Tyler Heineman optioned to make room for Joey Bart

Early on Thursday, the San Francisco Giants announced some exciting news: hot prospect Joey Bart is headed to the big leagues for his Major League debut.

It took a while, but we now know the corresponding active roster move: fellow catcher Tyler Heineman has been optioned to the Alternate Training Site in Sacramento. It’s not yet clear what the corresponding 40-man roster move is.

It was pretty clear that either Heineman or the Giants other catcher, Chadwick Tromp, would be the odd man out with Bart arriving at the station. I expected it to be Tromp, since he’s a right-handed hitter like Bart.

But instead it’s the Opening Day starter, the switch-hitting Heineman.

Heineman started the year hot, but has been cold for quite a while. He’s hitting just 8-41, with 1 double and 4 walks. That slash line of .195/.283/.220 is rather uninspiring, though it’s not like Tromp has been setting the world on fire.

But Heineman did provide two of the coolest moments of the season for the Giants. During a series against the Texas Rangers, he got to call pitches while his brother — Rangers outfielder Scott Heineman — was in the batter’s box.

And then, in a blowout loss to the Oakland A’s, Heineman got to help preserve the bullpen by hopping on the mound and pitching an inning. He has a perfect 0.00 ERA, and pretty nice 3.14 FIP to match.

We could see Heineman again down the road, but for now it’s goodbye and good luck. And props for being a great teammate.