The Giants authored the latest chapter in the tragicomedy that is Joey Bart’s career to date, bringing him to San Francisco only to send him packing back to Sacramento.
On Saturday, the Giants officially reinstated Bart from the injured list and optioned him to Triple-A. The club doesn’t have an open roster spot for the former second overall pick, and it will take at least one injury to a position player to warrant bringing him back.
“We made the decision that was best for the group, which was to option him,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said.
Bart, 26, has played 158 career MLB games since debuting in 2020. In those games, he has batted .223 with 11 home runs and a .634 OPS.
In his six rehab games with the Sacramento River Cats, Bart went 2-for-21 with 11 strikeouts, no walks and no extra base hits. He said he feels healthy and his swing feels right, but his timing hasn’t been there after the long layoff.
Injuries and unfortunate circumstances have stunted Bart’s career to date. He got thrust into the starting job prematurely; when Buster Posey opted out of the 2020 season, Bart leapfrogged Triple-A to serve as SF’s primary catcher. He started Opening Day last year, but played just 97 games last year due to various injuries, including a concussion at the end of the most productive month of his career.
This season, he’s hit the injured list twice, limiting him to 26 games. When healthy, Bart has impressed defensively, showing off his strong arm and ranking at the top of the most important pitch framing leaderboard.
“We want him to be a good, all-around baseball player,” Kapler said. “He’s been working towards that, and made some significant strides — that of course we appreciate. Just keep working and get ready to help us when he can.”
But all the while, Bart has operated while not being the Giants front office’s darling catcher. Bart was drafted by the previous regime, and the Giants publicly announced a spring training competition for roster spots between Bart, Rule 5 pick Blake Sabol, veteran Roberto Pérez and journeyman Austin Wynns.
Bart didn’t back down from that challenge, earning a roster spot by demonstrating improved plate discipline.
But as Bart’s strikeout numbers have stabilized, his power has gotten sapped. Bart hasn’t homered in 44 games — a stretch that spans back to last season and includes 135 plate appearances. When he was drafted out of Georgia Tech in 2018, Bart’s scouting report gave him a 60-grade power tool (out of 80) and was a major factor in him getting (at the time) the largest up-front signing bonus for a position player in MLB history. For an extended stretch, though, he’s been a 6-foot-2, 238-pound slugger trapped in a slap-hitter’s body.
“To be a good, all-around Major League hitter, offensive player, you need to make consistent, solid contact and control the strike zone,” Kapler said. “Those are still areas Joey’s still working on. Not 100% there yet.”
The Giants summoned Bart to Oracle Park on Friday afternoon without telling him what their plans were for him. Once Patrick Bailey, who was dealing with minor neck tightness, went through his pregame routine without issue, Bart was left where he is now: on the outside of SF’s roster.
So Bart spent his time in San Francisco going through a workout and talking to Giants brass. By Saturday afternoon, his locker was completely emptied.
Kapler said that Bart’s message in the meeting was that he plans to put his head down and keep grinding so that he’s ready to help the team whenever called upon. That’s consistent with what Bart’s public messages, both during the spring and on Friday.
With Bart in Triple-A, the Giants will roll with rookies Patrick Bailey and Blake Sabol as their big-league catchers. Bailey, a former first rounder, has had a terrific start from both sides of the ball. Sabol’s Rule 5 status secures his spot on the roster; the Giants must keep Sabol on the active roster for the entire season or send him back to Pittsburgh.
Optioning Bart, though, inspires big-picture questions. This is the last season he can be optioned. Bailey has emerged as a potential everyday backstop. The organization is high on Sabol’s long-term potential and viability as a catcher. With Luis Matos’ emergence at Triple-A, Bart probably wouldn’t even be the top choice to get recalled for whenever the next time San Francisco’s position player group suffers an injury.
Does Bart have a future in the Giants’ organization?
“Absolutely,” Kapler said.
