Amid Sunday’s flurry of transactions related to September’s expansion of active rosters from 26 to 28, the Giants recalled catcher Blake Sabol and activated right-hander Tristan Beck from the 60-day injured list to fill the newly created vacancies. No corresponding 40-man move was necessary to activate Beck, and the club’s 40-man roster now stands at 39.
Beck, 28, has spent the entire season on the injured list to this point after suffering an aneurysm in his upper arm in February. The righty underwent surgery to correct the issue in March but was shut down from throwing for the next two months and since then has been slowly working his way back towards a return to the majors. After spending the majority of August on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sacramento, Beck finally made it back to the majors Sunday.
With that being said, Beck’s current role isn’t the one he was expected to fulfill at the start of the season. The right-hander was expected to be a member of the club’s starting rotation this year at the time of his injury after a solid rookie season in 2023 where he pitched to a 3.92 ERA in 85 innings of work as a multi-inning relief arm and spot starter. Beck’s injury derailed those plans, however, and while he started games in the minors during his rehab assignment he maxed out at just 56 pitchers.
That won’t be enough for him to join a rotation that currently features Blake Snell, Logan Webb, Kyle Harrison, Hayden Birdsong and Mason Black, but it should allow him to join righties Landen Roupp and Sean Hjelle as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen down the stretch. If Beck manages to post solid numbers in his return from surgery, it’s possible that he could work his way back to into the conversation for starts with the Giants next season, with Snell widely expected to opt out of his deal with San Francisco and vacate a rotation spot by returning to free agency.
As for Sabol, the 26-year-old was thrust into a semi-regular role with the club last year after being selected from the Pirates in the Rule 5 draft. He performed admirably in the role, with a decent .235/.301/.394 slash line that was within spitting distance of league average as he split time between catcher and left field in 110 games for San Francisco.
This year, however, Sabol has returned to the minor leagues for the majority of the year with just 11 games in the majors under his belt to this point. Triple-A has been a bit of a struggle for the 26-year-old, as he’s slashed just .241/.339/.373 at the level despite the Pacific Coast League’s inflated offensive environment. Still, the versatile youngster should provide the Giants with some depth in the outfield and behind the plate down the stretch, and a strong performance could earn him more regularly playing time headed into 2025.
