The Giants have spent much of this season patching together the catcher position, and somehow Zach Morgan still ended up on the outside looking in.
Morgan, the Stockton native who grew up rooting for San Francisco and has said he was at Game 1 of the 2012 World Series, has been with the big league club twice this year and still hasn’t logged a single appearance. Not one plate appearance, not one defensive inning.
His first trip up made sense as a short-term emergency answer after Daniel Susac fractured his kneecap. With no other healthy options available, the Giants brought Morgan up for a day, then turned to veteran Andrew Knizner for more depth.
But the second chance was harder to explain. Morgan was part of the September call-ups and stayed with the team from September 1 through September 8, yet never got into a game before being sent back down in favor of infielder Brett Harris.
That alone raises the obvious question: why not get him in somewhere? Even a single at-bat would have counted.
September 4 offered a clean opening when the Giants were trailing the New York Mets 9-2 after the sixth inning. Instead, the team pinch hit Knizner for Drew Cavanaugh, leaving Morgan untouched again.
It also doesn’t help Knizner’s case that he has been one of the least productive bats on the roster. He is hitting .146/.222/.268 with one home run, and that homer is also his only RBI. Morgan’s minor league numbers haven’t exactly forced the issue either - he hit .248/.346/.341 between Richmond and Sacramento - but the bigger picture still points in his favor.
Knizner’s odds of being on next year’s team look slim, while Morgan could still matter as a depth piece if the Giants need help at catcher next season because of an injury to either Susac or Cavanaugh.
For a team whose most watchable moments have come from giving younger players a chance, this felt like a missed one. Morgan is a local kid and a Giants fan who finally got his shot at the roster, and the club never gave him a real opportunity to step on the field.
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