Belt, Longoria may be missing on Opening Night
SAN FRANCISCO — After star catcher Buster Posey announced his decision to sit out the 2020 season, Giants fans already expected the Opening Night lineup to look quite different than it has in recent memory.
With three days remaining until the Giants start their season in Los Angeles, manager Gabe Kapler announced the club expects to be without two other key middle-of-the-order hitters.
Kapler said it’s “not realistic” for Evan Longoria (moderate right oblique strain) or Brandon Belt (right heel issue) to be ready for a July 23 matchup with the Dodgers as both have been battling injuries over the last several days.
Neither player is in the lineup for Monday’s exhibition against the Oakland A’s at the Coliseum and Kapler didn’t provide any details on when they might be available next. The Giants’ first-year manager has not said whether either player will open the season on the injured list and said it’s too early to rule out Longoria or Belt being ready to play later on in the seasonopening four-game series at Dodger Stadium.
“I think it’s going to be a few days into the season, we’re hustling to get those guys ready as quickly as possible but without the full intensity running reps that Brandon and Evan need, they’re just not quite going to be ready for the Opening Day assignment against the Dodgers.”
With Longoria out, Kapler has mentioned Wilmer Flores, Pablo Sandoval, Yolmer Sánchez and Donovan Solano as potential replacements at third base. Flores and Sandoval are also capable of playing first base and so are Austin Slater and minor league free-agent Darin Ruf.
Longoria injured his oblique while swinging last week while Belt has been dealing with a right heel flare up since the beginning of summer workouts.
Belt served as the designated hitter in Saturday’s intrasquad game at Oracle Park, but he has yet to play the field in a competitive setting.
Free-agent signee Hunter Pence is not in the lineup for Monday’s exhibition game, but Kapler said that decision has nothing to do with a right foot injury Pence has dealt with during summer workouts.
“Everything is good with Hunter, we’re just monitoring his workload,” Kapler said. “We are very confident in where Hunter is, he got some live reps today at the ballpark earlier and a good practice session in, part of this is just staging out the progression to Opening Day at this point.”
Monday’s exhibition in Oakland
With A’s left-hander Sean Manaea slated to start Monday, the Giants have eight right-handed hitters in the lineup including Sandoval, a switch-hitter who will play first base.
Flores, who was expected to spend most of his time on the right side of the infield this year, will start at third base in an effort to give him more reps at the position ahead of Opening Night.
Slater will play left field with Mauricio Dubón in center and Jaylin Davis in right, giving the Giants an all right-handed outfield and a trio of players who all spent portions of summer workouts practicing in center field.
Chadwick Tromp will catch right-hander Kevin Gausman and Kapler said the Giants have yet to determine which catchers will make the team’s initial 30-man roster. Tromp entered summer workouts slightly behind fellow minor league free-agents Tyler Heineman and Rob Brantly in a competition for jobs, but hit three home runs and a triple in Oracle Park intrasquad games and has emerged as a candidate to catch Johnny Cueto in the first game of the season.