Giants acquire LHP Banda from Rays

The Giants made no subtractions and only one minor addition at Monday’s Trade Deadline, with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi holding on to potential trade chips Johnny Cueto, Kevin Gausman and Tony Watson to give the club a chance to continue its playoff push over the final 24 games of the 2020 season.

While the Padres appeared to tighten their grip on second place in the National League West by making a dizzying six trades -- including a nine-player blockbuster that brought Mike Clevinger to San Diego -- Zaidi made only one move, acquiring left-hander Anthony Banda from the Rays in exchange for cash considerations.

GIANTS-RAYS TRADE BREAKDOWN
Giants get: LHP Anthony Banda
Rays get: Cash considerations

It was an unusually quiet day for Zaidi, who dealt relievers Mark Melancon, Sam Dyson, Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black in three separate deals at last year’s Trade Deadline. The Giants didn’t have a similar area of surplus this year, as the injuries to Trevor Cahill, Jeff Samardzija and Drew Smyly thinned their rotation depth and made Zaidi reluctant to part with Cueto and Gausman, who will be a free agent at the end of the year but had expressed a desire to remain with San Francisco.

After winning nine of their past 12 games, the Giants entered Monday only a half-game out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the NL with a 17-19 record. Zaidi said he explored deals for a right-handed reliever and a left-handed bat, but nothing came to fruition before Monday’s 1 p.m. PT Deadline.

“We feel comfortable with the team we have,” Zaidi said Monday. “Obviously, we’re right in the thick of the playoff race, so we wanted to be careful with how we evaluated any trade opportunities.”

The Giants could have internal answers for those two perceived needs, as right-handers Trevor Gott and Sam Coonrod have pitched well out of the bullpen recently following uneven starts to the year. Reyes Moronta, another right-handed bullpen option, is also progressing well from shoulder surgery and could be ready to return to the Majors before the end of the season.

The left-handed-hitting Alex Dickerson showed signs of breaking out of a prolonged slump this year by homering and driving in the go-ahead run in the Giants’ 4-1 win over the D-backs on Sunday. Former first-round Draft pick Chris Shaw was also added to the 60-man player pool last week, giving the Giants another lefty bat to evaluate down the stretch. Austin Slater swings from the right side, but he has hit lefties and righties well this season and is nearing a return from a left groin strain.

"I just think we were maybe in a situation, partly because of our own competitive picture, where it wasn't as easy to find those obvious matches," Zaidi said. "We were really not that aggressively pursuing pure buy-sell type deals. We were looking to make our team better, looking to target players that we liked as long-term pieces of the puzzle, and nothing materialized, maybe because our situation was a little more nuanced.

"It's always more challenging to make trades as opposed to a situation where you're just a pure seller and out of the race. It's not terribly surprising. Obviously, there were a lot of names that were rumored to be on the move that weren't traded today. It always seems like it works out that way. It wasn't for lack of conversation. We just didn't see anything that ultimately made sense for us."

Banda, 27, made four relief appearances before being designated for assignment by the Rays on Sunday, allowing eight earned runs over seven innings. He owns a career ERA of 5.96 over 18 games (five starts) since making his debut with the D-backs in 2017. Arizona traded him to the Rays as part of a three-team deal involving the Yankees in February 2018.

Banda was originally taken in the 10th round of the 2012 Draft by the Brewers. He has worked mostly as a starter in the Minors, making 129 starts, including 47 at Triple-A. Zaidi said Banda will report to the alternate training site in Sacramento, Calif., and could be an option to start or relieve for the Giants this year.

“He's been on the prospect radar for a while,” Zaidi said. “Athletic lefty with good velocity. He’s been up to 96 in the past. He really had a good track record as a starter in the Minors. He’s been with a couple of different organizations now. We've had some success bringing in guys like this, maybe having to make an adjustment or two and getting them back on track from a performance standpoint.”

To clear a spot for Banda on the 40-man roster, the Giants placed outfielder Joey Rickard on the 60-day injured list with left elbow inflammation, effectively ending his season. Rickard, 29, opened the year at Sacramento and appeared in only four games with the Giants before hurting his elbow while making a throw from the outfield during the club’s series in Arizona this past weekend.

Zaidi said the Giants will announce a corresponding move to replace Rickard on the 28-man roster before Tuesday’s series opener against the Rockies at Coors Field.

D-Rod lands in Detroit
Dereck Rodríguez’s tenure with the Giants officially came to an end on Monday after he was claimed off waivers by the Tigers. Rodríguez broke into the Majors in 2018 and delivered an outstanding rookie campaign for the Giants, but he struggled to recapture that form in each of the last two seasons and was designated for assignment last week.

Detroit is a familiar landing spot for the 28-year-old right-hander, as his father, Hall of Fame catcher Iván Rodríguez, played for the Tigers from 2004-08.