The Giants have claimed right-hander Eric Cerantola off waivers from the Royals, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The Royals designated him for assignment last week. Cerantola has been assigned to Triple-A Sacramento, so they don’t need a corresponding move to open an active roster spot. San Francisco also outrighted reliever Gregory Santos off the 40-man roster after getting him through waivers.
Cerantola, 26, has a very limited big league track record. He made his debut with the Royals this year and currently has 5 1/3 innings under his belt. Since he allowed six earned runs in that small sample, he is unfortunately sitting on a career earned run average of 10.13.
The Giants are presumably more interested in his stuff and his minor league numbers. He averages around 95 miles per hour and also throws a low-90s cutter but most prospect watchers love his mid-80 slider. A few months ago, FanGraphs ranked Cerantola as the #28 prospect in the Royals’ system, with the nasty slider getting praise.
Certantola can get guys out but walks are an issue. He has logged 93 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level over multiple seasons. In that time, he has posted a 3.56 ERA. His 11.7% walk rate is a few ticks higher than par but his 30.7% strikeout rate is well above average.
He first got a 40-man spot in November of 2024, to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. That means he is currently in his second of three option years. The Giants don’t need to add him to the big league roster right now. They can slot him in at Triple-A and get a close-up look at him. If he reins in his control a bit, or even if he doesn’t, he could get a look in the majors. The Giants are one of the few clear sellers this summer, so a few trades could open up some opportunities on their pitching staff for the final few months of the campaign.
San Francisco already had an opening on the 40-man roster, so they didn’t need to drop Santos in order to pick up Cerantola. Jason Foley is on the 60-day injured list and has been on a rehab assignment in Triple-A, so perhaps he’ll be reinstated within the next few days to take that spot.
Santos has tossed five MLB innings over three appearances this year. He’s allowed five runs, albeit only two earned, on five hits and three walks. The righty has pitched in parts of six MLB seasons but only has one year of extended big league action — his strong 2023 campaign as a member of the White Sox. Injuries have robbed him of the past few seasons, and he just returned from a monthlong stay on the Triple-A injured list due to an adductor strain.
As a player with upwards of three years of service time, Santos has the right to decline an outright assignment in favor of free agency. The Giants didn’t provide any indication that he’ll do so, however. Santos made his MLB debut with San Francisco in 2021 and returned to the organization on a minor league contract last December.
