Giants claim former Rangers top prospect off waivers as disappointing tenure ends

At one point in the not-so-distant past, catcher Sam Huff was widely regarded as one of the best catching prospects in all of baseball. The Texas Rangers selected him in the seventh round of the 2016 MLB Draft and he immediately got to work, hitting 18 home runs in his first season as a pro before setting a career-high in 2019 with 28.

Huff made it up to the big leagues in 2020 at the age of 22, but he never managed to stick there. Across four years, he hit .258 in just 78 games while failing to ever grab hold of a starting gig. This past season he struggled mightily at Triple-A to the point where he was no longer viewed as a viable big-league option for the Rangers. So, they cut bait.

When Texas finalized their agreement with reliever Shawn Armstrong, Huff was designated for assignment. In a not-so-surprising development, there were teams interested right away in a former top catching prospect in the league. On Wednesday, the San Francisco Giants claimed him off of waivers from the Rangers, ending his run in Arlington.

Giants claim Sam Huff off of waivers from the Rangers

On the Giants, Huff will occupy a spot on their 40-man roster, but it's difficult to see where exactly he'll fit into their plans, especially at the big league level. As things currently stand, the club is set to roll with 2024 breakout star Patrick Bailey as their primary backstop with season veteran Tom Murphy on hand as the backup.

Murphy stands out as a potential trade candidate thanks to a league-wide need of help behind the plate. The Giants also have former Rule 5 pick Blake Sabol on the 40-man, so Huff is going to have some stiff competition to get at-bats at the game's highest level in 2025.

The writing was on the wall for Huff, who turns 27 on Tuesday, after the Rangers signed Kyle Higashioka to be their backup for the next few years earlier this offseason. Texas also signed veteran Tucker Barnhart to a minor league contract, which only pushed Huff further down the organizational depth chart.

A player with as much raw power as Huff does should be able to find jobs since he's still so young and has that ex-prospect pedigree tied to his name. Unfortunately, his bat has fallen off recently and he's consistently had defensive question marks behind the plate, too. An eventual move to first base as a home-run-or-bust type of hitter may be his ultimate role if he ever carves a consistent one out in the big leagues.