HIT A SOUR NOTE
Giants: Yastrzemski exits final exhibition after being struck by a pitch
The Giants’ top performer from the 2020 season and one of their most important players, Mike Yastrzemski, exited Monday’s final spring training game in the top of the third inning after being hit by a pitch.
Oakland A’s left-hander Sean Manaea hit Yastrzemski on his left hand with a pitch in the Giants’ 7-2 win, and the team announced Monday night that X-rays came back negative.
“The medical staff is optimistic, as is the field staff right now,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “It makes sense for us to get X-rays so we’re going to do that.”
The club will officially list Yastrzemski as day-to-day, but the scans
indicate he’ll be able to play Thursday against the Mariners.
Yastrzemski actually swung at the two-strike pitch from Manaea, meaning the pitch resulted in a dead ball and a strikeout. Giants broadcaster Dave Flemming said senior director of athletic training Dave Groeschner sprinted out of the dugout to check on Yastrzemski and accompanied him on his way off of the field at Hohokam Stadium.
In a video conference with reporters, Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford said the hit by pitch sounded bad, but noted that Yastrzemski was in good spirits in the clubhouse and thinks the outfielder will be all right.
Yastrzemski, who finished eighth in National League MVP voting in 2020, has enjoyed a strong spring. He entered Monday’s game with a .308 average and a 1.033 OPS.
Giants players have had trouble in recent years with hand injuries to key players. Former ace Madison Bumgarner missed the first two months of the 2018 season after being hit by a batted ball on his pitching hand in his final spring training start. Bumgarner was drilled by a line drive from Royals infielder Whit Merrifield that fractured the fifth metacarpal in his left hand, requiring the starter to undergo surgery and forcing the Giants to use lefty Ty Blach as their Opening Day starter against the Dodgers.
Third baseman Evan Longoria and top prospect Joey Bart also missed time in recent years after being hit by pitches on the hand. Longoria was hit by a pitch in June, 2018 — he also fractured the fifth metacarpal and was absent for more than a month of games. Bart was twice hit on the hand in 2019, once early in the minor league season with the San Jose Giants and once during the Arizona Fall League in a stint with the Scottsdale Scorpions.
Yastrzemski’s exit marked the second consec- utive day a Giants player left a game after being hit by a pitch. Infielder Tommy La Stella departed Sunday’s matchup with the A’s after taking a breaking ball off of his left knee.
Kapler listed La Stella as “day-to-day” with a “left knee contusion,” and while he wasn’t included in Monday’s starting lineup, he came off the bench and recorded a pinch-hit single in the top of the fifth inning Monday. The Giants replaced La Stella with a runner, but Kapler said he anticipates the infielder will be fully available for Opening Day.
WEBB FINALLY HAS AN ERA, NOW READY FOR OPPORTUNITY>>
It took until the final day of spring training, but Giants pitcher Logan Webb finally has an ERA.
After throwing 11 scoreless innings to open Cactus League play, Webb tossed six innings of one-run ball in Monday’s victory over the Oakland A’s to put a bow on a fantastic spring.
“I wasn’t thinking too much about that,” Webb said of his scoreless streak. “It was more getting through my six innings, staying strong, getting my pitch count up a little bit and I was able to do that, so overall I was
happy.”
Kapler said last weekend the team has Webb penciled in to start the third game of the season in Seattle against the Mariners. The 24-year-old right-hander did nothing to give the coaching staff pause.
The only run Webb allowed this spring came in the bottom of the fifth inning at Hohokam Park as A’s catcher Sean Murphy scored on a wild pitch with two outs after doubling earlier in the inning.
With a 0.53 ERA in 17 innings this spring, Webb left little doubt he belongs in the Giants rotation and is deserving of pitching in the opening series in Seattle. He spotted his fastball with regularity, mixed in a slider that showed promise, and most importantly, increased the frequency he relied on his changeup, which has the potential to be one of the best offspeed pitches any Giants starter will throw this season.
Kevin Gausman, will start the Giants’ seasonopener on Thursday in Seattle while veteran Johnny Cueto will face the Mariners on Friday.
Kapler hasn’t announced who will follow Webb, but it will be a major surprise if Anthony DeSclafani isn’t on the mound Monday when the Giants open a threegame set in San Diego.
With off days following their series in Seattle and San Diego, the Giants don’t need a fifth starter during the first week of the season. But right-hander Aaron Sanchez would likely pitch the second game against the Padres if the team chooses to give its starters an extra day of rest.