Giants Claim Eric Cerantola Off Waivers From Royals, Outright Gregory Santos

The San Francisco Giants have claimed right-hander Eric Cerantola off waivers from the Kansas City Royals, a transaction that indicates the Giants’ ongoing effort to add depth to their late-inning staff. Cerantola’s move comes after the Royals designated him for assignment, and it gives San Francisco a new relief option to evaluate both immediately and in the next couple of weeks.

According to the Giants’ corresponding roster mechanics as reported, Cerantola was assigned to Triple-A Sacramento rather than joining the major-league club right away. That matters because, in practice, teams sometimes claim a player with the intention of keeping the player in their minor-league system while preserving major-league roster flexibility. With Cerantola landing in Sacramento, San Francisco would not need an additional corresponding transaction solely to create an active-roster opening.

The same report also indicates the Giants outrighted Gregory Santos after the waiver sequence. An outright is a formal removal from the 40-man roster (assuming the player clears waivers), and it typically reflects a team’s decision to keep the organization’s minor-league depth in motion while protecting major-league roster space for other needs. For Santos, the implication is a shift away from the immediate major-league bullpen picture and toward a longer runway within the farm system.

Waiver claims in July tend to be driven by timing. Contending and playoff-chasing teams frequently look at their relief corps and identify specific roles to stabilize, whether that is a fresh arm for leverage innings or additional options to manage workload for the back end of the bullpen. At the same time, teams with multiple roster constraints often prefer to move players in a sequence that keeps roster math clean, including using designation-for-assignment windows and corresponding roster moves.

For Cerantola, the opportunity is straightforward but not guaranteed. Being claimed off waivers does not automatically translate into a major-league bullpen job, especially if the player is optionable and the team already has experienced relief arms available. Still, the claim itself suggests the Giants viewed his profile as valuable enough to secure rather than risk losing him to another organization. The near-term watch is whether he remains in Triple-A as additional pitching depth or is called up if a bullpen need emerges.

San Francisco’s approach also highlights how quickly the bullpen landscape can change during the season’s second half. A single waiver claim can alter internal depth charts, force managerial matchups, and create additional competition among the group of relievers fighting for innings. Conversely, outrighting a player like Santos underscores the cost of that competition and the roster squeeze that builds as rosters expand and contract around injuries, performance, and day-to-day pitching availability.

Going forward, the key questions are practical: how the Giants plan to use Cerantola within their bullpen pipeline, whether he produces enough to earn a faster path to the majors, and how long Santos remains part of the organization’s pitching plans after being removed from the 40-man roster. If the major-league club calls up Cerantola later in the summer, it would likely be because a specific role opens up, not merely because the claim was made.