Former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Justin Dean has been designated for assignment after a short time with the San Francisco Giants.
The Giants made the move on Tuesday to complete the signing of right-hander Tyler Mahle to the 40-man roster.
Dean was a part of the 2025 World Series roster, serving as a defensive substitute to help close out games in the ninth inning. He was also a pinch-runner due to his base-running I.Q.
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He is most famously known for making the brilliant decision not play a ball that got stuck between the outfield ground and the wall.
By rule, the play was deemed to be a ground-rule double, forcing the Toronto Blue Jays’ base runners to only take two bases when both could have scored.
Kiké Hernandez ended up making a great catch in shallow left field and created a double-play by getting a force out at second base due to a mistake from the runner.
After the game was over, manager Dave Roberts explained what happened on the field.
“No, it was great, but as the rule is current, you want to play that ball, actually, and you can go back and replay the lodged ball,” Roberts said.
“But he still was aware of it being lodged, and then the outfield umpire kind of blew it dead as well, so it worked out great, but certainly good awareness.”
The Dodgers ended up winning Game 7 against the Toronto Blue Jays and taking home the crown for the second time in a row, in no small part due to Dean’s knowledge of the game.
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Dean made the Dodgers roster due to his specialization skills, but in Triple-A, he showed promise—slashing .289/.378/.431 and posting a 110 wRC+.
The Giants likely saw this promise, along with a valuable skill set that does well in October, and claimed Dean off waivers when the Dodgers cleared a roster spot.
Now, the Giants have five days to find a trade for Dean, or he will be able to hit the open market as a free agent once the waiver process clears.
He may get interest from other teams, but due to his heroics, he should always have a spot in the organization, in some capacity or another.
Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
2 Responses
I think the video shows Kike’ raising his hands first to signal “ground rule” and Dean took his cue from Kike’. Then Kike’ made his famous double play putout and assist on the next batter.
Well, kind of splitting hairs. He obviously knew there was an issue because he was running toward the ball, paused and then turned and saw Kike with his hands in the air. Seems like he knew something was “wrong” and relied on his veteran outfield partner to make sure he was doing the right thing. No need to give him all the credit – just like there’s no need to give him none of it.