Andrew

Knapp

Knapp made the announcement on his personal Instagram account. The 33-year-old backstop got into three games last year at the highest level and spent parts of seven seasons in the majors, batting .209/.309/.312 with 13 homers and two steals in 328 games between the Giants, Mariners, Pirates and Phillies.

Knapp had been designated for assignment on Thursday when Patrick Bailey returned from the injured list. He’ll continue to serve as extra catching depth for the Giants at the Triple-A level.

Seeing his first major league action since 2022, Knapp went 1-for-6 in three appearances for the Giants.

The 32-year-old backstop was released by the Rangers at the beginning of July and has been searching for work since. With Patrick Bailey sidelined, Knapp will help share the load behind the plate with Curt Casali for the Giants. Knapp previously played for the Giants — appearing in three games at the big-league level during the 2022 campaign. He’ll jump right into action, starting behind the plate and batting ninth against the Mariners on Friday evening in Seattle.

Knapp took advantage of the ability to opt out and will try to find a team that presents him with a better opportunity to resurface as a backup. The 32-year-old former Phillie was hitting .292/.374/.444 for Triple-A Round Rock.

Knapp, 32, hit .233/.328/.377 in Triple-A for the Tigers and Astros organizations last season. It was the first time since 2016 that he failed to get into a major league game. The former Phillies’ backup is a lifetime .209/.310/.313 hitter in 873 MLB plate appearances.

Knapp was cut loose by the Tigers last week and will provide the Astros with some emergency catching depth at Triple-A Sugar Land. The 31-year-old backstop got into 16 games last year between the Pirates, Mariners and Giants.

All four were on the Triple-A Toledo roster. Castro and Del Pozo both had Tommy John surgery this summer and figure to miss most of 2024.

The 31-year-old backstop had spent the entire season at Triple-A Toledo where he slashed .253/.337/.397 with six homers and 25 RBI in 70 games. He shouldn’t have trouble landing a minor league gig elsewhere if he so chooses.

Rogers, who was originally expected to spend some time in the minors after missing most of the last three years, has hit .258/.303/.613 with three homers and two steals this spring to beat out Andrew Knapp and others for the gig. He’ll likely play less than Haase initially, but that should begin to change if he impresses.