Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
Bruce Bochy was not ready to unveil the Giants’ post-All-Star break rotation, but he did include an intriguing name in the possibilities.
Dereck Rodriguez threw 58 pitches Friday for Triple-A Sacramento, and Bochy acknowledged he will be a candidate to get a major league start, with the Giants playing a double-header in Colorado on July 15, the Monday after the break.
“That’s why this move was made,” Bochy said of optioning Rodriguez to the minors Monday, “so we could make him one of the candidates.”
Rodriguez, who broke out last season as a rookie but first struggled in the rotation and then out of the bullpen this year, allowed three runs on four hits and a walk in his four innings against Reno. With the Pacific Coast League break coinciding with the majors’, Bochy said the team would look to get Rodriguez another start elsewhere, possibly with High-A San Jose.
“We got him where we thought he should be at this point,” Bochy said before Saturday’s game against the Cardinals at Oracle Park. “Get him even stretched out more.”
The Giants have been curiously quiet in what has been ailing Travis Bergen, who hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since May 17 with a left shoulder strain. Bochy said Bergen had a “setback” in Sacramento, where he felt soreness after throwing Monday.
The Giants have shut him down for a week, and Bochy said he’s visited with team doctors. Asked if Bergen required an MRI, Bochy said he’s “not sure all the tests that have been done.”
“He’s chilling, I guess is the best way to put it,” Bochy said of the Rule 5 pickup. “… I know the doctors have recommended rest. After the break he’ll get looked at. What tests we do, I can’t tell you.”