Tag Archives: Nick Noonan

Pablo Sandoval injury: Giants third basemen place on disabled list with foot strain

Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval’s foot injury has landed him on the disabled list, according to Alex Pavlovic of the Mercury News. The foot has been bothering the Panda since before San Francisco’s trip to St. Louis on June 1st. Sandoval has played in four games since missing the entire Cardinals’ series but was clearly uncomfortable, leaving Saturday’s game against Arizona after playing just three innings. Nick Noonan has been recalled from Triple-A Fresno to replace Sandoval on the roster.

CEO Larry Baer went on 95.7 The Game yesterday and described Sandoval’s injury as a “stress fracture”, but as Henry Schulman of the Chronicle points out the Giants official diagnosis is “strain”. Baer also dismissed Sandoval’s weight as the reason for the injury, but the Twitterverse has taken to it’s usual business of Panda Bashing.

My official position on this issue is utter disgust. Sandoval spoke to Yahoo’s Jeff Passan before the season, giving himself a two-year reprieve before he feels he needs to slim down. That’s childish and irresponsible. Fortunately, the Giants (and Panda I suppose) have an out as Sandoval becomes a free agent after next season. His weight and potential weight loss will play a big (no pun) factor in the value of his first big free-agent contract.

With the vitriol out of the way, I do not blame the foot strain/stress fracture/sore toesies on Pablo’s weight. There is no way of knowing if a slimmer Sandoval would have been able to avoid the injury. Baseball’s disabled list is riddled with players of all sizes. A quick scan of Prince Fielder’s Baseball Reference page would show you that he played in all but one game from 2009-2012. They have a similar build, play similar positions and Fielder is almost three years older than Pablo. Panda’s weight is an issue, but it’s not something to be blamed for every nick and bruise suffered during a 162-game season.

With Sandoval out, Bruce Bochy will most likely play the platoon game at third base with Noonan and Joaquin Arias. Noonan bats lefty and Arias from the right side, so keep an eye on match ups to see what the old ball coach does. I think Arias — as the more seasoned player — will be able to cross platoon lines and get some starts against right-handed pitchers. Though considering Noonan was recently demoted for the purpose of getting more regular playing time, this could be the 24-year-old’s time to shine.

Giants activate Tony Abreu, option Nick Noonan to Fresno

Infielder Tony Abreu has been activated from the 60-day DL and will join the San Francisco Giants, according to Henry Schulman of the Chronicle. To make room, Ryan Vogelsong was transferred from the 15 to 60-day DL and infielder Nick Noonan has been optioned to Triple-A Fresno.

Abreu was the favorite to make the Opening Day roster as a backup infielder, only losing out to Noonan when he strained his left knee in Spring Training. The 28-year old second basemen has played for three major league teams since 2007, finishing the 2012 season as a member of the Kansas City Royals. In 464 career plate appearances in the majors, Abreu has a .252/.280/.355 slash line.

Abreu has played second, third and shortstop throughout his career, making him an ideal utility infielder. Though he has the same versatility as the player he is replacing, I don’t expect him to garner any more playing time than Noonan did in his time on the roster.

Noonan’s role had been limited, starting just eight games and logging 63 plate appearances. He had just 12 hits in his young major-league career, and only one went for extra bases. Unlike Abreu, Noonan, 24, is a developing player and will be well-served getting everyday reps in Fresno.

Vogelsong has been out since May 20th with two broken bones in his right pinky finger. With a move to the 60-day DL the earliest the right-handed starter could return is July 19th, which is San Francisco’s first game after the All-Star Break.

SF Giants lineup: Bochy tweaks lineups for doubleheader vs. Cardinals

In St. Louis on Saturday, the Giants will be playing in their first doubleheader of the season, and they will do so with a bench that has been gutted by injuries. Pablo Sandoval is out and Angel Pagan is doubtful, leaving Bochy with just three reserves in each game. Whittle that number down to two because Quiroz and Posey will act as emergency catchers in games one and two respectively.

The plan is to pair Posey with Cain in the first game, then let Quiroz catch Bumgarner in the evening. Bochy emphasized that he wants Buster to catch Gaudin in his first start of the season on Sunday.

While Joaquin Arias was the scheduled to start at third in Friday’s rainout, Nick Noonan will get the call to replace Sandoval in Game One. Arias will play Game Two when Noonan slides to second to take over for Old Man Scoots. Noonan and Belt, the Bochy-dubbed “young bucks” will play both games, and presumably so will the entire outfield. Pagan will test out his injured hammy, but Alex Pavlovic of the Merc points out that damp field conditions should all but prevent the Giants leadoff hitter from playing.

For those asking, Noonan has played 37 minor league games at third base dating back to 2011. He has played the hot corner just once this season, manning the post for four innings after coming in on a double-switch.

The Cardinals, at 35-18, have the best record in baseball. Despite this, the Pirates and Reds trail by just two games in the NL Central. Outside of the AL East, there is no more competitive top three in baseball.

Here’s the lineup for game one vs. RHP Shelby Miller (5-3, 2.02 ERA)

CF Blanco

2B Scutaro

RF Pence

C Posey

1B Belt

LF Torres

SS Crawford

3B Noonan

RHP Cain (4-2, 5.00 ERA)