Giants add eight players to 40-man roster

November 20, 2015

San Francisco, Calif. - The San Francisco Giants have purchased the contracts of left-handed pitcher Ty Blach, right-handed pitcher Clayton Blackburn, right-handed pitcher Kyle Crick, right-handed pitcher Ian Gardeck, left-handed pitcher Adalberto Mejia, left-handed pitcher Steven Okert, right-handed pitcher Jacob Smith and right-handed pitcher Chris Stratton and added the eight players to the club's 40-man roster, club Senior Vice President and General Manager Bobby Evans announced today.

With today's transactions, San Francisco now has 40 players on its 40-man roster.

In his third minor league campaign, the 25-year-old Blach went 11-12 with a 4.46 ERA (82er, 165.1ip) in 27 starts for triple-A Sacramento last season. Among PCL pitchers, he led the league with 165.1 innings pitched and finished tied for third in wins. The Giants' fifth-round selection in the 2012 First-Year Player Draft earned PCL Pitcher of the Week for Aug. 17-24, after going 1-0 and allowing just one run 17.0 innings of work that week. The Denver, Colorado native has compiled a 31-24 record with a 3.57 ERA (173er, 436.2ip) in 74 games (72 starts) during his minor league career.

Blackburn, a 22-year-old right-hander, went 10-4 with a 2.85 ERA (39er, 123.0ip) in 23 games (20 starts) with triple-A Sacramento in 2015. His 2.85 ERA paced the Pacific Coast League and his 1.29 WHIP ranked fourth among pitchers. The Giants' 16th-round selection in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft earned PCL Pitcher of the Week for Aug. 31-Sept. 7 after going 2-0 with 14.1-shutout innings in his two outings. The Amarillo, Texas native has spent five seasons in San Francisco's minor league chain, going 33-21 with a 2.95 ERA (170er, 518.2ip) in 100 games (91 starts).

Crick, the Giants' sandwich pick in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft, went 3-4 with a 3.29 ERA (23er, 63.0ip) in 36 games (11 starts) with double-A Richmond in 2015. The Fort Worth, Texas native participated for the U.S. Team in the 2013 All-Star Futures Game. In five minor league seasons with San Francisco he has struck out 415 batters in just 340.1 innings pitched.

Gardeck, a 24-year-old right-hander from Park Ridge, Illinois, went 3-4 with a 3.54 ERA (34er, 86.1ip) and 104 strikeouts in 61 appearances with Class A Advanced San Jose in 2015. His 61 games out of the bullpen for San Jose led the California League and his 20 holds were the second-most. Drafted by the Giants in 16th-round in the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, he has compiled a 12-12 minor league record with a 4.16 ERA (97er, 209.2ip) in 153 games.

Mejia, a 22-year-old left-hander from Bonao in the Dominican Republic, went 5-2 with a 2.45 ERA (14er, 51.1ip) in 12 games (nine starts) for double-A Richmond last season. The 6-foor-3, 195-pounder has thrown well this season for the Scottsdale Scorpions in the Arizona Fall League, going 2-2 with a 3.48 ERA (12er, 31.0ip) and 26 strikeouts in seven starts. Signed by the Giants as a non-drafted free agent in 2011, he has compiled a 34-24 record with a 3.38 ERA (163er, 434.0ip) in 94 games (74 starts).

Okert, a 24-year-old left-hander from Riverside, California, went 5-3 with a 3.82 ERA (26er, 61.1ip) in 52 games with triple-A Sacramento. He held left-handed batters to a .228 clip (18-for-79) with 34 strikeouts. He has spent four seasons in San Francisco's minor league chain, going 11-7 with a 2.84 ERA (69er, 219.0ip) in 170 games.

In his fourth minor league campaign, the 25-year-old Smith went 4-4 with a 2.35 ERA (22er, 84.1ip) and 118 strikeouts in 56 appearances with Class A Advanced San Jose. His 16 saves were tied for the second-most in the Giants' minor league system. The Giants' 48th-round selection in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft has posted a 9-12 career record with a 2.93 ERA (65er, 200.0ip) and 21 saves in 132 games (five starts).

Stratton, the Giants' first-round selection in the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, split the 2015 season between double-A Richmond and triple-A Sacramento, combining to go 5-10 with a 3.95 ERA (65er, 148.0ip) in 26 starts. The 25-year-old has posted a 22-23 career minor league record with a 3.93 ERA (183er, 418.2ip) in 80 outings (76 starts).