San Francisco Giants Place Three Players on Waivers in Surprise Move

The San Francisco Giants continue to make head-scratching moves coming down the final stretch of the year.

Jun 25, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Taylor Rogers (33) reacts after walking a Chicago Cubs batter during the fifth inning at Oracle Park / John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

This has been a frustrating and disappointing season for the San Francisco Giants.

After handing out high-priced contracts to star players in free agency to overhaul their roster, they were fully expecting to be a playoff team this year.

Right now, it doesn't seem like that is going to happen.

Sitting 5.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot in the National League, it looks like this campaign is going to be a colossal failure that could have long-term ramifications regarding who is calling the shots for this franchise going forward.

This all stems back to what the Giants decided to do at the trade deadline.

Sitting in virtually the same position they are right now, the front office chose to not become sellers, instead opting to hold onto their most desirable assets with the thought they could get hot down the stretch and earn a spot in the playoffs.

Viewed as a head-scratching move at the time, they have now made another eye-opening decision by placing three players on waivers.

According to Grant Brisbee and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, second baseman Thairo Estrada and left-handed relievers Taylor Rogers and Tyler Matzek are now eligible to be claimed by teams around the league.

Similar to what San Francisco did ahead of the deadline when they traded away Jorge Soler and Alex Cobb, this is clearly aimed at being a salary dump if these players were to be claimed.

Teams would be able to add them to their rosters by paying a prorated price, and in the case of Rogers, all of his salary in 2025.

Estrada is still under club control through 2026, making the fact he has been placed on irrevocable waivers even more surprising.

The Giants would be able to return all three of these players to their roster if they go unclaimed, but if a team out there does decide they want to add any of the three, San Francisco can't do anything about it.

Perhaps this is the sign they are finally waiving the white flag, especially with Robbie Ray and Jordan Hicks being placed on the injured list that thins out their top-end pitching options.