SAN DIEGO — This was supposed to be Dereck Rodríguez’s time to shine.
After arriving seemingly out of nowhere to record one of the best rookie seasons by a Giants pitcher in franchise history, Rodríguez was expected to become a top-of-the-rotation anchor in his second year with the club.
Instead, Rodríguez was demoted from the Giants’ bullpen to Triple-A Sacramento on Monday as the organization cleared a roster spot for utility man Austin Slater.
On June 30 of 2018, Rodríguez tossed 6 1/3 shutout innings in a dominant start against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Exactly one year later, Rodríguez gave up three earned runs in 2/3 of inning against those same D’backs before learning he was headed back to the minor leagues.