Austin Slater’s long baseball odyssey took another turn this week when the veteran outfielder left the Tampa Bay Rays organization.
After a productive stretch at Triple-A Durham, Slater opted out of his minor-league contract and is now seeking a major-league opportunity as clubs prepare for September roster expansion.
The 33-year-old is in his 10th big-league season, a career that began when San Francisco selected him in the eighth round of the 2014 draft out of Stanford. Slater spent the first seven-plus years of his professional life in the Giants system, developing into a useful platoon bat and extra outfielder.
His busiest year came in 2021, when he played a career-high 129 games, hit 12 home runs, stole 15 bases, and helped San Francisco reach the postseason. Those years at Oracle Park remain the most stable chapter of a career that has since become a tour of the league.
After leaving the Giants, Slater bounced through Cincinnati, Baltimore, Chicago, New York twice, Miami, and Tampa Bay. The recent major-league results have been thin.
This season he collected only a handful of big-league plate appearances with the Marlins, Mets, and Rays and posted a modest line with no home runs. Dating back to 2024, his production in limited roles has lagged. What he has done against Triple-A pitching is another story.
In 35 games and 150 plate appearances with Durham, Slater hit .305 with a .407 on-base percentage and a .453 slugging mark, walking at a high clip and showing the same right-handed approach that once made him a reliable option against left-handed pitching. Career numbers against southpaws still look respectable, and he can play all three outfield spots plus first base in a pinch.
Tampa Bay had already designated him for assignment once this summer after a brief seven-game stint, then brought him back on a minor-league deal.
With no immediate path to the majors in St. Petersburg, Slater chose to test the market ahead of the Sept. 1 postseason-eligibility deadline.
A guaranteed major-league contract may be difficult given the last three seasons, but September expansions and clubs still looking for a right-handed bench piece against lefties could create an opening.
The news landed on a familiar day in San Francisco. The Giants, now 54-79 and fourth in the National League West, dropped a 10-9 decision to Cincinnati after leading by six runs in the ninth, the first such collapse in franchise history.
They open a homestand against Arizona on Thursday. Slater is no longer part of that picture, yet his name still travels with the organization that drafted him.
Whether another club gives him one more look in September will decide if this veteran’s 10th season ends in the minors or back on a major-league roster.
