Lefties posing problems

DENVER — The Giants have an issue that has made them increasingly wary of baseball’s left-wingers.

Since Memorial Day, when the Giants last were here, they have won 15 of 19 games when facing right-handed starters. But they have lost 10 of 15 against lefties while scoring two or fewer runs in each of their past seven, including Wednesday night.

The issue has become more noticeable since Evan Longoria got hurt and the Giants lost his .882 OPS against lefties. The problem had arisen before that as Andrew McCutchen failed to hit consistently, Buster Posey’s power declined and Austin Jackson failed to hit at all.

Alen Hanson and Pablo Sandoval can switch-hit, but both are far weaker from the right side.

The Giants are contemplating one out-of-the-box solution: playing Austin Slater at second or third base against lefties, freeing an outfield spot for Jackson or Hunter Pence.

Manager Bruce Bochy considered it Wednesday but decided not to toss Slater into the infield at Coors Field, where defense is paramount, although Bochy laughed when he reminded himself that he had Sandoval start a game here in May.

Slater played a lot of second base early in his minor-league career and will get grounders there, and at third and first.

“No question, we've got to try to get creative here,” Bochy said.

The Giants added one righthanded hitter to face lefty Tyler Anderson on Wednesday by recalling Kelby Tomlinson to start at third. Reliever Pierce Johnson was optioned.

Tomlinson singled for one of two hits the Giants mustered in eight innings against Anderson.

The Giants catch a break this weekend against the Cardinals, who will start four right-handers. Young and old: Joey Bart, the Giants’ first-round pick and No. 2 overall, already has caught a pitcher who has a major-league no-hitter.

In his fourth professional game Saturday, for one of the Giants’ rookie-league teams in Arizona, the 21-year-old caught two innings from Chris Heston, the 30-year-old right-hander who no-hit the Mets in 2015.

Heston began the year at Triple-A but hurt his shoulder and is working to get back in the rookie league.

Bart on Tuesday was reassigned to the Giants’ shortseason Class A team in Keizer, Ore., after dipping his toes into pro ball in Arizona. Bart slammed two homers Wednesday night in his first game for Salem-Keizer.