Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — If Trevor Oaks does not sound overly wide-eyed about a No. 5 spot in the rotation opening up — “I just want to get back to the big leagues and contribute,” any way possible — consider his past.
The righty is just happy to be here, just happy to be pitching again, just happy to drive off his leg and finish his windup knowing where the pitch is going.
In 2018 with the Royals, the seventh-round draft pick in 2014 from Riverside finally reached the big-time, appearing in four major league games but not pitching well. He said he didn’t realize it at the time, but he was dealing with a right hip injury that would require March surgery for a torn labrum and a bone edema. The mound work leading up to that diagnosis was particularly maddening.
“I was throwing live BPs [last spring] and was having a really hard time even getting it to the plate,” Oaks said after his three scoreless innings Monday against the Indians at Goodyear Ballpark. “… The best way I can describe it is it’s like pitching out of a sandbox. You feel like you’re going to throw the ball at the spot, and the next thing you know it’s cutting halfway across the plate.
“I would try to throw a sinker down and in and I would throw a cutter that would go and almost hit the batter.”
He didn’t return to a mound again until the Arizona Fall League for a rehab stint, though he still was feeling around for comfort and wondering whether his hip was OK and, secondarily, whether his stuff was still there. He was later DFA’d by the Royals, and Farhan Zaidi’s ever-aggressive Giants — familiar with him because he came up through the Dodgers system — pounced.
Saturday was the one-year anniversary of his surgery, and he believes that’s significant; he feels 100 percent. He looks 100 percent.
Although there were a few hard-hit balls, the 26-year-old, came through solidly in his first start of the spring. Many will get looks and have gotten looks following Tyler Beede’s injury, Trevor Cahill and Andrew Suarez standing out thus far. Oaks’ fastball sat at about 91-92 mph, while his slider was his put-away pitch on his three strikeouts. Oaks allowed two hits in continuing a perfect camp, now at five innings without a batter scoring against him.
He said he feels like he’s back to the pitcher he was prior to the hip problems, although he has a deeper appreciation for his job — whatever that may be for the Giants. He said the hip concerns put “a little bit of fear in your mind,” which his start to the exhibition season has helped alleviate.
He can pitch again. And perhaps he can pitch in the majors again.
“I just want to get back to the big leagues and contribute. I did get up a little bit with the Royals, but I was so disappointed with my performance and myself,” said Oaks, whose 13 2/3 innings with Kansas City resulted in a 7.24 ERA. “I really want to go out and be a part of a team and find a way to contribute.”