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Melancon to begin rehab assignment, will return to Giants in closer role

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On Friday afternoon, Sacramento River Cats fans learned that Giants’ right-hander Johnny Cueto will likely make a rehab start with the club on Monday or Tuesday.

On Saturday morning, season ticket holders discovered that the upcoming week could be one of the most fruitful in recent memory, as Giants’ manager Bruce Bochy announced that closer Mark Melancon is prepared to begin a rehab assignment on Sunday in Sacramento.

“Mark is going to pitch in a rehab game tomorrow, I believe,” Bochy said.

Melancon has been sidelined since June 27 with an elbow injury that forced him to the disabled list for the second time this season, and the Giants are hopeful that he’ll be able to return with his health intact in early August.

Bochy said that Melancon’s most recent bullpen looked promising, but because he’s missed a considerable amount of time, San Francisco will be cautious with Melancon’s rehab assignment.

“It’s not something we have an exact number on but he’s going to need a few,” Bochy said. “I think Mark will let us know. His last bullpen he was letting it go pretty good so maybe two or three, he may need more time. We’ll evaluate him after each one.”

Since Melancon hit the disabled list, former Rangers’ closer Sam Dyson has served as the Giants’ interim closer and converted all six of his save opportunities. Since being designated for assignment by Texas after posting a 10.80 earned run average in his first 17 games this season, Dyson has completely turned his season around, recording scoreless outings in 15 of his 18 appearances in a Giants’ uniform.

Even though Dyson has enjoyed success with the Giants, Bochy didn’t hesitate when asked whether Melancon would supplant Dyson in the ninth inning when he returned to the roster.

“Yes.”

Bochy admitted Saturday that he thinks Melancon’s elbow has bothered him since the start of the season, as it first because an issue for the Giants’ marquee free agent acquisition back in Spring Training.

“I think so, he felt it a little bit in the spring so it’s been active,” Bochy said. “This game is hard enough to play when you’re 100 percent so the fact that he wasn’t completely healthy, sure I think that played a part in some of his early struggles.”

When Melancon returns, the Giants will have an opportunity to take a sneak peak at what their bullpen could look like in 2018. Bochy is hopeful that the combination of Dyson and Melancon at the back end of the Giants’ bullpen will help provide order for San Francisco, and he’s hopeful right-hander Hunter Strickland will perform well in a seventh inning role.

“It’s going to be good to see how this goes,” Bochy said. We’ll move Strick down to the seventh and I think we’ll be closer to what we thought we would be when the season started. Even though we didn’t have Dyson, with Will Smith who has missed all year, he was going to help us in that eighth inning, too. I think it’s going to tighten up the bullpen.”