As spring training began to wind down in Scottsdale, Farhan Zaidi said one of his top priorities heading into the regular season was acquiring an additional shortstop to provide depth behind Brandon Crawford.
It took a little longer than expected, but Zaidi finally got his man as the Giants announced Saturday they added infielder Thairo Estrada in a trade with the New York Yankees.
Estrada, who was designated for assignment when the Yankees traded for Rougned Odor, was optioned to the Giants’ Sacramento alternate site and will likely spend the month of April playing exhibition games against players at the Oakland A’s alternate site.
To clear a roster spot for Estrada, the Giants recalled outfielder Jaylin Davis and transferred him to the 60-day injured list with left knee patella tendinitis. Davis dealt with the knee injury during spring training and was left off the team’s alternate site roster so he could continue rehabbing in Arizona.
With Davis injured, the Giants added more outfield depth last week by acquiring former A’s outfielder Skye Bolt on a waiver claim.
Estrada, 25, made cameos with the Yankees in 2019 and 2020 as he batted .250 with a .732 OPS as a rookie before going just 8-for-48 in 26 games last summer.
Estrada has mostly played second base in the majors with New York, but does have eight games of experience at shortstop and played more than 200 games at shortstop in his minor league career.
The Giants opened the season with Mauricio Dubón, who primarily plays center field, as the team’s top backup behind Crawford, but San Francisco lacked depth at the position at the upper levels of the minor leagues.
Arismendy Alcantara, who joined the Giants on a minor league deal this offseason and is training at the alternate site, can play shortstop, but Estrada will likely supplant him as the preferred Triple-A starter at the position when the minor league season begins in May.