Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
If Pablo Sandoval looks more relaxed than he did weeks ago, it’s because he has every reason to be.
“It’s a thing that you’re going to have on your mind every day,” Sandoval said over Zoom on Monday, when he said five members of his family had tested positive for COVID-19, all symptomatic and all now OK.
The Giants were in Houston from Aug. 10-12 when Sandoval was informed his wife was being rushed to the emergency room, which she had to visit multiple times as she fought the virus. He was particularly concerned about his two kids because he said they are high-risk.
“Gabe [Kapler] gave me a little break,” said Sandoval, who was out of the lineup a few days as the Giants hinted at the family issues. “…The team supported me a little bit more and I’m still here.”
As are his family, whose sickness and progress he had to follow from afar, not able to go home to Miami to take care of them firsthand. The past month has been a difficult one that he and family have made it through, rendering his struggles at the plate nearly meaningless.
Sandoval has been better at the plate the longer the season has gone on, but he’s still slashing .208/.262/.260. He does not have a solidified role, yet Kapler turns to him as a lefty bat off the bench and he’s getting his first start at third Monday, filling in for Evan Longoria, who was scratched with soreness in his right glute. He was on the on-deck circle in the ninth late last week, ready to pinch-hit for Chadwick Tromp and, if he sent the game to extra innings, he would have remained in as catcher.
His role is whatever the Giants need that day — which makes it difficult to find a rhythm with his swing.
“It’s part of my role and I’ve accepted it,” Sandoval said about the uncertain nature of his at-bats. “I’ve been doing a lot of things on the field and a lot of things in the cage with the coaching staff to maintain the rate we’re going. I just focus on the opportunity they give me, and I try to do my job.”
The Giants have stuck by him, believing his luck would turn because he has still been hitting the ball hard, just too often toward the ground. They did not have the same faith in his good buddy Hunter Pence, who was released last month.
He was not released from Sandoval’s life, however, the two still playing “Call of Duty” together often. Sandoval said when he heard the news, he gave Pence a hug.
“It was tough. He’s my favorite player. Having Hunter here was a great memory that I will bring with me. But [being released is] part of our job,” said Sandoval, whose wedding Pence attended this offseason. “… Separate things are baseball and friendships.”
Between a family that dominated his thoughts, a quite-irregular season that tests the Giants and every club daily and the exit of one of his best friends, it’s been a difficult season for Sandoval. Before it even began, he was the subject of national scrutiny because he entered camp 2.0 overweight, leading to a ton of attention about his condition and Kapler publicly defending him.
Until Monday, Sandoval had declined to speak to media because of pictures of him that went viral.
“I don’t worry about those things. I know the player that I am, I know the guy that I am. That doesn’t matter,” said Sandoval, saying he tried to ignore the attention. “… I’ve been through a lot of things this season, and I just focus on playing my game and working hard at every little thing.”