Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
LOS ANGELES — Jason Vosler got the first crack, and now it’s LaMonte Wade Jr.’s turn.
The Giants will be without Brandon Belt likely for another two weeks, and it will be 3-4 weeks for Darin Ruf after an MRI found a Grade Two hamstring strain. It’s possible Wilmer Flores returns Saturday, the first day the infielder can be activated, but the Giants wanted to see him run the bases Friday before deciding whether he is fully past his hamstring strain. While Tommy La Stella beginning his running progression Friday is a positive step, he cannot return until at least July.
So the competition has been on for the club’s fifth string first baseman.
Vosler, who hit his first career homer after filling in for Ruf on Wednesday, went 0-for-3 Thursday and will shift over to a more natural third against Walker Buehler on Friday. Evan Longoria is taking a seat against the righty, Longoria having played in three straight games and the Dodgers turning to two southpaws Saturday and Sunday.
So that leaves Wade at first (and batting first in the lineup), a position he has shown an ability to play even if he has been an outfielder for longer. While Wade is their best option at the moment, there are others they’re trying out.
Alex Dickerson and Austin Slater took ground balls at the spot before Thursday’s game, the former more surprising than the latter. Dickerson played some first coming up through the Pittsburgh and San Diego systems — as many as 109 games in 2012 — but hasn’t played the spot professionally since 2019, when he got six games worth of reps at Triple-A.
“It will be nice if he’s an option for us,” Gabe Kapler said over Zoom. “I don’t think we’re 100 percent comfortable, but we’re moving in the right direction.”
Translation: Not an option, but perhaps with more reps he could become one.
The chances are better for Slater, who has played a fine first base in the past but whom the Giants wanted to keep in the outfield this season after he has picked up injury after injury in the past. With an outfield competition that now includes Mike Tauchman and Steven Duggar, Slater’s at-bats have decreased, and perhaps first is a way to solve that.
“He’s very athletic, he has good hands. He’s a good, accurate thrower with a strong arm,” Kapler said of Slater, who has played in 29 big-league games at first but has a couple hundred innings of experience in the minors. “While I wouldn’t be as comfortable with Slater at first base right now as I would with LaMonte, I think we’ll be OK if we need him to play a little first base.”
Righty reliever John Brebbia began his rehab assignment Thursday with Triple-A Sacramento and threw a scoreless, clean inning, with nine strikes in 15 pitches.
Brebbia “is up to 95 [mph],” Kapler said of the 30-year-old, who had Tommy John surgery last June. “That’s certainly really good news.”
Tyler Beede is expected to throw four or five innings on Sunday with Sacramento. This will be the 28-year-old starter’s sixth rehab start, though his progress may have been stalled by his 52-pitch, two-inning outing his last time out. He has struggled with command, as is fairly normal for Tommy John survivors in their first year back.
Kapler suggested Beede won’t return until he’s comfortably built up, so he is likely a few weeks away.
The Giants’ lineup:
1. LaMonte Wade Jr., 1B
2. Mike Yastrzemski, RF
3. Buster Posey, C
4. Alex Dickerson, LF
5. Brandon Crawford, SS
6. Donovan Solano, 2B
7. Jason Vosler, 3B
8. Steven Duggar, CF
9. Anthony DeSclafani, RHP
ESPN selected a Sept. 5 game in San Francisco as its “Sunday Night Baseball” game. The game time has been changed from 1:05 p.m. (PT) to 4:08 p.m. (PT).