SAN FRANCISCO–The San Francisco Giants have under-performed on the field in 2017. Part of the reason is the amount of Giants that have spent time off the field this season due to injury.
Bruce Bochy doesn’t understand it, and he’s never seen the injury bug bite a team he’s worked with as hard as its bit the Giants this season.
“You know, not even close,” Bochy said in regards to recalling a season with this many injuries. “I’m not just talking the major league side, but the minor league side. It’s amazing. All our prospects have gone down.”
Prior to Thursday’s series opener versus the Phillies, Bochy gave an update on a slew of players on the roster that are currently on the disabled list or just getting back on the field.
Christian Arroyo (fractured hand)
“Small setback (for his development). Minor. He’s missed a couple months of baseball. It’s not something you don’t recover from. You have to deal with the injuries, it’s part of it. Sure, it would have been nice for him to get some more time up here, which he would have in September. The fact that he’s got some time up here is invaluable. As he goes into the offseason, he’ll have some knowledge of what it takes to play up here, and that’s a good thing.”
Brandon Belt (concussion)
“He was examined yesterday. He’s doing much better. He’s going to start his cardio tomorrow. That is a big step towards rehabbing and getting back on the field.”
“He’d like to get back. You hate to go in the offseason and not play again. But at the same time we’re going to make sure he’s completely recovered. If he’s not, we won’t put him out there.”
Johnny Cueto (forearm)
“Johnny has a bullpen tomorrow.”
“We’ll ramp [his bullpen session] up a little bit. Probably 35 to 40 pitches.”
Miguel Gomez (knee)
“Gomez is the one that’s had a setback. He was going to start his rehab today, but running the bases a couple days ago didn’t go very well, so he’s in a holding pattern right now.”
Mark Melancon (elbow; returned on August 12)
“I think we’ll keep him with where he’s at. I’m going to talk to Mark after batting practice. I’ll touch base with him then.”
Joe Panik (concussion)
“Panik is going to get evaluated tomorrow. We’ll know where we go from there.”
Austin Slater (hip)
“Austin is actually hitting in the cage. He’s going to hit on the field tomorrow. That’s the game plan for Austin. He’s making some pretty good headway.”
“I think we’re looking at this week at getting some running in.”