The name Tyler Austin has probably not crossed the minds of many SF Giants fans in quite some time, but the forgotten Giants slugger is back in the big leagues after a sojourn in Japan as he has signed a major league deal with the Chicago Cubs.

The last time Austin appeared in the big leagues was in 2019 with the Milwaukee Brewers. Earlier that season he was with the Giants and played in 70 games with the team.

SF Giants legend Tyler Austin is back in MLB

As a member of the Giants, Austin slashed .185/.279/.400 with eight home runs and 20 runs batted in. The Giants were able to scoop him up after the Minnesota Twins moved on from him. Farhan Zaidi was in his first year as president of baseball operations and Austin was a typical Zaidi pick up as part of his roster churn strategy.

Austin clearly had a lot of raw power but he was just not consistent enough at the plate to be kept on the roster at a certain point.

Following the 2019 season, Austin went overseas to play in Japan. He had some great seasons like in 2021 when he slashed .303/.405/.601 with 28 home runs and 74 runs batted in. 2024 was another stellar year for him as he slashed .312/.378/.594 with 26 homers and 74 runs driven in.

2025 saw him slash .280/.363/.502 with 12 homers and 31 runs batted in. Not quite as impressive as some of his other years in Japan but the power is still there, the question is whether he can get it to translate to the big leagues.

The Cubs are making an interesting bet on him. His contract is just one year for $1.25 million so it is a pretty safe risk to take. Maybe they strike gold and find themselves a slugger, and if he proves to be a bust in his return to the big leagues they can move on without taking too much of a hit.

Austin is 34 years old so he is getting up there. Cubs fans may not love it if he ends up being Kyle Tucker’s replacement, but at the very least he is a solid depth add.

The Giants probably would not have benefited from having Austin on the roster. Signing him instead of giving Luis Matos another shot would have been a bit silly but since the Giants do not seem eager to spend this season maybe Austin would have been a perfect fit.

Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how he fares in his return to the big leagues and maybe the Giants will even face him when they square off against the Cubs in 2026.