According to reports, the Giants could sign an All-Star catcher after Patrick Bailey's injury

The San Francisco Giants were already unlikely to make the playoffs, but then they received devastating news this week.

Catcher Patrick Bailey, one of Major League Baseball's best defenders at any position, suffered an oblique injury during pregame batting practice on Monday. Although the Giants initially hoped Bailey could avoid an extended absence, he was placed on the 10-day injured list on Tuesday.

The injury is a devastating blow for the Giants, who are 65-63 and 3 1/2 games behind the Atlanta Braves for the final wild card spot in the National League. Replacing a catcher of Bailey's caliber is no easy task, especially given the Giants' depth of depth.

Veteran Curt Casali is Bailey's primary backup, and the Giants also brought back rookie Jakson Reetz from Triple-A. But the Giants have a rare opportunity to land a former All-Star backstop on the free agent roster, and one insider believes they could capitalize on the chance.

According to a report by Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Giants are among the teams interested in signing free agent catcher Elias Díaz, formerly of the Colorado Rockies. Díaz was released earlier this week after going unclaimed on a waivers list.

Díaz, 33, was the Most Valuable Player of the 2023 All-Star Game in Seattle. He has had a successful career, especially in his last two seasons with the Rockies. Since the start of 2023, he has a batting average of .268/.315/.398.

After failing to find a trade partner for Díaz by the July 31 deadline, the Rockies decided to give up on the pending free agent entirely in the hopes that a team could sign him to cover the remainder of his 2024 salary. But that didn't happen, and now Díaz is up for grabs.

While Díaz can't solve the Giants' problems on his own, he may be a better option than the healthy catchers they have. He would need to be on the roster by August 31 to be eligible for the postseason.

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