Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
A trip to Colorado will exhaust a pitching staff, and the Giants did some tweaking as they arrived back at Oracle Park.
Before a series began against the Mets on Thursday, San Francisco called up lefty Williams Jerez and optioned Andrew Suarez back to Triple-A Sacramento.
Suarez lasted one appearance in his latest summons, getting some valuable outs until he ran into trouble Wednesday, when he allowed three runs in the ninth inning. He threw 33 pitches, and the Giants wanted a bullpen arm who would be available.
In Sacramento, Jerez surrendered one run in his past 6 1/3 innings, striking out nine in the span.
“[Jerez] will be used to help out in the bullpen anywhere, giving us innings if needed so we can lighten the load on the rest of the guys,” Bruce Bochy said before the game. “We have been using them a lot, but that’s a good thing. We’ve been winning. Suarez, basically two innings yesterday, we felt like we didn’t want to use him today.”
Additionally, Travis Bergen was flipped to the 60-day injured list — an “administrative move” Bochy called it — and the Giants added righty Jandel Gustave to the 40-man roster and optioned him to Sacramento.
Donovan Solano took grounders at third before the game, which provides another avenue for the Giants to get him at-bats.
“He played there in the spring and he is an option,” Bochy said. “I checked on Pablo [Sandoval] today to make sure he’s all right. … If he needed a break, Solano would have played third.”
Bill Hayes recently resigned from managing High-A San Jose in the middle of the season, with no reason publicly provided. San Jose has not performed well, finishing its first half of the season 30-39.
“I talked to Billy. Had a long talk. Felt for Billy a little bit,” Bochy said. “I know how much he loves this game and what a hard decision that was. But he felt like it was the right decision for him. I don’t know how he felt at the time. We have to make a call. Just like I made my decision. The man’s done a lot for me. I thanked him for all the work and effort he put forth.
“… I know he’s going to miss the game. As soon as he’s been out, he’s already texted me a few times. I know he’s been watching.”