Phillies claim outfielder off waivers; transfer Noah Song to 60-day IL

The Philadelphia Phillies announced Friday afternoon that they’ve claimed outfielder Cal Stevenson off of waivers from the San Francisco Giants. Stevenson was subsequently optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Stevenson will provide organization outfield depth for the time being, as he’s someone who has brief MLB experience with the Oakland A’s and Giants over the past two seasons. In 329 career at-bats at Triple-A, the left-handed hitter has slashed .271/.382/.386 with seven home runs, 39 RBIs and a .768 OPS.

Perhaps this is reading too much into things, but it’s not hard to imagine how Stevenson’s value could increase later this summer, if president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski chooses to include any of Dalton Guthrie, Simón Muzziotti or Johan Rojas in a trade.

Interestingly, the Phillies have had quite the run recently with making successful waiver claims on former Giants players. LHP Andrew Vasquez and RHP Luis Ortiz were both offseason waiver claims from the Giants who have performed well out of the bullpen for the Phillies in 2023. Additionally, the Phillies also acquired RHP Yunior Marte in a trade with the Giants in January.

In a corresponding move, RHP Noah Song has been transferred to the 60-day injured list, which opens up a 40-man roster spot for Stevenson. Song, 25, was a Rule-5 Draft pick by the Phillies in December, meaning he would have to remain on the 26-man roster all season or risk being subjected to waivers. But because he hasn’t been healthy all season (lower back), the Phillies haven’t had to make that tough decision for the former Navy officer.

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