SAN FRANCISCO -- With the Giants’ bats stuck in a deep freeze, president of baseball operations Buster Posey took some drastic measures to overhaul his roster on Wednesday morning.
Struggling first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. and catcher Sam Huff were designated for assignment, and utility infielder Christian Koss was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. The Giants replaced Wade by signing veteran Dominic Smith to a one-year Major League deal. They also selected catcher Andrew Knizner and outfielder Daniel Johnson from Sacramento.
Posey said he personally delivered the tough news to Wade, as the two were teammates during the Giants’ franchise-record 107-win season in 2021.
“It was a difficult decision,” Posey said. “One of the trickier things for me is there are still guys on the team that I played with. I had a different relationship with them as a player than I do now, but I still consider LaMonte a buddy. So it wasn’t an easy thing to do. But we’ve got to get some offense going. Smith’s been swinging the bat well this last month. Hopefully, he can provide a spark.”
The Giants hoped Jerar Encarnacion would be able to jolt the offense after returning from the 60-day injured list on Monday, but the club has scored only two runs over the first two games of its four-game series against the division-rival Padres, resulting in back-to-back one-run losses in extra innings. San Francisco’s lineup entered Wednesday having been held to four runs or fewer in 16 consecutive games, its longest such streak since a 19-game stretch from May 30-June 20, 1965.
“It’s time to go,” Posey said. “We all believe that we’re better than what we’ve done with the bat for the last 2 1/2, three weeks. It’s time to go.”
Wade, 31, emerged as a fan favorite after being acquired from the Twins in exchange for right-hander Shaun Anderson four years ago, earning the nickname “Late Night LaMonte” due to his penchant for late-game heroics in 2021.
Wade was one of the Giants’ longest-tenured position players, but he was unable to turn it around after a rough start at the plate this year, batting .167 with a .275 on-base percentage and one home run over 50 games.
Despite the disappointing ending, Posey said he would look back at Wade’s five-year tenure in San Francisco fondly.
“Just kind of watching his progression as a Major League player, I think he came up as a guy that didn’t necessarily believe in his talent level, and then he grew into believing in it,” Posey said. “He believed that he could be that guy late in games that would get big hits, and he provided many of those for us. I’m hopeful for him that he goes on and gets it going with somebody else.”
Smith, 29, last played in the big leagues with the Reds in 2024, but he figures to take over the majority of the reps at first base after posting a slash line of .255/.333/.448 with eight home runs and 28 RBIs over 45 games with the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate this year. A left-handed hitter, Smith has slashed .246/.313/.403 over eight Major League seasons with the Mets, Nationals, Red Sox and Reds. He became a free agent after opting out of his Minor League contract with the Yankees on Sunday and said it was a “no-brainer” to join the Giants.
“They’re right here in the hunt,” said Smith, who started at first base and batted fifth in his Giants debut on Wednesday. “Great team, great organization. Great young talent. Just watching from afar, just watching how successful they’ve been and how tough they’ve been on me as an opponent -- I just wanted to be a part of that winning culture. I wanted to come in and help this team get back to where they want to go.”
Johnson, 29, also was immediately slotted into the lineup against the Padres, starting in right field to give the slumping Mike Yastrzemski a day off. A Vallejo native, Johnson grew up attending Giants games and landed on his hometown team’s radar after batting .429 with a 1.455 OPS and five home runs over 10 games in the Mexican League this year.
The Giants signed the left-handed-hitting Johnson to a Minor League deal on May 2 and sent him to Sacramento, where he hit .272 with an .846 OPS, six homers and five stolen bases over 26 games before earning his first callup of the year.
“Obviously, it was unexpected,” Johnson said, “but to be here right now, it’s a blessing. I’m at a loss for words almost.”