Nuñez would rather stay

ATLANTA — Third baseman Eduardo Nuñez is hoping for a longer-term relationship with the Giants, even though he might be mentioned in trade talk before the July 31 deadline and even though he’ll be a free agent after the season.

“I hope yes,” he said. “I really like the team. I really like the group we have right here. I really like how they treat me here. It’s first class, everything. The coaches, unbelievable. When you’re around a lot of good players, you want to get better. You don’t want to make an error. You work your butt off to get better.”

Nuñez, one of the Giants’ rare threats on the bases, has been slowed with left hamstring tightness and will be examined Friday in San Francisco. If he still has issues, he’ll be placed on the 10-day disabled list.

Rather than playing one position every day elsewhere, Nuñez said he’d rather remain a Giant even in a super utility role — he has played third, short, second, left and right since arriving in July — because he envisions the Giants winning again in the near future.

“We know this is going to change,” Nuñez said. “I prefer to stay here.”

Third base has been Nuñez’s main spot with the Giants, but he knows they anticipate Christian Arroyo eventually taking over there, and other jobs on the infield are taken. As the trade deadline approaches, the Giants must weigh Nuñez’s value and whether they could replace his speed.

He’s hitting .299 this year and .407 with runners in scoring position, the third best mark in the league, and has swiped 17 bags in 20 attempts.

“He’s a lot of fun ... plays the game with passion,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “He has what you love in a good athlete. He can ... steal a base, good hitter, has some pop, good arm, good defender.” Bumgarner’s progress: Madison Bumgarner threw 35 pitches in a two-inning simulated game in Arizona — 20 pitches in the first inning, 15 in the second — and his next assignment is Sunday, when he’ll pitch three innings in an Arizona rookie league game.

The next step after that is starting a minor-league rehab assignment at Triple-A Sacramento or Class A San Jose.