances with the New York Mets in 2024.

Erik Miller was the primary lefty reliever in the bullpen, but when he got hurt the Giants had to get creative to give themselves left-handed relief options. Lucchesi and Matt Gage both did well at times and seemed to do enough to earn a shot in the bullpen in 2026, but maybe the Giants do not think Lucchesi can be a consistent reliever going forward.

Instead, the Giants decided to bring back Brubaker who is projected to earn $2.1 million in 2026. His numbers were not as good as Lucchesi's in 2025. In five appearances and 12 and 2/3 innings pitched, Brubaker had a 4.26 ERA with 12 strikeouts and 3 walks.

He too was a starter earlier in his career but it is not clear why the Giants ultimately decided to go with him. Maybe the Giants could bring back Lucchesi in free agency, but they may be looking at other options.

The Knizner DFA makes sense since the team has Jesus Rodriguez from the Camilo Doval trade who they are high on and who could be a perfect backup catcher for Patrick Bailey. They will still probably bring in at least one or two veteran catchers to compete for the backup role as well.

The non-tender deadline may not be the sexiest of MLB deadlines, but the Giants made some interesting choices. We will see how they pan out in 2026.