Giants part ways with former No. 2 overall draft pick

Sep 15, 2023; Denver, Colorado, USA; General view of a San Francisco Giants cap and glove during the ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The San Francisco Giants are giving up on a player who was once seen as one of baseball’s elite prospects.

The Giants on Sunday designated catcher Joey Bart for assignment, essentially ending his tenure with the team. Giants manager Bob Melvin suggested that Bart deserved the chance to play more frequently than the team could offer.

Bob Melvin on Joey Bart:

“At the end of the day, if he's in the big leagues, and he's getting to play and he's in a better place, then you wish him the best. He worked awfully hard for us this spring. He had a great attitude the whole time knowing that this could potentially…

— Shayna Rubin (@ShaynaRubin) March 31, 2024

Bart was the second overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft and, for a time, was viewed as one of the game’s top hitting prospects. At one point the Giants even viewed him as the heir apparent to Buster Posey. The organization was careful not to rush him when the opportunity to replace Posey presented itself, but ultimately, he never quite developed enough to play every day at the MLB level.

In 162 career games in the majors, Bart has hit just .219 with 11 home runs, all of which came in 2022. His initially strong minor league numbers have tailed off as well in recent years, prompting the Giants to move on from the 27-year-old.