Busy day: Cain, Belt out; Uggla in picture
PHILADELPHIA— The Giants are about to embark on the stretch drive without one of their most significant pitchers, and nobody can guess when he will return.
Matt Cain has a right-elbow injury and went on the 15-day disabled list Monday with no clue when he can grab a ball and play catch again.
That was the biggest revelation on a newsfilled day for the Giants, who also signed second baseman Dan Uggla off the Braves’ scrap heap to a Triple-A contract, hoping a change of scenery might rejuvenate the fallen 2012 All-Star who has 233 major-league home runs.
The Giants also placed Brandon Belt on the seven-day concussion DL and recalled infielder Adam Duvall and reliever George Kontos from Triple-A Fresno to replace Belt and Cain. Yusmeiro Petit will take Cain’s place in the rotation starting Tuesday night against the Phillies.
The Giants and Cain could cling to some good news. An MRI exam showed no structural damage to Cain’s ulnar collateral ligament, a tear of which usually requires Tommy John surgery.
Instead, Cain has inflammation possibly caused by bone chips. He took a cortisone shot in the elbow during the last homestand, hoping it would reduce the swelling and allow him to resume pitching in the second half. The pain persisted when Cain tried to play catch in Miami over the weekend.
Now, he will stop throwing to allow the inflammation to calm enough for him to throw. When?
“It’s hard to say,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “Not to be evasive, but we’ve got to be comfortable letting him throw. It could be a week, or two weeks.”
Asked if Cain could contribute over the final two months with this injury, Bochy said, “I don’t think we know. We had tests done. It could be a day or two, or it could linger. We don’t know how long it will affect him the rest of the season.”
Cain’s third DL trip in 2014 — but the first of his career with a pitching-related arm injury — comes just ahead of the July 31 trade deadline and could force general manager Brian Sabean to deal for a starter, or at least add relievers to compensate for aweakened rotation.
Cain said he was not overly frightened that he needed Tommy John surgery, but admitted that after the MRI, “it was definitely a relief to look at the pictures.”
Cain said surgery to remove bone chips would be a final resort.
“They say it’s pretty simple, but you try to stay away from it,” Cain said. “Everybody’s got stuff going on with everything. If you can stay away from it, you do the best you can.”
Sabean will continue to investigate the market for second basemen despite the Uggla signing. Uggla has fallen off the offensive map after signing a five-year, $62 million contract with Atlanta before the 2011 season. He batted .179 last year, with 22 home runs, and .162 with five extra-base hits in 130 at-bats before Atlanta released him.
Uggla will report to Fresno on Tuesday to get consistent atbats and be evaluated. His deal allows him to leave as a free agent if not promoted to the majors by Aug. 1.
Uggla exchanged texts with former Atlanta teammate Tim Hudson before he signed with the Giants.
“He knows this is a great opportunity,” Hudson said. “He’s excited by the chance to rejuvenate his career and ultimately help us win a World Series. I’m excited. I love the guy.”
The Giants are hoping to find a cheap diamond as they did with Pat Burrell in 2010. (The Braves are responsible for almost all of Uggla’s salary.)
Like Burrell in Tampa Bay, Uggla was known to butt heads with his superiors in Atlanta. Bochy said struggles on and off the field can “snowball” to the point where a change of scenery is necessary.
But Bochy said going to a new team was no “magic bullet.” It worked for Burrell, he noted, but not Jeff Francoeur last year.
“I can’t say he’ll be up here in the next few days,” Bochy said. “He needs some playing time. This guy has put up some pretty good numbers. I’m sure he hopes, like we (do), he’ll go down there and find that swing.”