SAN FRANCISCO — The first Monday of the MLB offseason was remarkably busy for the Giants.
The front office took nine players off the roster, a purge that was necessary after a season in which they used a record-tying 71 players. The moves continued a process that started shortly after the World Series, when the organization lost Grant McCray and others.
As the Giants pushed to get their 40-man roster back to 40 players ahead of Monday’s deadline, they lost several players on waivers, but most of them were players that they themselves had claimed.
On Monday, they lost Jose Butto (Texas Rangers), Duncan Davitt (Cincinnati Reds), Brett Harris (Philadelphia Phillies), Shay Whitcomb (Phillies) and Zach Morgan (Baltimore Orioles). They also outrighted Joel Kuhnel and Seth Lonsway off their roster and released Tristan Beck, who is pursuing an opportunity to pitch in Asia next season. Reiver Sanmartin was designated for assignment.
The most surprising may have been Butto, as the right-hander was once viewed as a potential setup man after being acquired in the Tyler Rogers trade in 2025. Butto made just three appearances this season before having surgery to remove a blood clot. He recovered by the end of the year and could have been in the mix for a bullpen spot next spring.
The longest-tenured of that group was Beck, acquired from the Atlanta Braves in 2019 when the Giants found a way to dump Mark Melancon’s contract. Beck made 85 appearances over the past four seasons, posting a 4.08 ERA. Notably, he was set to assist player rep Logan Webb during this offseason’s labor negotiations.
The Giants found themselves in a unique position because of the way their season ended. It seemed that a key player went on the IL every week, and they finished the year with 24 players on the list, 10 more than the next closest team. An astounding 17 of those were on the 60-day IL, led by players like Matt Chapman, Rafael Devers and Casey Schmitt, all of whom had season-ending surgery.
While the purge seemed daunting, team officials felt it actually wouldn’t be that difficult to get close to 17, as many of these cuts involved players who were waiver claims meant to help fill the roster in September. There were some difficult decisions, though.
Last week, the Giants lost McCray to the Seattle Mariners after trying to get him through waivers. On Sunday, young second baseman Nate Furman was traded to the Washington Nationals. The Giants liked Furman’s bat-to-ball skills, but they already have Schmitt and Marcelo Mayer in the mix at second base, and prospect Gavin Kilen is in Double-A and could be an option in 2027.
As part of the initial wave, Jason Foley, Osleivis Basabe, Matt Gage and Jason Knizner were outrighted off the 40-man roster. Rookie right-hander Braxton Roxby was claimed by the Nationals last week. One additional spot was opened up when JT Brubaker became a free agent.