Sore wrist puts outfielder Slater on crowded IL
This is getting redundant. Four days, four players to the IL for the San Francisco Giants, with outfielder Austin Slater on Monday joining LaMonte Wade Jr., Curt Casali and Brandon Belt in a group of players sidelined during this homestand.
Slater is expected to miss about the minimum while on the 10-day IL with left wrist inflammation. When he still felt discomfort while swinging the bat Monday, the team brought up right-handedhitting outfielder Stuart Fairchild from Triple-A Sacramento. Fairchild was in the lineup against the Mets, batting ninth and playing center for the first time at Oracle Park, with the wind whipping during pregame activities.
“That was my first experience getting a taste of flyballs here,” Fairchild said. “It looks like the wind swirls around pretty good out there. I’m going to have to keep my feet moving and make sure that I don’t get flat-footed and let the ball play me.”
With all the injuries to position players, another recent call-up, infielder Kevin Padlo, was also in the lineup, playing first and batting fifth. Fairchild and Padlo were both part of the Great Giants/Mariners Swap Meet of 2022, when the teams made four deals in two weeks. Padlo, in fact, came to San Francisco after being designated for assignment when Seattle acquired Fairchild from Arizona.
“These teams definitely have an open line of communication,” Padlo said Monday.
“This is my third team I’ve been on since April,” Fairchild said. “A lot of movement, it’s tough. I haven’t really had a chance to get settled at all. That’s part of the game. It’s what I signed up for, but yeah, it’s been a journey for sure to start the season.”
Fairchild, 26, has had brief call-ups with Arizona and Seattle, going 2-for-18. With three Triple-A teams, he was batting a combined .234 with four homers, seven RBIs and 10 walks with 23 strikeouts in 18 games.
“We’re excited to see him do his thing,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. “He has a good reputation of being a strong defensive outfielder, quality at-bats against lefthanded pitching. Good sprint speed, fast baserunner, so looking forward to seeing what he can contribute today.”
Slater felt the wrist issue on a swing in his second at-bat Sunday and got an MRI exam.
“He didn’t really feel like he was able to complete the at-bat the way he wanted to, so one of the questions was: Is that possible that could happen again?” Kapler said. “I think we had enough trepidation there where it made some sense to let it calm down a little bit and see where we are in a couple of days.”
Belt (knee) hopes to rejoin the Giants in Cincinnati, and Casali is expected miss a week on the concussion list. Wade will miss a couple of weeks with continued left knee discomfort.
San Francisco also announced that minor-league outfielder Luis Matos, a top prospect, is out with a left quad strain; Matos was scheduled to begin playing in extended-spring games Monday.
Big backstop: Kapler mentioned during his pregame media session that the Giants’ emergency catcher is Thairo Estrada, but that infielder Wilmer Flores recently had volunteered, too, if need be.
Flores said he caught as a teenager, and joked he’d call all fastballs. And though no team ever wants to employ an emergency catcher, Flores would be an interesting choice; he has great hands and at 6-foot-2, 213 pounds, is a big target.
“I would trust Flo doing anything on a baseball field,” Kapler said.