LOS ANGELES — It didn’t take long for the San Francisco Giants to find a suitor for Joey Bart.
Bart, the former No. 2 overall pick who was designated for assignment Sunday, was traded Tuesday to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who parted with a 21-year-old pitching prospect for the privilege of topping the wire. waiver.
San Francisco received right-hander Austin Strickland, the Pirates’ eighth-round pick in last year’s draft. He has yet to throw professional ball.
The Giants had one week to find a trade partner for Bart after DFAing him to add Daulton Jefferies to the 40-man roster before Sunday’s series finale in San Diego, otherwise he would have been placed on waivers unconditional, where any team would have the opportunity to claim it.
In Pittsburgh, Bart should have a better path to playing time than in San Francisco, where he had fallen behind Patrick Bailey and Tom Murphy on the organizational depth chart. Without Bart, Blake Sabol and Jackson Reetz represent captivating depth at Triple-A Sacramento.
The Pirates have their own former first-round pick as a starter behind the plate, Henry Davis, the first overall pick in 2021, but his replacement, Yasmani Grandal, has been sidelined with plantar fasciitis since spring training. If Pittsburgh wanted to send Bart to the minor leagues, they would have to DFA him again.
California Daily Newspapers
