Giants open roster spot for Harrison Bader by trading pitcher Kai-Wei Teng to Astros

Needing a 40-man roster spot in order to make official their signing of free agent outfielder Harrison Bader, the San Francisco Giants on Thursday traded right-hander Kai-Wei Teng to the Houston Astros for minor league utility player Jancel Villarroel, a 21-year-old Venezuelan who can catch and play in the outfield.

Teng, 27, pitched in 12 games for San Francisco over the past two seasons, including seven starts, and put up a 7.30 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 40⅔  innings. A member of Chinese Taipei's World Baseball Classic team, Teng was in the mix for a possible long-man role in the Giants' bullpen along with providing starter depth at Triple-A Sacramento.

Per MLB Pipeline, Villarroel was the No. 13 prospect for Houston, which also sent international slot money to the Giants.

Bader's two-year, $20.5 million deal could be announced as soon as Friday. The outfielder had a physical in San Francisco earlier in the week.

This article originally published at Giants open roster spot for Harrison Bader by trading pitcher Kai-Wei Teng to Astros.