Tristan Beck

San Francisco Claimed A Reliever Milwaukee Waived, So Ryan Walker Is Going To Sacramento For The Third Time

San Francisco optioned right-hander Ryan Walker to Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday morning, the third time it has optioned him in 2026, and activated right-hander Joel Kuhnel, whom it claimed off waivers from Milwaukee on Friday after the Brewers designated him for assignment on Wednesday. The move was forced by two ceilings: the Giants carried 28 active players and 14 pitchers before it, and all thirty major league clubs were carrying exactly 28 and exactly 14 on Saturday, measured off MLB's active-roster endpoint. Walker led the 2025 Giants with 17 saves out of the 41 the club recorded in 162 games, with Camilo Doval taking 15 of the rest. This season he has a 7.16 ERA across 33 appearances and 32.2 innings, with 19 walks, one more than he issued in 80.0 innings in 2024, when his ERA was 1.91. Opponents have scored in 16 of his 33 outings. His three optional assignments came on May 10, July 9 and September 5, with recalls on June 12 and August 24; in his last stint he allowed four runs across 6.1 innings in six appearances, the first three scoreless, two runs on August 29 and one in each of the last two. San Francisco has made 49 optional assignments across 26 players in 2026, led by Tristan Beck's six. Ten different Giants have recorded a save this year, 26 in total through 142 games, with Caleb Kilian's eight the most. Walker was San Francisco's 31st-round pick in 2018, No. 916 overall, out of Washington State. The club is 58-84, eliminated in the National League West, with a wild-card elimination number of five and 20 games left. Sacramento has 14 games left and its regular season ends September 20. Two takes filed.