The Giants returned Joey Bart from his rehab assignment and reinstated him to their roster, ending his 10-day injured list stint in the minimum amount of time.
To make room for Bart on the 26-man roster, San Francisco designated veteran Austin Wynns for assignment.
Bart will likely make his season debut on Monday night in the series opener against the Dodgers. With left-hander Julio Urías slated to start for Los Angeles, he makes more sense to catch Logan Webb than the left-handed hitting Blake Sabol.
Bart, 26, was supposed to start behind the dish in the Giants’ second game of the season in Yankee Stadium, but felt his back tighten up in the batting cage. The former second overall pick hadn’t dealt with significant back issues before, and this particular injury was mild.
Bart played two rehab assignment games with the River Cats, catching for five innings one game and then serving as designated hitter for the other.
In Triple-A, Bart went 3-for-7 with a walk, stolen base, RBI and run scored.
While Bart was unavailable, starting catcher Roberto Pérez strained his right rotator cuff, forcing him onto the 60-day injured list. When Pérez went down, the Giants selected Wynns. Blake Sabol, the Rule 5 pick still learning the position at the big-league level, started five games in the squat.
Wynns, meanwhile, caught one game for the Giants after being selected. The five-year veteran could very well attract interest on the waiver wire; he’s an experienced game-caller with a strong defensive reputation in an environment in which glove-first catchers may be more valuable than ever.
Wynns was DFA’d after last season. He said during spring training that he turned down other opportunities to return to the Giants organization.
“This was in my heart,” Wynns said on Feb. 28. “I was just like, you know what, I want to be a Giant still. I’m happy they wanted me back.”
Wynns, Bart, Sabol and Wynns entered spring training in a four-man competition for playing time. Wynns was the odd-man out, and now may have played his last game in a Giants uniform.
