SF Giants release outfielder Stephen Piscotty

The SF Giants decided that two corner outfielders from Bay Area high schools were enough and released Stephen Piscotty at his request

After a strong spring where he slashed .320/.370/.440, Stephen Piscotty had an outside chance to stick with the SF Giants. Those chances disappeared when the Giants made a surprise trade for Matt Beaty just before Opening Day.

At his request, the Giants granted Piscotty's release when it became clear he wasn't making the team.

Piscotty signed a minor-league contract with the Giants in February that included an invitation to spring training a possible $1 million bonus if he made the team. Now he becomes a free agent and can shop around for a team that provides him more opportunities than the Giants do.

Stephen Piscotty went to Amador Valley High School and was an All-Pac-12 outfielder - and occasional pitcher - at Stanford University. The St. Louis Cardinals selected him with the 36th pick in the 2012 draft, and he made the majors by 2015.

Despite not making his major league debut until July 21, Piscotty hit so well in the remainder of the season (.305/.359/.494) that he finished sixth in the Rookie of the Year voting. After a strong second season where he hit 22 home runs, Piscotty signed a six-year, $33.5 million contract with the Cardinals.

After that, Piscotty started suffering freak injuries, including one sequence where he was hit by a pitch, and then hit twice by errant throws in his subsequent trip around the bases. Knee and wrist injuries began to sap his speed and power, with his last above-average year at the plate happening in 2018.

Piscotty returned to the Bay Area with the Oakland A's in 2018, traded by the Cardinals at his request to be closer to his mother, who was dying of ALS. His health and his hitting declined after 2018, and last year the A's released Piscotty after he put up a .190/.252/.341 line in 42 games.

Now he's free to seek his fortune outside the Bay Area. You'd think that an oft-injured corner outfielder with ties to a former Farhan Zaidi team who hadn't hit for a while would be catnip to the SF Giants front office, but for now, Beaty has the last spot in an outfield that may become overcrowded when Mitch Haniger and Austin Slater return from injuries.