Giants trade Ruf to Mets for J.D. Davis, 3 prospects

With a surplus of bat-first platoon players on their roster, the Giants moved to clear the logjam by sending Darin Ruf to the Mets in exchange for utility man J.D. Davis, left-hander Thomas Szapucki and pitching prospects Carson Seymour and Nick Zwack, the club announced Tuesday.

The Ruf trade jump-started a busy Trade Deadline for the Giants, who also dealt catcher Curt Casali and left-hander Matthew Boyd to the Mariners in exchange for Minor League right-hander Michael Stryffeler and catcher Andy Thomas. San Francisco capped its activity by moving recently signed reliever Trevor Rosenthal to the Brewers in exchange for outfield prospect Tristan Peters.

TRADE DETAILS

Giants get: UT J.D. Davis, LHP Thomas Szapucki, RHP Carson Seymour, LHP Nick Zwack
Mets get: IF/OF Darin Ruf

Giants get: RHP Michael Stryffeler, C Andy Thomas
Mariners get: C Curt Casali, LHP Matthew Boyd

Giants get: OF Tristan Peters (Brewers' No. 19 prospect)
Brewers get: RHP Trevor Rosenthal

Still, the more notable moves were ultimately the ones that didn’t happen. Despite trading away four veterans, two of whom never appeared in a game for them, the Giants held on to their major trade chips, including All-Stars Carlos Rodón and Joc Pederson, giving them a chance to continue their bid for a postseason berth this summer.

After dropping nine of their first 12 games out of the All-Star break, the Giants entered Tuesday below .500 at 51-52, but they remain 4 1/2 games behind the Phillies and 3 1/2 games behind the Cardinals for the third and final National League Wild Card spot.

“We talked about being open on anything and everything,” president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said. “It’s kind of really how every organization approaches the Deadline. But the present really matters to us. For most of this season, we’ve been in a playoff spot. Obviously, we’ve had a bad couple of weeks that’s put us on the fringes of the race. But we know a hot two weeks can turn it around, just like a bad two weeks put us in this position.”

The Giants were reportedly willing to entertain offers for Rodón, but they ultimately decided to keep the 29-year-old in their rotation alongside co-ace Logan Webb. Rodón will have the ability to opt out at the end of the season, but the Giants will likely extend him a qualifying offer if he chooses to test free agency.

“All right, it’s over, which is good,” Rodón said of the Deadline. “We don’t have to be anxious about what’s going on, if we’re going to be on the move or if we’re staying. Now we know what we’re doing. We’re here. Let’s try to freaking win. That’s kind of my thought. We’re here, might as well do it. We’re not showing up for no reason.”

While the Giants chose not to engage in a full-blown selloff, they also saw the gap with their NL West foes widen, with the Padres landing superstar Juan Soto, All-Star closer Josh Hader and infielders Josh Bell and Brandon Drury in a flurry of blockbuster deals at the Deadline. The first-place Dodgers, meanwhile, still have an All-Star trio atop their lineup in Mookie Betts, Trea Turner and Freddie Freeman.

Zaidi said the Giants were interested in trading for the 23-year-old Soto, but they ultimately couldn’t compete with the massive package assembled by the Padres, who sent first baseman Luke Voit and left-handed pitcher MacKenzie Gore along with prospects C.J. Abrams, Robert Hassell III, James Wood and Jarlin Susana to Washington.

Despite a breakout year from left-hander Kyle Harrison, many of the Giants’ top prospects have experienced setbacks this year, including shortstop Marco Luciano, who hasn’t played since June 3 due to a back injury, and outfielder Luis Matos, who is batting .184 at High-A Eugene.

“We have some guys having great seasons,” Zaidi said. “We have some guys who have been hurt. We have some guys who have had down years. It’s common in every system. Certainly in the course of conversations over the last week, it was evident that some of those factors were impacting the valuation of our players in some potential buy scenarios.”

Ruf, 36, was slashing .216/.328/.373 with 11 home runs over 90 games in 2022, his eighth season in the Majors and third year in San Francisco. He had emerged as one of the Giants’ top lefty-killers since joining the club out of the Korea Baseball Organization in 2020, but he was one of many designated-hitter types on the roster, which hamstrung their efforts to improve their shaky defense.

Ruf, who signed a two-year, $6.25 million extension in March, admitted that he was caught off guard by the trade, but he said he was looking forward to the opportunity to join the NL East-leading Mets.

“I have a lot of great memories, a lot of great friends that I’m going to miss,” Ruf said. “But I’m very excited for the opportunity in New York. They have a great team, great players. Guys that I played against throughout my career. I’m really looking forward to that, too. It’s just a lot to take in today.”

Davis, a native of Elk Grove, Calif., was batting .238/.324/.359 with four homers, eight doubles and 21 RBIs in 66 games this year for New York. Like Ruf, Davis is a right-handed hitter who can play multiple positions, logging appearances at third base, first base, left field and designated hitter in the Majors. Davis is arbitration-eligible this winter and under team control through the 2024 season.

“Selfishly a little bit, I’m excited for the opportunity to play over there, especially so close to home, being on the West Coast,” Davis said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity.”

Szapucki, 26, has two Major League appearances under his belt and has been used primarily as a starter at Triple-A Syracuse, where he’s recorded a 3.38 ERA over 18 outings this year. Szapucki could also be a bullpen option for the Giants, who are short on left-handed relievers following the injury to José Álvarez and the release of Jake McGee.

Zwack and Seymour were both 2021 Draft picks for the Mets and members of the High-A Brooklyn roster. Zwack, a 24-year-old lefty, has a 2.36 ERA with 96 strikeouts over 76 1/3 innings this year. Seymour, a 23-year-old righty, has a 2.76 ERA with 92 strikeouts over 81 2/3 innings in 2022.

Casali, Boyd and Rosenthal were on the injured list, but the Giants still managed to trade them for three Minor Leaguers who can help bolster their organizational depth. The return for Rosenthal, who signed a one-year, $4.5 million deal on July 21, appears especially intriguing, as the 22-year-old Peters was ranked the Brewers’ No. 19 prospect by MLB Pipeline. A left-handed hitter, Peters was batting .306 with an .871 OPS and seven homers over 90 games at High-A Wisconsin this year.

MLB.com’s Sonja Chen and Anthony DiComo contributed reporting.