Getty Giants' catcher Joey Bart during 2023 season against Cubs.
The San Francisco Giants thought they had the perfect changing of the guard set up at the catcher position when future Hall of Fame catcher Buster Posey retired. They would turn to 2018 No. 2 overall pick Joey Bart to take over for San Francisco as the catcher of the future.
However, it was not meant to be and on Sunday, March 31, the Giants began the process of cutting ties. NY Post baseball columnist Jon Heyman posted on March 31, “Joey Bart, No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 draft, has been DFA’ed by Giants.”
Bleacher Report’s Adam Wells covered the moves and wrote, “The move brought an end to a disappointing run for Bart in San Francisco.”
We have acquired C Joey Bart from the Giants in exchange for minor league RHP Austin Strickland.
Instead of outright releasing Bart, the Giants were able to find a trade partner in the Pittsburgh Pirates to take on Bart. Heyman was one of the first to break the news on Tuesday, April 2, writing, “Joey Bart traded to Pirates.”
The full deal was covered by the Pirates account, “We have acquired C Joey Bart from the Giants in exchange for minor league RHP Austin Strickland.”
The deal gives Bart a fresh start with new scenery and a chance to revive his once bright future in the league. For the Giants, they get a piece that could develop or could just be a lottery piece they are taking a chance on.
Joey Bart’s Giants Career Never Took off Like Expected
When Bart was drafted second overall by the Giants, Posey was entering the twilight years of his career, and San Francisco was thinking about planning for a future without him.
Wells wrote, “San Francisco’s hope was that Bart would be able to develop as the heir apparent at catcher when Buster Posey’s career ended. He was considered a top-20 prospect going into the 2020 season, but he hadn’t played above Double-A at that point.”
Bart was 21 years old when he was drafted out of college, so he was expected to be a more polished product and would reach the big leagues quickly.
“Posey opted out of playing in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Giants elected to go with Bart as their starting catcher for the shortened season,” Wells explained.
The results were mixed for the top prospect as he slashed, .233/.288/.320 in 111 plate appearances in the pandemic shortened season.
Bart returned to the minors the following year where he played a majority of the season and only appeared in two big league games.
Posey retired in 2022, giving Bart the chance to capture the job and never look back. However, as Wells explained, “He played a career-high 97 games, but he only hit .215/.296/.364 with 11 homers in 291 plate appearances.”
Bart loss the starting job heading in the 2023 season and according to Wells, “Bart was the Giants’ No. 3 catcher coming into 2024, behind Bailey and Tom Murphy.”
Pirates Taking a Flyer on Joey Bart as a Backup
The Pirates have their own top catching prospect, so the trade is interesting from a Pirates perspective.
“The Pirates currently have Henry Davis as their starting catcher, with Jason Delay as their backup,” Wells wrote. Davis was drafted No. 1 overall in 2021 and is the Pirates catcher of the future.
We have added C Joey Bart to the active roster, and placed C Jason Delay on the 10-day Injured List.
The Pirates posted, “We have added C Joey Bart to the active roster, and placed C Jason Delay on the 10-day Injured List.” According to Wells, “Bart is out of minor league options,” so he would need to be on the major league roster.
Bart will presumably back up Davis until Delay is able to return.