For Friday’s transaction, the Kansas City Royals and the San Francisco Giants squared off. As per the team’s transaction record, veteran minor league catcher Logan Porter is being sent to the Giants organization for cash. The San Francisco Giants have added depth at catcher to the upper minors with the addition of veteran minor leaguer Brandon Porter in a deal with the Kansas City Royals. There has been a lot of catching depth movement with the Giants this season.
Joey Bart and Cooper Hummel were both briefly on the 40-man roster when the season began. Hummel went to the Houston Astros and Bart to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The injured list has seen the likes of Tom Murphy (knee) and Patrick Bailey (concussion). As a result, Curt Casali returned to the team and Jakson Reetz had a brief appearance with the big league squad. The three main catchers in Sacramento will be Blake Sabol, Reetz, and Porter. However, neither Reetz nor Sabol are in the kitchen all the time. In the past, Reetz has often filled in at catcher, but Sabol has recently seen action at first base.
Like Reetz and Sabol, Porter does not play catcher exclusively. He isn’t great at framing, blocking, or throwing, but he can fill in as a substitute catcher when needed. After his freshman year at Dixie State University ended in 2018, the 28-year-old signed with the Royals organization as a free agent after going undrafted. For a long time, the minor league catcher has faced stiff odds, having gone to college as a walk-on and continuing his playing career as an undrafted free agent.
Be that as it may, the right-handed batter has had a solid minor league career, going.279/404/.470 with a 15.7% walk rate, a 23.0% strikeout rate, and an ISO of.191. In 2024, this included 138 plate appearances at the Triple-A level, a respectable 1.003 OPS, six home runs, and twenty-two RBI.
Porter was promoted to the majors by the Royals at the end of last season as a reward. His hitting total was 6 for 31 at-bats. He re-signed with the team in the offseason after clearing waivers, this time for a minor league contract. There aren’t many opportunities to make the major league roster with Salvador Perez and Freddy Fermin firmly established as Kansas City’s catchers.
Perhaps even more uncertain is the Giants’ catching position. The team’s starting quarterback is Patrick Bailey. It is quite certain. Despite making a temporary return to the club, Curt Casali has struggled. Even though another move isn’t right around the corner, this feels like a forerunner to it.
