Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
As the Giants announced a list of 11 players they had signed to minor league deals with invites to major league camp, the biggest surprise was a name that was absent.
Chadwick Tromp was not listed because he agreed with the club on a major league pact.
Johnny Cueto’s favorite catcher announced his return Tuesday, which was made official Wednesday with a contract that gives the Giants a third catcher on their 40-man roster and positions Tromp as a possible backup to Buster Posey, at least to start the season. The Giants still could seek a more veteran option and have Joey Bart, though they would like the top prospect to get more seasoning in the minors.
Tromp’s deal puts the Giants’ 40-man roster at 37 ahead of Thursday’s Rule 5 draft, which could see San Francisco add another.
Among the minor league contracts the Giants announced, several already were known: RHP Daniel Alvarez, a 24-year-old from the Yankees; RHP Silvino Bracho, a 28-year-old who’s seen major league time with the Diamondbacks; IF/OF Jason Krizan, a lefty-hitting 31-year-old who last played with the Mets and is seeking his major league debut; and LHP Sam Long, a 25-year-old Sacramento State product who was a starter and reliever in the White Sox system.
Among the others, RHP Rico Garcia and RHP Melvin Adon, who were nontendered with Tromp last week, return on minor league deals. Getting Garcia back, especially, is encouraging for the Giants. The 26-year-old from Hawaii showed promise in limited action, though finished with a 5.40 ERA in 10 innings.
Adon, 26, has one of the hardest fastballs in baseball, routinely hitting triple digits, but his command has been an issue. The Giants will welcome him back and try to hone the stuff.
Also invited to major league camp:
LHP Anthony Banda: The Giants bought the lefty from the Rays — they love Rays castoffs — in August after the 27-year-old had been designated for assignment. Banda spent the remainder of the season in Sacramento and is viewed as a swingman, having both started and relieved in the past. He’s bounced up and down between the minors and majors with Arizona and Tampa since 2017.
RHP Dominic Leone: The 29-year-old has been in the majors since 2014 and is hoping to pitch for his sixth team (after Seattle, Arizona, Toronto, St. Louis and Cleveland last season). He struggled with the Indians (8.38 ERA) but still posted numbers that should intrigue the Giants (16 strikeouts in 9 2/3 innings). His mid-90s fastball is known for having above-average spinrate.
RHP Yunior Marte: The 25-year-old from the Dominican Republic touched Triple-A with the Royals in 2019 but never broke through. He came up as a starter, ended up a reliever — though can throw multiple innings — and, in Triple-A with Kansas City, struck out 12.65 per nine innings and walked 4.78.
RHP Raffi Vizcaino: The 25-year-old returns to a system he has pitched in since 2013. Currently pitching in the Dominican Winter League, Vizcaino got as high as Double-A Richmond in 2019. He was in major league camp last season but not invited to the pool.
RHP Sam Wolff: The 29-year-old did make the cut for the alternate site last season but was never called up. He’s been with the Giants since 2018 and was excellent with Richmond in ’19, pitching to a 1.78 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings.
RHP Luis Madero, who was with the Giants last season but never called up, signed with the Marlins.