Giants Trade Their Longest Tenured Player Austin Slater to Cincinnati Reds for Alex Young

It is that time of year and portion of the season where teams make trades in order to get stronger for the final push towards making the playoffs. And San Francisco and the Reds have made a move. The Giants trade their longest tenured player Austin Slater to the Cincinnati Reds for Alex Young. Slater has a career .805 OPS versus LHP and possesses a nice highlight reel of defensive plays in CF. Alex Young has been dominant at AAA-Louisville with a 1.19 ERA in 23 games. However, Slater has also unfortunately dealt with injuries that have most likely contributed to his downward trend.

Alex Pavlovic who covers all Giants news as well as updates for NBC Sports Bay Area. Breaks the news about the Reds and Giants’ late in the day trade. Pavlovic reveals,

“The Giants traded Austin Slater and cash considerations to the Cincinnati Reds. They got LHP Alex Young, a former Giant who has been optioned to Triple-A.

It was a rough final year, but Austin Slater should be remembered for being a crucial platoon piece in 2021, when he had a .894 OPS against LHP and 4 pinch-hit homers. As the union rep, he played a big role in getting them through the pandemic season & lockout.”

Giants Trade Their Longest Tenured Player Austin Slater to Cincinnati Reds for Alex Young

Furthermore, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic, also dives into the Giants’ reasoning behind this trade. He states,

The Giants have traded their longest tenured player, Austin Slater, to Cincinnati with cash for LHP Alex Young. Young was a Giant and pitched in 24 games in 2022. Signifies to me San Francisco will move ahead with Luis Matos as a RHH outfielder.

So then, another era ends for San Francisco as they say goodbye to Slater. How should Giants fans remember him? We think Bay Area journalist Steven Rissotto sums it up best,

“The San Francisco Giants  have traded Austin Slater to the Reds for LHP Alex Young.

Austin Slater was a role player for the Giants  — and a very productive one for a big chunk of his tenure.

But a hidden nugget in his legacy was his relentless defense of San Francisco. He loved The City. I think folks should really appreciate that.”

Well said. And very true. We will see how San Francisco fares with Alex Young; and wish nothing but the best for Austin Slater with the Reds.

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