PHOENIX, Ariz.–No one knows what the future holds for Matt Cain beyond the 2017 season.
Perhaps Cain will retire, or perhaps he’ll attempt to lock on with another Major League club. In the short-term, though, Cain has plans, and they involve making one final appearance at AT&T Park.
“He’s going to make a start this weekend,” Bochy said. “I’ll give you that (day) tomorrow.”
A 13-year veteran who’s spent the entirety of his career with the San Francisco Giants, Cain is one of the most celebrated pitchers in franchise history, and a three-time World Series champion.
“He’s been preparing, Dave Rags (Righetti) let him know that we’re going to pitch him this weekend and he’s going to start,” Bochy said. “Meanwhile, he had a pretty good bullpen, an extensive bullpen today and we’d like to maybe find a way to get him one inning the next day or two, we’ll see.”
Bochy indicated that right-hander Johnny Cueto would still make his scheduled start on Sunday, which means Cain will likely take the place of Madison Bumgarner on Friday or Chris Stratton on Saturday.
“I’m going to sit down with Johnny, but right now, he’s scheduled to go,” Bochy said.
The best seasons of Cain’s career came during the Giants’ rise to the top of the baseball world. He made his first All-Star appearance in 2009, and finished 12th in Cy Young voting in 2010, when the Giants won their first World Series. In 2011 and 2012, Cain finished with sub 3.00 earned run averages, and earned trips to the All-Star game in both years.
Cain’s greatest individual accomplishment is also one of the greatest in Giants’ history, as threw the franchise’s first perfect game on June 13, 2012 against the Houston Astros.