{"id":3131,"date":"2026-06-27T10:38:29","date_gmt":"2026-06-27T10:38:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=3131"},"modified":"2026-06-27T10:38:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T10:38:29","slug":"giants-unveil-another-new-catcher-2023-pick-drew-cavanaugh-susac-to-il","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=3131","title":{"rendered":"Giants’ unveil another new catcher: 2023 pick Drew Cavanaugh; Susac to IL"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SAN FRANCISCO \u2013 Catcher Drew Cavanaugh\u2019s quick ascent through the Giants\u2019 farm system landed him at Oracle Park on Friday night for his Major League debut.<\/p>\n

Read more Horoscopes June 27, 2026: J.J. Abrams, you have plenty to gain this year<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s definitely a lot of emotions, and a lot of excitement,\u201d Cavanaugh said before the 7:15 p.m. first pitch against the Atlanta Braves. \u201cThe nerves set in a little bit more when I walked into (the clubhouse). But it\u2019s more so excitement.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s my dream come true, so it\u2019s awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was hastened by Danie Susac\u2019s lower-back strain he battled through most of Thursday\u2019s loss to the Athletics. Susac, removed after the sixth inning, was placed on the 10-day Injured List. X-rays did not reveal a fracture.<\/p>\n

Cavanaugh emerged from Friday\u2019s 3-1 loss with a \u201csurreal\u201d feeling of having made it to the big leagues and faring well in front of his family.<\/p>\n

He drew a standing ovation for getting a fifth-inning hit \u2013 a sharp single up the middle on reliever Hurston Waldrep\u2019s 95-mph sinker with one out.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt great. I hit it and saw it was going to go thorugh. Everything after that was pretty much a blur,\u201d Cavanaugh said afterward. \u201cWhat a moment. All those years practicing and waiting for that moment, it was surreal.\u201d (An ensuing bases-loaded rally died once Eldridge struck out and Casey Schmitt\u2019s grounded into a force out.)<\/p>\n

Cavanaugh is the Giants\u2019 fifth different starting catcher this embattled season, and he is the sixth Giants player to break into the majors. That list includes Susac (April 2) and Jesus Rodriguez, who debuted May 4 as he came up the same day as top prospect Bryce Eldridge and pitcher Trevor McDonald.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

McDonald was Friday\u2019s starting pitcher, just as he was May 4 in a win over the Padres. Cavanaugh caught him multiple times last season at Triple-A Sacramento.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was excited for him,\u201d McDonald said. \u201cWe walked out of the bullpen and I told him to enjoy (the debut), you only get one of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s got good vibes to him, for sure,\u201d Giants manager Tony Vitello said before the game. \u201cThose guys (in the organization) are really happy with how he\u2019s come along as a catcher. One thing that\u2019s always scrutinized or complimented is how you manage a game back there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reminder: the Giants\u2019 president of baseball operations is former catcher and three-time World Series champion Buster Posey.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Afterward, Vitello praised Cavanaugh\u2019s defense, as well as his\u00a0 offensive display (first-inning strikeout on a curveball; fifth-inning single; sevnth-inning walk; ninth-inning groundout).<\/p>\n

\u201cYou saw confident swings. You didn\u2019t see anything out of place,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cI\u2019d like to give him a resounding compliment on the catching side of things: you didn\u2019t notice him, even though he just got here this morning. Although that isn\u2019t vote-for-him-for-the-all-star-team stuff, it speaks to how good he was back there. He looked comfortable, made the dugout comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vitello said his recruiting days at Tennessee taught him how to quickly size up a player\u2019s presence, and Cavanaugh made a positive first impression Friday as \u201ceasy\u201d conversations traveled from Vitello\u2019s office to Cavanaugh\u2019s locker to the weight room.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you can imagine, he\u2019s excited to go, and he spurred on a good conversation in the hitters\u2019 meeting about call-up stories,\u201d Vitello said.<\/p>\n

Read more Asking Eric: I don\u2019t tell people I\u2019m not Christian anymore, but then there\u2019s this problem<\/a><\/p>\n

Cavanaugh, 24, just finished stretching before the River Cats\u2019 game Thursday night when manager Dave Brundage relayed that \u201cThe Show\u201d was calling. So Cavanaugh caught a ride in a luxury SUV, checked into a hotel near the Giants\u2019 ballpark, wrestled a bit to fall asleep, then started boning up on his first opponent, the NL East-leading Braves.<\/p>\n

A 17th-round draft pick in 2023 out of Division II Florida Southern, Cavanaugh had stints at Single-A San Jose each of the past three years, though he jumped up to Triple-A in 2024, and he\u2019s split time this season in Sacramento (32 games, .330 batting average, six home runs) and Double-A Richmond (22 games, .279 average, three home runs) with a .999 OPS.<\/p>\n

Cavanaugh, a native of Troy, Michigan, was thrilled his parents and two of his brothers flew in for the game, and he dedicated the baseball from his first hit to his mother. He transferred to IMG Academy for his senior year of high school, then went to Eastern Florida State College before excelling at Florida Southern in 2023.<\/p>\n

Reunited with former minor-league teammates Eldridge and Jonah Cox, Cavanaugh said his immediate duties are to build \u201ctrust\u201d with the pitching staff.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has good presence. I like different personalities, different backgrounds,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cEverybody\u2019s welcome around here as long as you\u2019re all for the team. We do have a good group of guys in that category.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get to having kids on recruiting visits and you practice at sizing them up. I don\u2019t know how good you can get at that, no one\u2019s 100% accurate, but you get pretty quick to sizing somebody up with a meeting or how they answer a question,\u201d Vitello added. \u201cHe seems like a show-me-what-to-do guy and \u2018I\u2019ll do it as best I can.\u2019 Good smile on his face. He\u2019s an easy conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Giants\u2019 previous starting catchers this season: Susac (28 games), Patrick Bailey (27, before his May trade to Cleveland), Haase (17) and Rodriguez (8)<\/p>\n

OUTFIELD SHIFT<\/strong><\/p>\n

With Cavanaugh inserted to the No. 8 spot in the lineup, Vitello shuffled his outfield a bit, sliding Jung Hoo Lee to center, Victor Bericoto to right and Casey Schmitt back in left.<\/p>\n

Schmitt played second base the previous two games in place of Luis Arraez, who returned from a foot injury and did so in the leadoff spot. Bericoto homered each of the previous two games.<\/p>\n

Lee entered with a .332 batting average that ranked second in the majors behind Miami\u2019s Otto Lopez (.340). \u201cJung Hoo has made incredible catches in that (right-field) corner this year, but he\u2019s also made some in right-center and center,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cI\u2019m not so sure he\u2019s not our most well-rounded outfielder at this point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heliot Ramos, out since May 16 with a quadriceps strain, is expected to rejoin the Giants this weekend and be activated by Monday. Where he plays is a mystery. \u201cWhen guys hit the ball out of the park like Bryce and Bericoto have, it presents a good problem, where you\u2019re trying to arrange guys,\u201d Vitello said.<\/p>\n

MLB DEBUT LIST<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here are which other Giants made Major League debuts this season:<\/p>\n

C Susac, April 2<\/p>\n

C Rodriguez, May 4<\/p>\n

OF Bericoto, May 22<\/p>\n

OF Jonah Cox, May 31<\/p>\n

P Wilkin Ramos, June 1; Ramos was designated for assignment before Friday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n

PRIDE NIGHT FALLOUT<\/strong><\/p>\n

Two weeks after the Giants\u2019 Pride Night controversy in which three players wrote Bible verses on their theme-night caps, the Giants are still attempting to calm the polarizing waters. Giants CEO Larry Baer went on flagship radio station KNBR 680-AM on Thursday and he sent a letter to fans who wrote in with complaints.<\/p>\n

That letter, as posted on social media by San Francisco Standard\u2019s John Shea, includes Baer defending the Giants\u2019 history supporting the LGBTQ+ community. Baer, in part, wrote: \u201cOver the past two weeks, we have learned a great deal and recognize there were things that we could have handled better. We have already begun conversations with members of the LGBTQ+ community and are committed to learning from this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Harriette Cole: I\u2019ve said no, but my husband keeps arguing for another kid<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Catcher Drew Cavanaugh drew Friday night’s starting assignment against Atlanta for his Major League-debut debut with the Giants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nGiants’ unveil another new catcher: 2023 pick Drew Cavanaugh; Susac to IL - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=3131\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Giants’ unveil another new catcher: 2023 pick Drew Cavanaugh; Susac to IL - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Catcher Drew Cavanaugh drew Friday night's starting assignment against Atlanta for his Major League-debut debut with the Giants.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=3131\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-27T10:38:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=3131#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=3131\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Giants’ unveil another new catcher: 2023 pick Drew Cavanaugh; 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