SF Giants Press Clips Saturday, September 1,...

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SF Giants Press Clips

Saturday, September 1, 2018

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants’ eventful day: McCutchen in the Bronx, Shaw in left field, Posey on crutches

John Shea

Friday’s pregame vibe was different from most. Buster Posey, four days after hip surgery,

walked into the Giants’ clubhouse with crutches. Pablo Sandoval walked in with his leg in a

brace, in the wake of hamstring surgery.

Steven Duggar is next on the operation table, and he was speaking positively about his

upcoming shoulder procedure and five-month recovery, giving him plenty of time to be at full

strength for spring training.

The Andrew McCutchen trade was completed early in the day, and by all accounts, he’ll be

missed greatly as he joins the playoff race as a Yankee. His replacement was getting hugs on his

first day in the big leagues, and Chris Shaw was looking forward to his first start in left field,

where he’ll be playing regularly, according to manager Bruce Bochy.

Shaw, Duggar and Austin Slater spent much time together in Triple-A and spoke in a Chronicle

interview in May about playing together in the big leagues.

This isn’t how they imagined it, however, with Duggar absent. But maybe another day.

Here are some highlights on a day of transition:

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•Bochy thanked McCutchen for his five months in a Giants uniform and said, “Obviously, we

were hoping this year would go a little bit better than how it did and he would be a huge part of

it. I hope it goes well for him over there. I really do.”

Brian Sabean on McCutchen: “We liked what we saw of Cutch, on and off the field. It was a

great honor to have him. He was a pleasure to be around, a breath of fresh air. He was as

advertised.”

Both Bochy and Sabean said they’re open to McCutchen returning in 2019, but that’s probably

a long shot if only because the Giants need to get younger. Plus, McCutchen is the type of

player who’d get interest from a lot of teams.

•When Duggar was hurt sliding back into second base Tuesday, he was relieved it wasn’t his

throwing shoulder and wondered how long he’d be out.

“Those are two things that went through my mind when it first happened,” said Duggar,

relieved that he’ll be ready to go for training camp.

The injury wasn’t easy to take. “It was tough, “Duggar said. “I cried. I threw stuff. Just privately

by myself. Once I got that out of my system, it’s been a laser focus.” A date for surgery hadn’t

been set.

•Sabean said the Giants were open to trading McCutchen, who’ll be a free agent after the

season, because, “It was the prudent thing to do. Three teams in front of us, and we were

running out of games.”

•The trade allows the Giants to get a long look at Shaw.

“He’s a bat that we think is going to play here at some point on a regular basis,” Bochy said, “so

this is a chance to show what he could do up here.”

Bochy didn’t want to put added pressure on Shaw, who hit 24 homers with Sacramento.

“I don’t want him coming up here trying to hit home runs. Just hit the ball hard. Get the barrel

on that thing,” Bochy said.

That has been an issue. In 422 plate appearances, Shaw struck out 144 times and drew just 21

walks.

•One of Shaw’s biggest supporters is Gregor Blanco, who’s back in the majors and lockers next

to Shaw.

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“He’ll change those numbers in right field,” said Blanco, referring to the splash hits number

count. “I think he’ll put more balls in the bay, for sure. He’s got the power, he’s got the swing,

he listens. works hard. He’s just the type of guy the Giants need.”

•Blanco wasn’t fully confident he’d return to the Giants after being designated for assignment

in early June, but here he is.

“You’ve got to go back to Triple-A, it was hard, definitely,” Blanco said. “This is a great

opportunity again, especially because I was missing was the fans, the city, the grind itself. It’s

definitely fun to be back.”


Giants finalize McCutchen trade, prepare Duggar for surgery

John Shea

The Giants completed a trade Friday that sent right fielder Andrew McCutchen to the Yankees

for two prospects.

“We liked what we saw of Cutch, on and off the field,” Giants executive vice president of

baseball operations Brian Sabean said. “It was a great honor to have him. He was a pleasure to

be around, a breath of fresh air. He was as advertised.”

The Giants received Triple-A infielder Abiatal Avelino, who was a Double-A Eastern League All-

Star this year and had 15 home runs between the two farm clubs, and right-hander Juan De

Paula, a 20-year-old who had 46 strikeouts in 471/3 innings for the Yankees’ short-season

rookie team in Staten Island.

The Giants and Yankees both will pay the $2.4 million remaining on McCutchen’s contract.

Sabean didn’t rule out re-signing McCutchen as a free agent and said the trade was made

because, “It was the prudent thing to do. Three teams in front of us, and we were running out

of games.”

The Giants acquired McCutchen in January for pitcher Kyle Crick, outfielder Bryan Reynolds and

international bonus slot money.

Manager Bruce Bochy thanked McCutchen for his five months in a Giants uniform and said,

“Obviously, we were hoping this year would go a little bit better than how it did and he would

be a huge part of it. I hope it goes well for him over there. I really do.”

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Hoping the trade is a win-win-win for the Giants, Yankees and McCutchen, Sabean said he’s

pulling for McCutchen to win a World Series ring.

Duggar surgery: The decision to undergo shoulder surgery was easy for Giants center

fielder Steven Duggar, but the realization that he’d miss the rest of his rookie season was the

tough part.

“I cried. I threw stuff,” Duggar said. “Just privately by myself. Once I got that out of my system,

it’s been a laser focus.”

The Giants were trying to set a date for Duggar’s operation to repair a torn labrum after he

dislocated the shoulder while diving headfirst back to second base Tuesday.

Duggar said he was told recovery time is five months, meaning he should be at full strength for

spring training. He agreed surgery was better than trying to rehab because he wants the

shoulder fixed so he could be fully confident when diving into a bag or to make a catch.

“I don’t want to hold my breath every time,” Duggar said. “I’m a pretty aggressive player. If I

have to dive for a ball in center field, I don’t want to think about second-guessing that play

because (of the risk of) getting hurt. That’s not how I play.”

Duggar was hurt when he stretched for the base and got tagged on the shoulder.


Giants’ youth movement: Garcia, Shaw, Suarez highlight 7-0 win

John Shea

You gotta like these kids, to steal a slogan from 1986.

That was the year Will Clark and Robby Thompson burst onto the scene and introduced a new,

vibrant brand of Giants baseball. Clark and Thompson made their big-league debuts in the same

game, and Clark homered in his first at-bat against Nolan Ryan.

It happened again Friday night, for the first time in 32 years. Two Giants position players

debuted in the same game and were difference-makers in a 7-0 victory over the Mets at AT&T

Park that neither player will soon forget.

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On the day the Andrew McCutchen trade was completed, Chris Shaw was called up from Triple-

A Sacramento, started in left field and hit a seventh-inning sacrifice fly off former Giants

prospect Zack Wheeler to drive in the game’s first run.

Also, catcher Aramis Garcia, who was recalled Saturday to replace Buster Posey, finally got in a

game and not only caught the shutout but hit an eighth-inning home run, his first big-league hit

and added an eighth-inning RBI single.

“You just dream of getting here,” Garcia said. “You want to do well and make your family

proud. To get a shutout win tonight and two hits, it’s special.”

Garcia got the home run ball from the fan who retrieved it, exchanging two bats, some batting

gloves and a signed ball. The home run ball went to Garcia’s dad, whose name is Jose but also

goes by Aramis.

“I don’t think he’ll let anybody else have it,” Garcia the younger said.

“That baby’s going up on my case,” Garcia the elder, one of several family members in

attendance, said outside the Giants’ clubhouse. “Grandpa can have the second hit.”

Andrew Suarez, another rookie, pitched seven innings of two-hit ball — he and Garcia played

together in a summer league in high school (the Florida Legends) — and Tony Watson and Ty

Blach completed the all-lefty shutout.

Garcia’s homer began a six-run rally. Brandon Belt hit a two-run triple and scored on a single by

Austin Slater, the fourth rookie in the lineup. Gorkys Hernandez singled home another run, and

Garcia got his second hit of the inning to close the rally.

“It’s a dream being answered,” Garcia’s father said. “When he was 9 years old, he told my wife

and me, ‘I’m going to be a major-league ballplayer.’ We said, ‘OK.’

“He wasn’t that good. No, he stunk.”

So what happened?

“He practiced, practiced and practiced. As he got older, he kept going to the park, kept

throwing, working on his hitting. In high school, he was the first to practice and last to leave. He

was totally dedicated. He made it. He gave up a lot of his youth.

That’s what he wanted to do. He wanted to play baseball.”

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The aforementioned slogan from 1986, the brainchild of former Giants marketing guru Pat

Gallagher, was part of a campaign to promote a promising young team two years removed from

a 100-loss season.

Well, the current Giants are one year removed from 98 losses and trying to move in a younger

direction, and Friday’s game put them on the right path.

Shaw might not have been called up this year if McCutchen hadn’t been traded to the Yankees.

Now, Shaw will get most of the time in left field.

“He’s a bat that we think is going to play here at some point on a regular basis,” manager Bruce

Bochy said, “so this is a chance to show what he could do up here.”

Shaw hit 24 homers for Sacramento, and now he’s playing in a park that’s not always friendly

for left-handed batters. He struck out in his first two at-bats (on six pitches), and he did that far

too often in Triple-A, where he struck out 144 times while drawing just 21 walks.

“I don’t want him coming up here trying to hit home runs,” Bochy said. “Just hit the ball hard.

Get the barrel on that thing. I don’t want to put that pressure on him.”


Giants’ Brian Sabean on trade of Andrew McCutchen

John Shea

Brian Sabean is a fan of Andrew McCutchen, the right fielder who was traded from the Giants

to the Yankees on Friday.

“We liked what we saw of Cutch, on and off the field,” said Sabean, the Giants’ executive vice

president of baseball operations. “It was a great honor to have him. He was a pleasure to be

around, a breath of fresh air. He was as advertised.”

With the Giants falling from contention and McCutchen eligible for free agency after the

season, Sabean and Co. traded him for two prospects infielder Abiatal Avelino and pitcher Juan

DePaula.

The Giants filled McCutchen’s roster spot by calling up power-hitting outfielder Chris Shaw from

Triple-A Sacramento.

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Sabean didn’t rule out re-signing McCutchen as a free agent and said the trade was made

because, “It was the prudent thing to do. Three teams in front of us, and we were running out

of games.”

Hoping the trade is a win-win-win, Sabean said he’s pulling for McCutchen to win a World

Series ring.

San Jose Mercuery News

A dream realized: Travel ball teammates lead Giants to ‘picture-perfect’ win

Kerry Crowley

SAN FRANCISCO–Baseball players grow up dreaming of the day they’ll step foot on a major

league diamond.

They think of the home runs they’ll hit and the shutouts they’ll throw, but over time, only a

select few are able to complete their journey.

Almost everyone does it on their own. Giants rookies Andrew Suárez and Aramís Garcia did it

together.

In a “picture-perfect” 7-0 win over the Mets Friday, Suárez and Garcia lived out a dream they’ve

shared since high school.

“He’s known me forever,” Suárez said of his battery mate. “I told him nothing’s changed. It’s

the same game plan.”

As teammates on the Florida Legends travel ball team in high school, the Miami-area natives

envisioned a major league future. They couldn’t have imagined a game like Friday’s.

“That was incredible, it was an incredible moment, I’m so thankful right now,” Garcia said.

Suárez arrived in the big leagues in April, but he saved the best game of his rookie season for

the night Garcia put on his chest protector and made his big league debut. The left-hander

threw seven shutout innings and yielded just two hits, the same amount Garcia recorded in an

unforgettable eighth inning.

With his club ahead 1-0, Garcia launched a solo homer into the left field bleachers and became

the 18th Giants player to record a home run for his first major league hit. After adding an RBI

single to cap off a six-run frame, Garcia became the first San Francisco era Giant to pick up his

first two hits in the same inning.

“It’s a dream being answered,” Garcia’s father Jose Aramis said. “Since he was nine years old,

he said ‘I’m going to be a major league ballplayer’ and he fulfilled his dream.”

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Garcia and left fielder Chris Shaw became the first set of rookie position players to debut

together for the Giants since Robby Thompson and Will Clark were in the same lineup April 8,

1986.

Shaw went hitless in his first game, but he broke a scoreless tie with a crucial sacrifice fly off

former Giants prospect Zack Wheeler in the bottom of the seventh.

“Both pitchers were throwing extremely well and to be able to put us up 1-0 late, to have our

bullpen come in and do some really good things, it was incredible,” Shaw said.

After trading Andrew McCutchen to the Yankees in exchange for infield prospect Abiatal

Avelino and right-handed pitching prospect Juan De Paula earlier in the day, Giants executives

Brian Sabean and Bobby Evans expressed frustration the 2018 season hasn’t gone according to

plan.

It crushed the duo to admit the Giants have too much ground to make up to jump back into the

playoff race, but as the franchise shifts its attention toward 2019, at least the view is filled with

promise.

“We’ve got to keep going hard and something like tonight can be a shot in the arm for you,”

manager Bruce Bochy said. “A couple of young kids come up and contribute and it’s a big win

for us.”

With McCutchen on his way out of town, Bochy started a quartet of rookies Friday including

Austin Slater, who replaced the veteran in right field and went 2-for-4 with an RBI. The Giants

manager said Slater will earn most of the starts in right field down the stretch while Shaw will

play consistently in left, allowing the club an opportunity to evaluate what some of their

younger assets have to offer.

Their journeys will include ups and downs, but for the four rookies who starred in a blowout

win over the Mets, the thrill of arriving and producing together will be difficult to top.

“We’ve got to have probably five or six guys up here now that started in (Triple-A)

Sacramento,” Shaw said. “It’s really cool to see and especially to come up and play a role in a

game like this tonight and have as much fun as we did.”

No player, coach or front office executive had as much fun as Garcia’s father, who was

overcome with emotion watching his son deliver his first big league home run.

“It’s picture-perfect, you couldn’t ask for a better script to be written,” Jose Aramis said.

“Hometown kids pitching to each other.”

After the game, the rookie catcher traded autographed bats, balls and batting gloves to the fan

who caught his first major league home run. Garcia was elated to retrieve the ball, but he

knows it won’t be in his possession for long.

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“Oh absolutely not, that baby is going up in my case,” his father said.

The son didn’t seem to mind the idea of giving his father the ball. He’ll keep the memories from

Friday’s game, knowing he’ll hold onto them with a fellow rookie who has always shared the

same dreams.

San Jose Mercury News

Sabean leaves door open for McCutchen reunion, Bochy outlines plan for Shaw

Kerry Crowley

SAN FRANCISCO–Brian Sabean wanted to see Andrew McCutchen lead the Giants back from a

98-loss season and provide the spark to fuel a playoff push.

Sabean still envisions McCutchen wearing a World Series ring, but it won’t come in San

Francisco.

The Giants dealt McCutchen to the New York Yankees Friday in exchange for a pair of prospects

in a move that cleared the way for the franchise to promote top prospect Chris Shaw.

“I hope he wins a ring,” Sabean said. “He’s invested a lot in the game, he’s the real deal. We

need more McCutchens in baseball.”

Shaw, 24, was the organizational leader in home runs this season with 24 for Triple-A

Sacramento. Manager Bruce Bochy said he’ll start regularly in left field over the final month of

the year, but the Giants don’t want to rush an evaluation on the 2015 first round draft choice.

“I don’t want him coming up here trying to hit home runs,” Bochy said. “Just try to hit the ball

hard. Get the barrel on it. I don’t want to put that pressure on him. He’s got good power the

other way too.”

Shaw said general manager Bobby Evans met with members of the Triple-A roster Thursday to

discuss September call-ups and Evans told Shaw the Giants had yet to make a decision

regarding his immediate future. However, the McCutchen trade cleared a spot for him to play

regularly in the outfield and Shaw received word of his promotion Friday morning.

“I just kind of broke down,” Shaw said. “It’s something you dream about your entire life. To

finally have that vision and that dream come to fruition, I still can’t even put it into words.”

While Shaw said he’s not intimated by the pitcher-friendly dimensions of AT&T Park, he’s taking

over the roster spot of the team’s biggest power threat. McCutchen led the Giants in home

runs (15) and RBIs (55) this season, but the rest of the offense failed to live up to expectations.

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“If you look at his body of work in a lineup that literally wasn’t much help to him personally, the

trade itself which I’m sure was jarring and with the change in venue which means he’s coming

to this ballpark, we like what we saw from Cutch on and off the field,” Sabean said.

Sabean hoped to keep McCutchen for the remainder of the season if the Giants swept the

D’backs and narrowed the gap to 5.5 games in the National League West, but the franchise

opted to trade him as their playoff odds took another blow with a loss Wednesday.

“Three teams in front of us and we’re running out of games,” Sabean said.

The Giants’ vice president of baseball operations said other teams expressed interest in

McCutchen and the club wanted to find the outfielder a destination where he has an

opportunity to make a deep playoff run.

McCutchen will become a free agent this offseason and should rank among the top options on

the market in the winter. If the Giants feel the need to add an outfielder in free agency, Sabean

did leave the door open for a possible reunion.

Sabean admitted the move was particularly difficult to make because the Giants don’t believe

in waving a white flag.

“We don’t like to surrender,” Sabean said. “Contrary to some general managers, our front

office, we don’t necessarily relish the trade deadline and being involved in this. You’ve got

people going out the door that you’re invested in.”

Duggar details recovery timetable

The Giants hoped to pair Shaw in the outfield with fellow rookie Steven Duggar, but the starting

center fielder suffered a season-ending shoulder injury Tuesday.

Duggar said he has not scheduled a date for surgery to repair a torn labrum, but he anticipates

the operation will take place soon and he expects to be cleared to play by the start of spring

training.

According to Duggar, a full recovery process will take about five months and he’ll be doing

plenty of baseball activity by December.

“It was tough, I cried, I threw stuff privately by myself,” Duggar said. “Once I got that out of my

system, it’s just been a laser focus.”

Duggar quickly emerged as one of the most exciting players on the roster as he played a

starring role in three wins at the beginning of the week. Though he has plenty of room to

improve at the plate, Duggar showcased impressive range in the vast outfield territory at AT&T

Park.

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“There was obviously some trials along the way and I knew that coming into it,” Duggar said. “I

knew I was going to fail, but I felt like I stayed with it and made adjustments along the way. I

really felt like I was starting to put some things together.”

San Jose Mercury News

The 10 most damaging injuries the Giants have suffered in 2018

Kerry Crowley

SAN FRANCISCO–Baseball players preach about their ability to survive in a game based in

failure, highlighting the mental fortitude it takes to recover from losing streaks, slumps and

routine plays they botch.

They accept that struggles are part of the game, but for most, accepting the physical toll the

sport takes is much more difficult to process.

The 2018 Giants know the pain all too well, as 19 players have missed a combined 781 games

due to injury.

Rookie Steven Duggar, the team’s most exciting player in August and a promising center fielder

of the future, will add 27 games to that total. An MRI revealed Duggar suffered a dislocated left

shoulder and torn labrum that will cut his season short.

His absence is devastating for the Giants, but Duggar is hardly the only player who will spend

more time in the doctor’s office than on the field in September. In a season full of catastrophic

injuries, Duggar’s is just the latest.

To put Duggar’s loss and the Giants’ injuries in perspective, we looked at the 10 most damaging

injuries of the season.

10. Mark Melancon (Right elbow flexor strain, 56 games missed): After undergoing season-

ending surgery to heal an ailing pronator last September, Melancon expected to regain the

closer role heading into 2018. His arm ached during the spring, forcing Melancon to miss the

first two months on the disabled list. Relievers are easier to replace than starters and position

players, but the $20 million the Giants paid him to serve as the closer makes Melancon’s injury

tougher to swallow for the front office.

9. Steven Duggar (Dislocated left shoulder, 1 game): Duggar’s shoulder injury left the Giants

clubhouse deflated, especially after the team fell 7.0 games back of Arizona Wednesday.

Though Duggar wasn’t going to lead the club on a miracle run to the playoffs, his season-ending

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labrum tear will rob the rookie of crucial September at-bats. Instead of having a head start on

preparing for 2019, Duggar will be forced to rehab while Giants fans will miss out on the chance

to watch a compelling young talent.

8. Joe Panik (Fractured left thumb, left groin sprain, 48 games): Panik opened the year with

promise, slamming two home runs in the first two games of the season at Dodger Stadium. He’ll

end it trying to prove he belongs on the 2019 roster, as injuries derailed his season and

interrupted a once-encouraging year. Panik’s .305 on-base percentage is a career-low, and

though he’s healthy now, separate disabled list stints clearly took a toll.

7. Evan Longoria (Fractured left hand, 34 games): Right when Longoria started to look

comfortable in a Giants uniform, his season took a turn for the worst. A fractured hand on a hit

by pitch took one of the team’s best power hitters out of the order at a point in the season

when San Francisco simply couldn’t hit left-handed pitchers. The schedule was favorable and

the Giants could have made a run in late June and early July, but they lost a corner infielder

who has hit just four homers since the injury.

6. Jeff Samardzija (Right shoulder inflammation, 90 games): The Giants penciled Samardzija

into the No. 3 spot in the rotation, but he made just 10 starts and is “doubtful” to pitch again

this season per manager Bruce Bochy. Though Samardzija has weaknesses teams have

exploited through the years, he’s built his reputation on durability and working deep into

games. A shoulder injury suffered during spring training never healed, and now, it’s unclear

what the Giants can expect from Samardzija in the final two years of his contract.

5. Mac Williamson (Concussion, 27 games): It’s possible to argue Williamson is nothing more

than a Triple-A power hitter who can’t cut it in the big leagues. It’s much more difficult to say

that after watching him crush the ball in March and April. The slugging outfielder was poised for

a breakout season after hitting three home runs in his first five games with the Giants.

However, a tumble over the bullpen mounds at AT&T Park left Williamson with a devastating

head injury he’s still trying to overcome. Was 2018 finally the year a homegrown

outfielder finally became a middle-of-the-order force? If not for Williamson’s concussion, the

answer might be yes.

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4. Madison Bumgarner (Fractured left hand, 60 games): Had Bumgarner’s injury taken place in

July instead of March, he might top this list. But when the Giants ace returned to a .500 club at

the beginning of June, the team still carried a sense of hope and confidence. Over the past two

months, Bumgarner has proven he’s still a true No. 1, but the Giants don’t look like they’ll have

any must-win playoff games to have him start. When Bumgarner was on the shelf, the club’s

offense was good and the starting staff struggled. Since his return, it’s been the opposite.

3. Brandon Belt (Appendicitis, hyperextended left knee, 30 games): Belt’s absences cost the

Giants a top hitter for 30 games, but the impact goes far beyond the missed time. It’s clear the

starting first baseman hasn’t been the same threat at the plate since returning, and he’s still not

moving at 100 percent after his knee injury. After posting a .995 OPS in April and a .921 OPS in

May, Belt’s mark is .388 in August and he’s hitting .149 in the second half. Though his defense is

still strong, a player that carried the lineup early in the year isn’t doing much at all of late.

2. Johnny Cueto (Right elbow sprain, sprained left ankle, 99 games): When Cueto is at his best,

he’s an All-Star-caliber pitcher. And during the month of April, no starter in baseball dominated

quite like Cueto. The veteran was on pace for a career year and had found the magic touch with

his changeup, but his season came crashing down. Cueto will miss all of next season as he

recovers from Tommy John surgery, a brutal loss for a franchise that has watched aging pitchers

break down too often over the last 10 years.

1. Buster Posey (Right hip impingement, 4 games): Posey is the face of the franchise and when

healthy, the most important player on the Giants’ roster. He’s a true two-way catcher, but this

year, he never looked like the Posey fans are accustomed to watching. Posey found a way to hit

.284 and catch 88 games, but he played through pain and his power numbers are all career-

lows. The Giants have found a way to overcome Cueto’s loss and post the best team ERA in

baseball since June 1, but there’s no replacing a healthy Posey. That’s why his injury hurt the

most.

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MLB.com

Debuting Giants back stellar rookie Suarez

Martin Oppegaard

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants will get a good, long look at the future of their organization in the

final month of the season.

The Chris Shaw era began Friday, but it was a collection of youngsters that carried the Giants to

a 7-0 win over the Mets in the series opener at AT&T Park.

View Full Game Coverage

Andrew Suarez pitched one of the best games of his rookie campaign, striking out five in seven

brilliant innings. The left-hander allowed two hits and walked none, dueling with Mets

starter Zack Wheeler pitch for pitch.

Suarez was caught by a familiar face making his Major League debut, Aramis Garcia. The two

have been batterymates since they played together on the Florida Legends summer league

team as juniors in high school.

"I told [Garcia] nothing's changed and it's the same game plan," Suarez said. "I probably shook

him off like twice but that's about it. I love the way he calls a game."

"We've been working together since high school," Garcia said. "To have my first start with him

pitching, I think definitely put me at ease a little bit. It was awesome. He did an unbelievable

job tonight."

Garcia caught all nine innings of the Giants' shutout and collected the first two hits of his Major

League career. In the eighth inning, Garcia became the 18th player in franchise history to make

a home run his first hit in his first career game.

"The way my first two at-bats were going, I was just hoping to put something in play," said

Garcia, who struck out on a total of six pitches in his first two at-bats, "That was incredible, it

was an incredible moment. I'm so thankful right now."

Garcia's home run added insurance after Shaw, also making his Major League debut, plated the

game's first run with a sacrifice fly one inning prior.

"It's a situation you come up, less than two outs, runner on third, your job is to find a way to get

him in," Shaw said.

Shaw's RBI proved to be the game-winner, while another rookie, Austin Slater, was a catalyst in

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a six-run eighth inning that put that game out of reach.

The Giants started four rookies Friday night; each of them responded with resounding

contributions, providing the organization a glimpse of what the future may look like in San

Francisco.

"Something like tonight can be a shot in the arm for you," manager Bruce Bochy said.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

After Jeff McNeil doubled with one out in the first inning, Suarez retired a career-high 17 in a

row before running into trouble in the seventh inning. With one out and runners on the

corners, the lefty induced a 3-6-3 double play from Jay Bruce that was niftily started

by Brandon Belt. It preserved a scoreless tie, and the Giants took the lead in the bottom half.

SOUND SMART

Garcia collected his first two Major League hits, a home run and an RBI single, in the eighth

inning. Since they moved to San Francisco, the Giants had not had a player have his first two

Major League hits come in the same inning. YOU GOTTA SEE THIS

Belt extended the Giants' lead in the eighth inning with a two-run triple off the facade in right

field. It was just the second triple of the season for the first baseman, who cruised into third

base standing up. HE SAID IT

"It's everything. I'm here because of them and seeing their reaction on the board for a few

seconds was awesome. My dad reacted like he thought I would. He's been doing that since I

was in the Minor Leagues. To see the rest of my family in tears was emotional." -- Garcia, on

what his family being at AT&T Park to see his debut means to himUP NEXT

The Giants will hand the ball to Derek Holland (7-8, 3.65 ERA) for the second installment of a

three-game series against the Mets on Saturday. He's been consistent lately, amassing a 2.60

ERA across five starts in August. The Giants have been victorious in five of his last six outings,

and the Mets counter with fellow left-hander Steven Matz (5-11, 4.36 ERA). First pitch is

scheduled for 1:05 p.m. PT.

16

MLB.com

Giants plan to take long look at slugger shaw

Martin Oppegaard

SAN FRANCISCO -- In the wake of trading Andrew McCutchen to the Yankees on Friday, the

Giants looked within the organization to find a replacement corner outfielder, selecting the

contract of Chris Shaw from Triple-A Sacramento.

Shaw, ranked the No. 4 prospect in the Giants' system by MLB Pipeline, slashed .259/.308/.505

with 24 home runs and 65 RBIs in 101 games with Sacramento this season. He assumed

McCutchen's spot on both the 25-man and 40-man rosters.


"It's something that you dream about your entire life," Shaw said of being called up, "and to

finally have that vision, that dream come to fruition, I still can't even put it into words. I can't

even really recall a lot of what happened right after because it's such an emotional whirlwind."

Manager Bruce Bochy wasted little time inserting the 31st overall pick of the 2015 Draft into

the lineup. Shaw received the start against the Mets on Friday, batting sixth and playing left

field.

"[Shaw] will get a lot of playing time out [in left field]," Bochy said. "He's a bat that we think is

going to play here at some point on a regular basis, so he's going to get a chance to show what

he can do up here in September."

With the departure of McCutchen and fellow outfielder Steven Duggar (shoulder) sidelined for

the season, the Giants are poised to give Shaw regular at-bats in September.

"I'm just going to approach it the same way I've been approaching my everyday work in

Sacramento," Shaw said. "Still go up there looking to get a good pitch to hit and just try to hit it

hard. Stick with my game -- it's what's gotten me here. I can't really try to vary from that now."

The Giants aren't looking for Shaw's power to instantly translate to the next level. Bochy is

hoping Shaw can continue to barrel the baseball, something that has helped fellow left-

handers Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt have success in a spacious AT&T Park.

"I don't want him coming up trying to hit home runs," Bochy said. "Just try to hit the ball hard. I

don't want to put that pressure on him. He's a hitter. It's only going to get better with him. This

will give him a chance to see what he has to face up here."

17

Injury updates on Posey, Duggar

Buster Posey was at AT&T Park on crutches before Friday's game. The catcher underwent

season-ending hip surgery Monday.

"He's doing fine," Bochy said. "It's good to have this behind us knowing he'll be back sooner

than later instead of waiting until the end of the season."

The Giants are hoping Posey will be ready for Spring Training next season. Recovery is expected

to be between six and eight months.

Expectations are similar for Duggar, who fielded questions from his locker in a sling Friday. An

MRI on Wednesday revealed Duggar sustained a labrum tear in his left (non-throwing)

shoulder, which will be surgically repaired. The procedure has yet to be scheduled.

"I should be normal by right around December, to be honest," Duggar said. "I can do everyday

stuff around then. I'll be full go, baseball activity ramped up, 100 percent right before camp

starts if there's no setbacks."

Despite his promising season cut short, Duggar was encouraged by his first stint in the Majors

and felt he was producing good at-bats.

"Just reflecting back, there was obviously some trials along the way," Duggar said. "I knew that

coming into it; I knew I was going to fail. But I felt like I stayed with it and made adjustments

along the way. And I really felt like I was starting to put some things together."

MLB.com

Giants deal McCutchen to Yankees

Chris Haft

SAN FRANCISCO -- Creating an opportunity for slugger Chris Shaw to deliver on his promise, the

Giants traded right fielder Andrew McCutchen on Friday to the New York Yankees.

The Giants received Minor Leaguers Abiatal Avelino, an infielder, and Juan De Paula, a right-

hander, from the Yankees, who will have McCutchen available in the postseason by beating

Friday's deadline to acquire players and have them eligible for October rosters.


But from San Francisco's perspective, the deal was largely about getting a better look at Shaw,

18

the organization's top power-hitting prospect who made his Major League debut in Friday

night's series opener against the Mets at AT&T Park.

Manager Bruce Bochy said the left-handed-batting Shaw, who has hit 24 home runs in back-to-

back seasons in the Minors, will become San Francisco's everyday left fielder for the rest of the

year. Austin Slater, another outfielder who's striving for consistency, likely will play both center

and right during the season's closing weeks.

News of the swap broke Thursday, one day after the Giants' 3-1 loss to Arizona dropped them

seven games out of first place in the National League West. Had the Giants won Wednesday's

series finale, which would have trimmed their deficit in the division race to five games, the

timing of the McCutchen deal might have been different -- if it would have happened at all.

"Simply put, we were hoping to sweep Arizona. We didn't," executive vice president of baseball

operations Brian Sabean said. "The odds became taller. It [the trade] was the prudent thing to

do. Three teams ahead of us and we're running out of games.

"... We don't like to surrender."

Thus, the Giants' hierarchy decided the season's remaining 27 games can best be spent by

taking a keener look at Shaw.

"He's got the power. He's got the swing," said Giants outfielder Gregor Blanco, who spent much

of the season as Shaw's teammate with Triple-A Sacramento. "He's a great, great kid. He listens.

He works hard."

Shaw also amassed 144 strikeouts in 394 at-bats this year.

"He definitely needs to get better at that, and I think he will. He has all the tools," Blanco said.

Sabean didn't rule out pursuing McCutchen in free agency this offseason.

"I wish there were more McCutchens in baseball," said Sabean, adding that he hopes the 31-

year-old wins a World Series ring with the Yankees. Acquired on Jan. 15 from Pittsburgh for

right-hander Kyle Crick and outfielder Bryan Reynolds, McCutchen hit .255 with a team-high 15

homers andd 55 RBIs in 130 games. Sabean praised McCutchen's production "in a lineup that

literally wasn't much help to him personally."

Avelino, 23, hit .287 with 15 homers and 66 RBIs while dividing his season between Double-A

Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

19

"Career-wise, he's been more of a defensive player with plus speed and arm strength and the

ability to play in the middle of the field," Giants general manager Bobby Evans said. "... His

game is his ability to play all over and the fact that he's athletic and that he's had a good year

offensively is a good sign for us. But it's not exactly the core part of his game."

De Paula, who's in his fourth professional season despite being only 20, was 2-2 with a 1.71 ERA

in 10 games (nine starts) for the Yankees' affiliate in the Class A Short-Season New York-Penn

League.

"For us, he'll continue to progress as a starter in our system," Evans said. "Plus fastball, athletic,

has a solid breaking ball and changeup."

The Athletic

Aramis Garcia and Chris Shaw make dual debuts, turn around a downbeat day for the Giants

Andrew Baggarly

Giants GM Bobby Evans runs the same errand every year when the calendar is about to turn to

September.

He travels to the club’s Triple-A affiliate, wherever it is, so he can meet in person with the

minor-league players on the 40-man roster. If they will be joining the Giants in September, he

congratulates them. If they will not receive a promotion, he gives them an explanation.

Evans performed the courtesy Thursday afternoon. Each of the Sacramento candidates for a

call-up received a yes/no answer, along with the appropriate handshake or pat on the shoulder.

Except outfielder Chris Shaw.

He got a maybe.

“Sure, you’re disappointed,” Shaw said. “You’ve been wondering. You just want to know.”

But then Evans stepped into the hallway to take a call. Maybe he purposely spoke loud enough

for Shaw to hear. In any event, Shaw did not need to eavesdrop for long to piece together what

was happening. Evans was finalizing the trade that would send Andrew McCutchen to the

contending New York Yankees — and open up everyday playing time in the outfield at AT&T

Park.

A few hours later, as the Sacramento players boarded a bus to the airport for a flight to Las

Vegas, River Cats manager Dave Brundage told Shaw that he needed to get over his

disappointment and pull his focus together, because there was a game to play and his team

needed him.

The team in San Francisco.

20

The hit and run is great and all. But minor-league managers really love when they can put on

the misdirection play.

The Giants purchased Shaw’s contract and he made his major-league debut Friday night along

with catcher Aramis Garcia, who received the start behind the plate against the New York Mets

after not seeing action in the four previous games since the Giants added him to their roster.

Garcia’s family — mom, dad, brother, fiancée, grandparents — traveled from Florida hoping to

see his debut. They sat through four games. Manager Bruce Bochy joked that he finally gave

Garcia a start because he could feel their eyes on the back of his neck.

It was just the fourth time in the Giants San Francisco era that two position players made their

debuts in the same starting lineup. The others involve names even casual Giants fans will

recognize: Will Clark and Robby Thompson in 1986; Tom Haller and Chuck Hiller in 1961;

Orlando Cepeda, Jim Davenport and Willie Kirkland in 1958.

Those other three debutante balls had something in common. They were all season openers.

The Giants had enough confidence in those rookies to hand them everyday jobs to begin a

season, assured that they would not trip and splat and leave the club without a Plan B and six

months of baseball to negotiate.

Shaw and Garcia are in another category. They are here on the last day of August because two

former National League MVPs are not. Buster Posey was on crutches after season-ending right

hip surgery. McCutchen was on a flight to meet the Yankees.

The first impulse, then, was to consider Friday a very sad day for the franchise and the fans.

McCutchen brought so much spirit and professionalism to the clubhouse, that perhaps Giants

executive vice president Brian Sabean, an old Yankee himself, viewed Friday’s trade as a favor

for two parties.

“I hope he wins a ring,” Sabean said. “He’s invested a lot in the game. He’s the real deal. We

need more McCutchens in baseball.”

But the show must go on. And wouldn’t you know it? Friday was not a sad night for the

franchise. Not by a long stretch.

The best way to set aside past laments? Looking ahead to the future.

Shaw set aside the disappointment of his first two at-bats, a pair of three-pitch strikeouts, and

made contact when the situation most demanded it. With a runner on third base and one out in

the seventh inning, he lofted a sacrifice fly that broke a scoreless tie.

Then Garcia, who also struck out in his first two plate appearances, achieved his first hit and an

RBI on one swing. He lifted a home run into the left-field bleachers leading off the eighth, and

before the six-run inning ended, Garcia added a bloop single. He became the first player in the

club’s San Francisco era to collect his first two career hits in the same inning.

The debut homer has become somewhat more common for the Giants in recent years. For the

first four-plus decades of the franchise’s existence on the West Coast, only Cepeda, Bobby

21

Bonds, Will Clark and Randy Kutcher did it. Then the list got crowded: Eliezer Alfonzo, John

Bowker, Brandon Crawford, Brett Pill, Adam Duvall, Jae-gyun Hwang. And now Garcia.

Not all of those players became stars, or even regulars. But there is something eternally pure

and promising about a big-league debut that includes a trip around the bases, an RBI in a key

spot or that raucous moment when a bunch of guys break face from the silent treatment in the

dugout and offer their congratulations in waves.

And there is nothing more pure than a tearful embrace. Following the Giants’ 7-0 victory, Jose

Aramis Garcia waited for his son outside the clubhouse door and burst into tears the moment

he emerged from behind it. They wrapped their arms around each other.

“It was a dream come true,” Jose Aramis said of watching his son. “It’s the feeling that all his

hard work and dedication paid off. But if he had gone 0 for 5, it would be just fine. He will have

more at-bats. And he was doing his job defensively.”

This is the part you couldn’t script: when Garcia caught his first game, the pitcher on the mound

was someone he has known since they were teenagers. Left-hander Andrew Suárez and Garcia

were teammates on the same Florida Legends summer ball team in high school.

If not for the two debuting Giants, the night would’ve belonged to another rookie. Suarez not

only replicated, but improved upon the seven shutout innings he fired in his previous start

against the Texas Rangers.

It was seven innings and two hits this time.

The Giants started four rookies on Friday, when you count right fielder Austin Slater, who

pitched in an RBI single. It should’ve been a quintet, but center fielder Steven Duggar’s left arm

is in a sling as he awaits season-ending shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum.

“I cried. I threw stuff,” Duggar said. “Just privately, by myself. Then it was time to focus on

what’s ahead.”

Duggar is expected to be fully recovered by the end of January. He could have opted to rehab

the shoulder after he dislocated it on a slide back to second base, but the procedure should

minimize the risk of a recurrence. As Duggar pointed out, center fielders have to leave their

cleats without fear.

“I’m a base stealer,” he said. “They’ll throw back to first base. I don’t want to worry every time I

have to slide back to the base.”

The defining scene of the Giants’ season could be witnessed a little before 3 p.m. Friday, when

Pablo Sandoval, his leg encased in a huge brace as he recovers from hamstring tendon surgery,

limped down the hallway toward the clubhouse door. Posey, coming from the other direction

and hobbling on crutches, met him there.

“I’m faster than you!” Sandoval said.

On Posey, though, there was good news. His hip procedure went as planned, said Giants head

athletic trainer Dave Groeschner, and while the team will stick with its six-to-eight month

22

recovery estimate, Dr. Mark Philippon indicated that Posey should be able to return on the

short end of that prognosis.

“Some guys have bumps in the road, some guys take longer,” Groeschner said. “But the doctor

felt pretty comfortable it’d be closer to six months.”

That would seem to make Opening Day a much more realistic goal, and Posey is already moving

forward in his rehab. At least, as much as one can move forward on a stationary bike. He was

on Day 4 of pushing pedals.

The Giants must move forward as well, and while a debut can only tell you so much about how

a rookie’s career will play out, it’s always a blessing to get that first hit or first contribution out

of the way.

The Garcia family didn’t have to burn through their vacation fund to extend their stay in San

Francisco. It’s a little-known policy, but the Giants pay all expenses for the families of players

when they make their major-league debuts.

“A-plus, A-plus, phenomenal,” Jose Aramis said. “His brother was in Jacksonville, starting

school. They sent a car for him, took him to the airport, got him here. His grandparents, they

sent a car. They got all of us here to enjoy this moment and witness his debut.”

Garcia’s brother, Derick, had to return to school and wasn’t in the ballpark Friday night. But the

rest of the family will remain through the weekend, all on the team’s expense.

“I saw them react on the scoreboard,” Garcia said of his family. “My dad reacted just how I

thought he would. To see my family in tears is everything.”

You begin to understand why so many players speak glowingly about the way the Giants

treated them — including McCutchen, who praised the organization on his way out the door.

Yes, it is possible that McCutchen finds his way back to San Francisco. He will be a free agent

this winter, and from what I understand, he was not necessarily looking for an escape hatch to

a contending club.

Sabean did not rule out making a pitch to re-sign McCutchen, saying, “We liked what we saw

from Cutch on and off the field. Great honor to have him. He was a pleasure to be around, a

breath of fresh air. He was as advertised.”

Prior to the game, Sabean and Evans sat in the dugout and fielded questions about the

McCutchen trade. It was a decidedly downbeat session on what should have been a downbeat

day.

“Well, we don’t like to surrender,” Sabean said.

Sometimes, though, a white flag can become sailcloth. And youth can provide a breath of fresh

air.

23

The Athletic

It isn’t flashy, but the Giants got some value in return for Andrew McCutchen

Melissa Lockard

The Giants officially announced the trade of outfielder Andrew McCutchen to the New York

Yankees on Friday morning. While the Giants didn’t receive a headline package in return for

McCutchen, they did get back two decent prospects who could fill roles for the Giants on future

rosters. Below is a look at Abiatal Avelino and Juan De Paula.

Abiatal Avelino, IF

In a well-stocked Yankees’ farm system, Avelino hasn’t received much national press, but the

23-year-old native of the Dominican Republic has some skills that could make him a useful piece

on a major league roster.

Avelino began his professional career in 2012 in the Dominican Summer League after signing

with the Yankees for $300,000 as a 16-year-old. The Yankees brought him stateside in 2013

after he hit .302 in his pro debut. He followed that up by hitting .303 with a .381 OBP in 2013.

After a quad injury shortened his 2014 season, Avelino opened some eyes in 2015 when he

stole 54 bases in a season split between Low-A and High-A. He reached Double-A towards the

end of the 2016 season and split the 2017 season between Triple-A, Double-A and High-A.

This season, Avelino has taken a step forward in his offensive game while also managing to stay

on the field all year. He began the season with Double-A Trenton and hit .337 with 10 home

runs in 49 games before jumping to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. With the RailRiders,

Avelino has struggled to get on base (.291 OBP), but he’s continued to show more pop than he

had in past years. His 15 total home runs this season are a career-high (his previous career-high

was six).

Avelino’s biggest value comes in his versatility. A natural shortstop, he can also play second and

third base and even got a game in the outfield this season. He has a strong arm and is a solid

athlete who covers a good amount of ground defensively. At the plate, he has above-average

speed and good bat control. He doesn’t draw a lot of walks, but Avelino has a good sense of the

strike zone and he makes a lot of contact (he has a career K% of 15.14). Avelino uses the whole

field and generally doesn’t try to do too much at the plate, although he has looked to drive the

ball more this season which has translated into more home runs and a few more strikeouts. He

projects to be a useful bench player for a National League team.

Although Avelino doesn’t project as an everyday player in the big leagues, he should be a

decent complementary player and one that could help the Giants as soon as next year. The

Giants will need to add him to their 40-man roster this offseason or risk losing him to minor

league free agency.

24

Juan De Paula, RHP

While Avelino is likely to make a more immediate impact on the Giants, De Paula has the higher

ceiling of the two prospects. The 20-year-old right-hander is finishing up an impressive

campaign with short-season Staten Island in which he not only put up good numbers but also

saw an uptick in the quality of his stuff.

De Paula originally signed with the Seattle Mariners as a 16-year-old in 2014 out of the

Dominican Republic. He posted a 2.32 ERA in the Dominican Summer League in 2015 before

coming stateside in 2016 and putting up a 3.07 ERA in the Arizona Rookie League. That

offseason, De Paula was traded along with Jio Orozco in the deal that netted the Mariners Ben

Gamel.

In his first season with the Yankees, De Paula suited up for Staten Island. He put up solid

numbers in the New York-Penn League, posting a 2.90 ERA and striking out 53 in 62 innings. The

Yankees had De Paula repeat that level this year, and he’s put up a 1.71 ERA and 46 strikeouts

in 47 1/3 innings. More importantly, De Paula has started to fill out his 6-foot-3 frame, and his

fastball has jumped from 91-94 mph last season to 94-97 this year.

De Paula also features a curveball, slider and changeup, with the changeup being his best

secondary offering at the moment and the slider and curveball flashing plus at times. He has a

quick arm and a long lower-half that allows him to get down the mound well. De Paula’s release

point can be inconsistent — leading to location issues at times — but that is something that can

be smoothed out over time. He is still growing into his body and carries some additional

projection beyond the strides forward he made this year. De Paula should make the jump to

Low-A Augusta next year.

Like Avelino, De Paula is a candidate to be added to the Giants’ 40-man roster this offseason.

De Paula isn’t eligible for minor league free agency, but he would be eligible for the Rule 5

draft, although players who haven’t appeared in games above the short-season level aren’t

often targeted in that draft.

NBCsportsbayarea.com

Giants rookies Aramis Garcia and Chris Shaw star in big-league debuts

Alex Pavlovic

SAN FRANCISCO -- For nearly a week, Bruce Bochy joked about a special kind of responsibility

he felt. Bochy knew the Garcia family had flown across the country to watch Aramis make his

big-league debut, but the starting job behind the plate belongs to Nick Hundley right now, and

25

Bochy stuck to that plan through four games.

After a win over the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, he mentioned again that he needed to get his

rookie catcher into a game while his family was here from Florida. Told that the Garcias planned

to stay through the weekend, the manager smiled. On Friday, Bochy finally penned the 25-year-

old into his lineup.

The Garcias waited around until Aramis got his shot, and it was well worth it. On Friday, in the

eighth inning of a 7-0 win over the Mets, the rookie picked up his first hit in his third at-bat. He

hit a homer to deep left.

Garcia's father, Jose Aramis, started jumping up and down, high-fiving strangers. His mother,

Mariam, broke down and started crying as her son rounded the bases. Aramis caught a glimpse

of his family celebrating on the center field scoreboard as he took his gear off in the dugout.

"It's everything," he said. "I'm here because of them. Seeing their reactions was awesome. My

dad reacted just how I thought he would. To see the rest of my family in tears, it was

emotional."

Garcia shared the spotlight with another making his debut. Chris Shaw's promotion was so

abrupt that his parents were still on their way from the Boston area when he took the field, but

he made his mark, too. Shaw drove in the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh.

"It's a great way to have their debuts," Bochy said. "They've got to feel they can play up here.

Both of them did a nice job. They were a shot in the arm."

Early on, it looked like neither would have much to celebrate. For much of this night, the only

rookie finding success was Andrew Suarez, who threw seven shutout innings while battling

migraines.

Shaw’s first two at-bats were rough, and brought a reminder of an issue that has plagued him in

the minors. He struck out 132 times last season and was at 144 at the time of his promotion,

and Zack Wheeler put him away on six pitches the first two times up. In the second inning,

Shaw swung through a 97 mph fastball to end his first at-bat in the majors. Two innings later,

he went down on a 96 mph fastball.

In the seventh, Wheeler tried to go back to that well. He got ahead 0-1 and catcher Devin

Mesoraco called for a fastball underneath Shaw’s hands. Wheeler missed, though, and when

the 98 mph pitch dropped a bit down and in, Shaw hit a high fly ball to center field. It was deep

enough to bring Brandon Belt racing in from third.

"Your job is to find a way to get him in," Shaw said. "Based on my first two at-bats, I knew they

26

were planning to go up. I just said start (your swing) early and get on top of something."

Shaw was pulled for a defensive replacement in the eighth. Garcia, of course, went the

distance. His first career start came with a familiar face 60 feet away. Garcia caught Suarez in

summer ball when the two were teenagers in Miami and they reunited as professionals. When

Suarez was drafted, he got a congratulatory text from Garcia, and they were a battery with

High-A San Jose.

Garcia has come a long way as a defensive catcher, and he helped guide Suarez through seven.

In the eighth, he grabbed the spotlight. Garcia led off the inning and got a 2-1 fastball up and in

from Robert Gsellman. He smashed it a dozen rows deep in the left field bleachers, wiping away

memories of two earlier strikeouts.

"The way my first two at-bats were going, I was just hoping to put something in play," he said.

"That was incredible. That was an incredible moment."

The Giants turned this one into a boat race from there, and Garcia made it up a second time in

the inning, dropping an RBI single into right-center. Ten minutes later, he was shaking hands

with Ty Blach after the final pitch of the game. As he walked up the dugout steps and into the

clubhouse, the younger Aramis saw the original. They shared an emotional moment.

"You just dream of getting here," Garcia said. "You want to do well and make your family

proud. Getting the shutout and two hits, it was special."


Chris Shaw and Aramis Garcia lead Giants to big win in MLB debuts

Alex Pavlovic

SAN FRANCISCO — Friday night’s lineup had four 25-year-olds and one 24-year-old in it. One of

the 25-year-olds threw seven shutout innings. Another hit a solo homer. The 24-year-old drove

in the first run of the night.

The first night of what should be a youth-filled stretch run went well for the Giants. Aramis

Garcia and Chris Shaw drove in runs in their big league debuts, backing Andrew Suarez in a 7-0

win over the Mets.

Garcia's first career RBI came on a solo homer in the eighth, shaking the ballpark a few hours

after Andrew McCutchen touched down in New York. Here's what you need to know from a

27

night the Giants got back to .500...

—- Jeff McNeil hit a hard first-inning grounder up the middle that Joe Panik couldn’t snag, and

for a while that’s all the Mets could accomplish. Suarez retired 17 straight after the hit, but

McNeil was hit to lead off the seventh and Austin Jackson picked up a single. Suarez got out of

the jam. Wilmer Flores flied out and Jay Bruce hit into a 3-6-3 double play.

—- Suarez has recovered nicely after a rough start in Cincinnati. He threw seven shutout innings

Friday, allowing just two hits. In two starts on this homestand, he had thrown 14 scoreless

innings and given up just five hits.

—- Shaw struck out on three pitches in each of his first two at-bats, but in the seventh he hit a

fly ball to medium center field, allowing Brandon Belt to score from third. Shaw gave way to

defensive replacement Gregor Blanco in the top of the eighth.

—- Garcia picked up his first career hit in style. The catcher took Robert Gsellman to deep left in

the bottom of the eighth to give the Giants a 2-0 lead. Garcia’s homer left the bat at an even

100 mph and landed well up the seats in left. His parents and siblings, who have been here all

week waiting for his debut, went crazy in their seats along the third base line.


Giants Notes

Alex Pavlovic

SAN FRANCISCO -- Two days after he found out his season was over, Steven Duggar said the

next step will be surgery. Duggar will have his labrum repaired in the coming days, although the

Giants are still determining exact details of the procedure. Duggar will need about five months

to rehab but said he'll be able to move around like he normally would in December and should

be 100 percent by the start of camp.

Duggar was starting to hold his own a bit on the field, both offensively and defensively. The

news of the injury hit him hard.

"It was tough. I cried. I threw stuff," he said. "But once I got that out of my system it's been

laser-focused on rehab."

The news is tough for the team, too. Duggar likely would have become the leadoff hitter after

the Andrew McCutchen trade, but Joe Panik is in that spot Friday. The Giants had started to

run a lot in recent weeks, but now will again be more station-to-station.

28

--- The Giants still do have some speed in the outfield. Gregor Blanco was called up Wednesday

to take Duggar's spot. Blanco said getting DFA'd earlier this season was tough to take.

"It was hard," he said. "All the years you have here and they say you've got to go to Triple-A, it's

hard."

Blanco talked with his family and decided to stick it out. That paid off. He'll be here all

September, it looks like. He did not initially appear headed for a call-up, and the list of additions

will be small. Casey Kelly and Ray Black are on their way, but it doesn't appear many more will

join the Giants. Ronnie Freeman will continue to work out in case the team needs a third

catcher. Abiatal Avelino also could join the club. He has to be put on the 40-man roster after

the season, anyway.

--- The big news today was McCutchen getting traded. McCutchen did not wait long before

shaving. The Giants did not wait long before scrubbing him off the side of the ballpark.

--- In case you missed it, the latest podcast was a conversation with Ron Wotus. You can stream

it here or download it on iTunes here.

The Press Democrat

Giants top Mets 7-0 with new faces in lineup

Rob Gloster

SAN FRANCISCO — A pair of Giants making their major league debuts drove in the game’s first

two runs, and rookie left-hander Andrew Suarez outdueled Zack Wheeler as San Francisco beat

the New York Mets 7-0 on Friday night.

Chris Shaw, an outfielder called up earlier in the day to replace the traded Andrew McCutchen,

lofted a sacrifice fly to center in the seventh inning to break a scoreless tie. Shaw had struck out

in his previous two at-bats.

Catcher Aramis Garcia, also making his first major league appearance, homered leading off the

eighth for the Giants’ second run. He also had struck out in his first two big league at-bats.

After giving up a first-inning double to Jeff McNeil, Suarez (6-9) retired 17 straight batters until

hitting McNeil with a pitch leading off the seventh. He then gave up a bloop single to Austin

Jackson, but worked out of the jam by getting Jay Bruce to hit into an inning-ending double

play.

29

Suarez allowed two hits in seven innings, striking out five out and walking none. Tony Watson

worked the eighth and Ty Blach pitched the ninth to complete the three-hitter.

Wheeler (9-7) was almost as good, striking out nine and walking none while allowing four hits

and one run over seven innings. It was his first loss since June 22 — he had won seven straight

decisions.

Garcia’s homer came off Robert Gsellman. Belt added a two-run triple later in the inning off

Daniel Zamora, and Austin Slater, Gorkys Hernandez and Garcia followed with RBI singles off

Drew Smith.

The debuts of Shaw and Garcia marked the first time two position players had made their first

big league appearance in the same game for the Giants since first baseman Will Clark and

second baseman Robby Thompson debuted on April 8, 1986, at Houston.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mets: Third baseman David Wright, who has not played since May 2016 while having three

surgeries for neck, back and shoulder injuries, rejoined the club to continue his rehabilitation.

He is still on the disabled list but said he hopes to be activated sometime in September.

Giants: Catcher Buster Posey, who had right hip surgery on Monday, was on crutches when he

visited the Giants’ clubhouse before the game. His recovery time is expected to be six to eight

months.

SFbay.com

Rookies Shaw, Garcia shine in dual debut

Julie Parker

The pitching from Andy Suárez and former Giants prospect Zack Wheeler was lights out in Friday’s

contest between the Giants and Mets.

But the impressive nature of the pitchers’ duel on display that left the game scoreless

through the first six innings in Friday’s showdown by the Bay was overshadowed by the debuts

of a pair of rookies who played no small part in the Giants (68-68) 7-0 shutout of the Mets (59-

75).

Chris Shaw and Aramis Garcia knocked in the first and last runs of Friday night’s series

opener against New York, and they represented what baseball types like to call a ‘shot in the

arm’ for a club that just traded away their offensive leader in Andrew McCutchen.

Garcia offered the added bonus of being a familiar battery mate to Suárez (W, 6-9, 4.19

ERA), who pitched through seven innings on 89 pitches and allowed just two hits and no runs,

30

striking out five and putting down 17 straight Mets from the middle of the first through the

sixth inning.

The pair have known each other coming up on a decade of their young lives, since they

were sophomores in high school. And Garcia has been catching Suárez since they played on the

Florida Legends team in high school summer ball. The two were then drafted together and

were battery mates in the minors.

Said Suárez:

“He’s been catching me since high school, so he’s known me forever. I told him, ‘Nothings

changed, [it’s] the same game plan.’ I probably shook him off twice that’s about it. I love the way

he calls a game.”

Wheeler (L, 9-7, 3.37 ERA) was nearly as good, though, striking out nine Giants and

allowing just three hits in his six innings.

So between the two dominant pitching performances, going into the seventh inning it

was scoreless and Shaw and Garcia had combined for a Golden Sombrero. But a leadoff double

from Brandon Belt followed by a ground out from Austin Slater that moved Belt over, set the

stage for Shaw to shine. And the rookie rose to the occasion, launching a deep fly ball to center

to score Belt and put the San Francisco’s first run on the board.

Shaw said he works hard to have a short memory at the plate, and he was able to put his

previous two at-bats in which he struck out on three pitches each, out of his mind:

“You come up [with] less than two outs, runner on third, your job is to find a way to get him

in. It was incredible to be able to [execute the sac fly] at that point in the game, because both

pitchers were throwing extremely well, so to be able to put us up 1-0 late… it was incredible.”

The Giants have often struggled to score runners from third with less than two outs this

season, and Manager Bruce Bochy was encouraged to see the rookie left fielder succeed:

“It’s about putting it in play, and he struck out the first two times up [but] he had a job to

do. They were pitching him tough, but he got the high fast ball and that’s a tough pitch to hit

when its 96, 97 [mph].”

With family in the house, Garcia was not to be outdone. The young catcher led off the

very next inning with his first big league hit, a solo shot to left field off reliever Robert

Gsellman to double the Giants lead over New York.

A brief glance up at the scoreboard as he rounded the bases gave him a view of his father

Aramís Sr. jumping up and down, both fists pumping in the air, cheering, and his mother

Mariam, Grandparents Carmen and Santiago and fiancee Bri, tearfully hugging:

“My dad reacted just how I thought he would, he’s been doing that since I was in the minor

31

leagues, but to see my the rest of my family in tears—it was emotional.”

And for the price of some bats, batting gloves and a few signed balls, Aramís Sr. is the

proud owner of the ball that represents his son’s breakout moment.

The Giants would ultimately feast on New York’s bullpen, putting Wheeler’s gem to waste

and handing him his first loss since June 22 against the Dodgers. San Francisco cycled all the

way through the order in the eighth to bring Garcia up a second time, by which point it was 6-0.

He singled to right to add on one more, putting the Giants on top 7-0 with his second big league

hit and RBI.

Asked if his first night in the Bigs was everything he dreamed it would be, Garcia said:

“You just dream of getting here and making your family proud.”

Mission accomplished.

UP NEXT

Southpaws Derek Holland (7-8, 3.65 ERA) and Steven Matz(5-11, 4.36 ERA) will toe the

rubber in game two of the three game series between the Giants and Mets at AT&T Park. First

pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.

Notes

Garcia is the first Giant to earn his first two knocks in the same inning in the San Francisco

era. … With Friday’s shutout, Suárez has 14 straight scoreless innings.

SFbay.com

Duggar manages disappointment, prepares for surgery

Julie Parker

Steven Duggar has opted to undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder sustained in

the ninth inning of Tuesday’s walk-off win over Arizona in which he scored the go-ahead run.

The Giants have yet to select a date or a surgeon to perform the repair, but Duggar said it

will be done “relatively soon.”

They believe Duggar should be ready by the time they report to Scottsdale for Spring

Training 2019.

Said the rookie:

32

“From what I’ve been told, I should be normal by right around December for every day stuff,

[and] I’ll be full-go [with] baseball activities ramped up to 100 percent right before camp starts, if

there’s no setbacks.”

The injury was extremely disappointing for both the 24-year-old and the Giants

organization.

Said Manager Bruce Bochy:

“I’m sure he’s crushed by this. The guy loves to play the game, he loves baseball and he was

really in a good place as far as his confidence, his swing and of course defensively.”

Duggar made his debut July 9 and finishes his 41-game stint batting .255 with two home

runs, 17 RBI and 11 doubles. He turned more than a few heads with his speed and range in the

outfield as well.

He felt he had just recently found a groove with his confidence and his swing, which adds

to the frustration, but he plans to maximize the next month by observing as much as he can

from the dugout:

“I’ll still watch the games and prepare just like if I were to play, because chances are that

hopefully I’ll have an opportunity to see these [pitchers] again. So we just kind of take it day-by-

day [and] keep your mind on that, and get this rehab going.”

The disappointment is something he’s finding a way to manage, but he admits that he

spent some time grieving the loss of the last month of the season:

“It was tough man. I cried, I threw stuff just privately, just by myself. Once I got that out of

my system it’s been just a laser-focus. We get this surgery done and we come out of it.”

SFbay.com

Giants trade McCutchen to Yanks for prospects, call up Shaw

Julie Parker

The Giants confirmed Friday that they have traded right fielder Andrew McCutchen and cash to New

York in exchange for two prospects — middle infielder Abiatal Avelinoand right-handed pitcher Juan

De Paula, ranked Nos. 23 and 26, respectively, in the Yankees minor league system.

They’ve additionally purchased the contract of minor-league left fielder Chris Shaw, who

will wear No. 26, and take McCutchen’s spot on the roster.

Shaw batted .260 with 24 home runs for Triple-A Sacramento this season, but has had a

33

problem with strikeouts, notching 144 in 422 plate appearances.

The rookie said that he was getting breakfast in the clubhouse Friday morning as he and

his fellow River Cats prepared to board the team bus for their season finale against the Mets

Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas when his manager pulled him aside to inform him he would

instead be meeting the actual Mets in San Francisco:

“I kind of broke down it’s something that you dream about your entire life and to finally

have that vision, that dream come to fruition was — I still can’t even put it into words.”

Manager Bruce Bochy spoke highly of McCutchen’s impact on the Giants this season,

wishing the right fielder all the best with the Yankees in the playoffs:

“He’s just a pleasure for a manager to have because he shows up every day and gives you

all he’s got and never asks for a day, he just likes playing. So I thank him for all he did here.”

He added:

“Obviously we were hoping that this year would go a little bit better than what it did and he

would be a huge part of it, but it didn’t quite happen. I hope it goes well for him over there in New

York, I really do.”

The Giants skipper also said the organization is not counting out the possibility of re-

signing ‘Cutch’ this winter if things work out. He said that he, for one, would be “ecstatic” to

have him back next season.

One upside of the McCutchen trade is that it gives the Giants the opportunity to give

Shaw a long look in September. Bochy said that Austin Slater will primarily play in right field,

and Shaw will be out in left:

“[Shaw] will get a lot of playing time out there. He’s a bat that we think is gonna play here

at some point on a regular basis, and so he’s gonna get a chance to show what he can do up here

in September.”

Veteran outfielder Grégor Blanco, who was recalled Wednesday after Steven

Duggar sustained a season-ending shoulder injury, said he’s spent a lot of time with Shaw in

Sacramento this season and has taken the opportunity to counsel the 24-year-old outfielder.

Noting that the two have neighboring lockers in the Giants clubhouse Blanco said he

hopes to continue advising Shaw on how to play the game:

“He’s gonna change those numbers in right field. I think he’s gonna put more balls in the

Bay for sure. I think he’s got that power, he’s got that swing, he’s a great kid, he listens, he works

hard and he’s just the type of guy the Giants need.”

34

NOTES

Avelino, 23, is batting .287 with 15 home runs, eight triples, 66 RBI and 25 stolen bases in

time spent between the Yankees Double-A and Triple-A squads this year. De Paula, a starting

pitcher, is just 20 years old and has spent the last two seasons in A-Ball. In 2018 he has a 1.71

ERA in 47-1/3 innings pitched, and he averages about a strikeout an inning. … In coincidental

news, former Giant Cory Gearrin, who was traded in a salary dump with Austin Jackson to the

Texas Rangers earlier this year, was acquired by the A’s Friday for a pair of minor leaguers,

meaning he will likely face McCutchen early next week when the Yankees come to Oakland.

… Buster Posey is back in San Francisco and on crutches. He has already started rehabbing from

the arthroscopic hips surgery he underwent earlier this week in Colorado, doing work on a bike

before Friday’s match with the Mets.

SFExaminer.com

San Francisco Giants outfielder Steven Duggar to undergo surgery, Aramis Garcia and Chris

Shaw to start

Ryan Gorcey

AT&T PARK — It was an easy decision to make for San Francisco Giants outfielder Steven

Duggar.

He could either try and rehab his dislocated left shoulder, with a tear in the labrum, or he could

have surgery.

“The recurrence rate, if you don’t ahve surgery, was through the roof,” Duggar said on Friday,

three days after he dove back into second base and dislocated his non-throwing shoulder on a

tag from Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Duggar — who was one of San Francisco’s top five prospects before being called up on July 8 —

will undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum, with a recovery time around five months, just in

time for him to be ready for spring training. The surgery date is not yet set, and neither are the

doctor and location.

“It should be normal by right around December,” Duggar said. “I can do everyday stuff by

December. I’ll be full-go baseball activity, ramped up to 100 percent right before camp starts, if

there’s no setbacks.”

35

It wasn’t a smooth path to acceptance, though, since that tag came down on the tip of his

shoulder as he popped up after sliding headfirst into second.

“I cried, I threw stuff, just privately by myself,” Duggar said. “Once I kind of got that out of my

system, it’s been a laser-focus. We get this surgery done, come out of it, it’s a day-by-day thing:

What can I do today to get this thing going, to ultimately be ready for camp?”

During his time in the majors, Duggar hit .255 in 41 games, with two home runs, a triple, 11

doubles and 17 RBIs. He’d begun to come into his own as of late at the plate, as well. After an 0-

for-10 slump, he had six hits in his last 18 at-bats over his last five games, with a triple, a homer

and four RBIs in that span, and a .980 OPS.

“Reflecting back, there were some trials along the way, but I knew that coming into it,” said

Duggar, 24. “I knew I was going to fail, but I felt like I stayed with it and made adjustments

along the way.”

Duggar had gotten game-winning hits on Sunday against the Texas Rangers (a triple) and

Monday against the Arizona Diamondbacks (a two-run homer), and had stayed in after the

injury Tuesday and scored the winner against Arizona. Before that, he made a game-saving

throw from the outfield.

“I really felt like I was starting to put some things together that I had worked on with [hitting

coach Alonzo Powell] and [Rich] Schu, and I really started feeling like the adjustments that we

had made and the plans that we had put together, they were all starting to come together at

the right time,” Duggar said. “I felt like I was putting some good at-bats together and making

some good things happen in the box. I feel like that was definitely encouraging for me, moving

forward.”

*****

After saying he would start catcher Aramis Garcia in the third game of this week’s series against

the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochey pulled back and

started Nick Hundley on Wednesday.

36

With Garcia’s family in town, awaiting the 25-year old’s big league debut, Bochy says, he’s

under a bit of pressure.

“The family’s been eyeballing me pretty hard,” he said.

So, on a night where No. 4 prospect Chris Shaw will make his big league debut in left, Garcia,

too, will make his first appearance at AT&T Park, starting behind the plate and catching a

familiar face: Andrew Suarez. Garcia caught Suarez while both were in Triple-A Sacramento to

start the year, and there’s a degree of familiarity with the rookie left-hander who turns 26 in

two days.

“A little bit, he’s caught him, and we wanted to give Nick a couple days, too, since he went five

in a row,” Bochy said. “We rode him pretty hard through that Arizona series, and been wanting

to get [Garcia] back there and give him a start.”

*****

All-Star catcher Buster Posey was in the ballpark on Friday, using crutches. Pablo Sandoval —

who is getting out of his leg brace more and more after surgery to repair a torn hamstring —

joked that he could still beat Posey in a footrace.

“He’s doing fine, he’ll be on crutches for a while,” Bochy said of Posey. “I think he’s in there

riding the [exercise] bike right now, but he’ll be rehabbing for a while. I know he’s glad to get

this part of it over, especially that first day or two, when you’re in a lot of pain.”

Dealing with the crutches will get a bit old, Bochy said, but at least now Posey has his rehab

ahead of him, instead of more pain from bone spurs and a partially torn labrum.

*****

Shaw will play exclusively in left, both Bochy and general manager Bobby Evans intimated. Right

field will be more of a tossup, though Austin Slater should see the lion’s share of time there,

potentially spelled by Hunter Pence, while Gorkys Hernandez and Gregor Blanco will play in

center.

37

“I’ll mix it up a little bit there,” Bochy said. “Tomorrow I could change it up with a lefty going,

put [Slater] back in left, but we’re talking about it now, and through these games and match-

ups and things like that, but yeah. Slater will get a lot of playing time in right field.”

SFExaminer.com

Chris Shaw arrives in San Francisco, will start for Giants

Ryan Gorcey

AT&T PARK — Chris Shaw has only been to AT&T Park three times before today.

While playing for Boston College in 2014, the left-handed swinging outfielder and his team

visited the Bay Area to play four February games against Santa Clara and Nevada at Stephen

Schott Stadium. During that trip, the team took a tour of AT&T.

A year later, in late May, as Shaw was making the rounds for pre-draft workouts, he took

batting practice in China Basin. In four rounds of five swings, he put “a few” balls out.

“I think that’s why they were more inclined to pick me,” said Shaw.

The Giants picked Shaw in the first round of the ensuing draft, 31st overall. After his first minor

league season, he returned to AT&T for a mini-camp. After being tabbed San Francisco’s No. 4

prospect before this season, the power-hitting left fielder will make his major league debut

there on Friday against the New York Mets.

“It’s something you dream about your entire life. To finally have that vision, that dream, come

to fruition, I still don’t have words,” Shaw said.

Shaw was all set to head to Las Vegas with the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats on Friday

morning. On Thursday night, Giants general manager Bobby Evans — who personally made the

trip out to Sacramento to talk to several of his prospects on the eve of the final series of the

season — told Shaw the organization liked him, but he didn’t know if the club would call him up

for September. He was a bit discouraged.

Shaw had overheard Evans on his phone in the hallway, as the Giants worked to finalize a deal

that would eventually send right fielder Andrew McCutchen. At that point, he figured

something was afoot.

“I thought, ‘Maybe there’s a chance,'” Shaw said.

Friday morning, after he grabbed a breakfast burrito in the Sacramento clubhouse, his manager

grabbed him, to make sure he understood the team was headed to Las Vegas. Shaw said, of

course, he understood.

“Then, he’s like, ‘Yeah, we’re going, but you’re going to San Francisco,'” Shaw said.

38

Shaw, 24, broke down.

“I can’t really recall a lot of what happened right after,” he said. “It’s such an emotional

whirlwind.”

Shaw has long been known for his power — he hit 81 home runs in four seasons in the minor

leagues, including 24 in 101 games with Triple-A Sacramento this season. It’s his strikeout rate

that’s a bit of a concern. In 404 minor league games, he’s struck out 442 times.

“I’m just going to approach it the same way I approach my everyday work in Sacramento,”

Shaw said. “Still go out there, looking to get a good pitch to hit, trying to hit it hard, stick with

my game. It’s what’s gotten me here.”

Shaw hit .259 this year with the River Cats, with a career-high 144 strikeouts.

“It was definitely a learning year for me, second time through the league,” Shaw said. “I wasn’t

necessarily known in that league, but I think this year, I was pitched a little differently. I thought

that if I came out and just tore it up, I’d be up here quicker, so I put a lot of pressure on myself.

Ultimately, it kind of hurt my results.”

Shaw has since been working to shrink the zone, and shrink what he’s looking to hit. He said

he’s made strides. Both Evans and manager Bruce Bochy said he’ll be the everyday left fielder

for the remainder of the season.

“He’s a bat that we think is going to play here at some point on a regular basis, so he’s going to

get a chance to show what he can do up here in September,” Bochy said. “This isn’t going to

determine what happens to him by any means, but with Cutch now gone, it does give us a

chance to take a look at him.”

“We hope he can just relax and play the game,” Evans said. “He’s got great teammates around

him, veteran players that will keep him focus on not letting the moment get too big. We

wouldn’t bring him here if we didn’t think he was ready for the next step.”

One of those veteran teammates is Gregor Blanco, who was called up two days ago, after top

prospect Steven Duggar went down with a shoulder injury sliding headfirst back into second

base. Blanco was teammates with Shaw for much of the year in Sacramento. Referring to the

Splash Hits sign sitting in the right field corner, which currently displays a 78, Blanco smiled.

“He’s going to change those numbers out there,” Blanco said.

39

SFExaminer.com

Bobby Evans, Brian Sabean address Andrew McCutchen trade, expectations for Chris Shaw

Ryan Gorcey

AT&T PARK — Major League Baseball needs more Andrew McCutchens. That was the message

from San Francisco Giants Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Brian Sabean on

Friday, after he and general manager Bobby Evans completed a trade to send McCutchen to the

New York Yankees.

There were other teams interested in McCutchen, a five-time All-Star and former MVP in his

nine years with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but Sabean wanted to find a spot that would be a “win-

win-win” for the Giants, McCutchen and the team who acquired him.

“I hope he wins a ring,” Sabean said. “He’s the real deal.”

The trade not only allows McCutchen to chase a World Series ring in New York, but it also

brought back two top prospects in right-hander Juan De Paula and infielder Abiatal Avelino.

Perhaps most importantly, it will also allow San Francisco to get a look at of one of their own

top minor league pieces, Chris Shaw, who will make his major league debut on Friday against

the New York Mets.

“Simply put, we were hoping to sweep Arizona, and we didn’t, and the odds became taller,”

Sabean said. “It was the prudent thing to do. Three teams in front of us, and we’re running out

of games.”

When Sabean and Evans acquired the veterans McCutchen and Evan Longoria — both

unrestricted free agents at the end of the year — they had an eye on not only bouncing back

from a 98-loss season, but contending for a playoff spot.

“We don’t like to surrender,” Sabean said. “Contrary to some other general managers, our front

office, we don’t relish the trade deadline. You’ve got people going out the door you’re invested

in, and you’re never really sure of the return. We all know the drill. But, in some ways, we, for

most of the year, we were in a position with one hand tied behind our back.”

Madison Bumgarner missed the first month-plus of the season. Johnny Cueto went down

needing Tommy John surgery. Jeff Samardzija has missed over 100 days on the disabled list and

is unlikely to return. Longoria missed more than a month with a broken hand, ditto for second

baseman Joe Panik. Pablo Sandoval tore a hamstring. First baseman Brandon belt missed time

with appendicitis.

On Friday, All-Star catcher Buster Posey stood outside San Francisco’s locker room on crutches,

following Monday surgery on his balky right hip.

“Every week, we were taking a body blow,” Sabean said. “Guys couldn’t stay on the field, there

were major injuries. I’m pretty amazed with the record, but the record could be better if we

could just be league average with runners in scoring position, and if we finished some games

we should have finished.”

The Giants were fifth in the major leagues in runs scored, 18th in batting with runners in scoring

position (.248) and 24th in runs scored when batting with runners in scoring position.

40

McCutchen — San Francisco’s leader in home runs, RBIs, doubles, OPS and on-base percentage

— heads from a team 7 1/2 games out of a playoff spot with 27 to play, to a team with a 4 1/2

game lead for the AL Wild Card.

“If you look at his body of work in a lineup that literally wasn’t much help to him, personally,

with the trade itself — which I’m sure was jarring, with a change in venue — we liked what we

saw from Cutch, on and off the field,” Sabean said. “Very honored to have him. He was a

pleasure to be around. A breath of fresh air. He was as-advertised.”

Sabean did not rule out a possible reunion, saying the Giants would “possibly” seek to re-sign

him as an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

San Francisco is now seemingly focused on 2019, with the call-up of Shaw — their No. 4

prospect — and the earlier call-ups of Austin Slater and Steven Duggar, who is now injured and

lost for the season. Aramis Garcia — another top-30 prospect, called up when Posey underwent

surgery — will make his major league debut on Friday, along with Shaw.

“We’re about winning and developing,” Evans said. “We still try to win every game we can right

now, and yet, we also get an opportunity to see Shaw, which is another opportunity to develop.

We lost an opportunity in the development of Duggar, and that was a tough hit for us, but still

winning and developing.”

Shaw will play regularly in the month of September, Evans said, but there won’t be many

judgements made in what he called a “soft evaluation” against big league pitching.

“The decision about Shaw is very different, depending on where we are in the standings and in

the race,” Evans said. “Whether he would have come up in September was somewhat

dependent upon opportunity to play. I think if there’s not a trade today, we have to be

measured about where we are in the race and how much playing time he’s going to get. Part of

bringing up young players is giving them an opportunity to play and play consistently.”

SI.com

August Trade Deadline Recap: Blue Jays Trade Josh Donaldson, Curtis Granderson

Gabriel Baumgaertner

Aug. 31 is the last day for teams to add players that they hope to use in the postseason.

On this date in 2017, the Astros acquired Justin Verlander from the Tigers one month

before they'd begin their playoff journey. By the end of the season, he became one of

the most important players on a World Series-winning team. An Aug. 31 acquisition can

matter, so let's break down the moves made on Friday.

Indians acquire Josh Donaldson from Blue Jays

41

By late Friday afternoon, it was clear that Toronto was going to trade Josh Donaldson;

the only question was where he would land. After being linked with the Indians,

Cardinals and Braves, Donaldson is headed to Cleveland for the stretch run. Don’t expect

to see Donaldson in tomorrow’s lineup, he hasn’t played since May 28 because of a

strained calf, but he’s reportedly due to return to action sometime next week (and the

Indians just happen to play the Blue Jays next weekend).

It’s a worthy gamble for the Indians. A free agent at the end of the season, Donaldson is

one of the game’s marquee hitters when healthy. The 2015 AL MVP hit a combined 111

homers from 2015-17 and ended the ‘17 season on an absolute tear, hitting 24 homers

and slashing .302/.406/.698 over the his final 54 games. The question this year has been

his health. Donaldson started the season seemingly unable to throw to first base in his

opening day game against the Yankees, and his production was rather paltry

(234/.333/.423) in the 36 games he played before heading to the disabled list.

The Blue Jays will pick up the remaining $3.7 million of Donaldson’s salary, while the 32-

year-old will play third and MVP candidate Jose Ramirez will presumably move to second

base. That likely leaves second baseman Jason Kipnis, scuffling along with a .229 average

and 13 homers, as the odd man out.

Even if Donaldson doesn’t return to top form, this trade is a gamble the Indians had to

take. It’s a great pickup for them that only boosts their chances in the hyper-competitive

AL pennant race.

Curtis Granderson to the Brewers

The Brewers’ waiver deadline binge finished with the acquisition of one of the most

respected clubhouse presences in the big leagues. The question is how much Curtis

Granderson has left to help the Brewers during the stretch run. The 37-year-old

outfielder has compiled a decent if unremarkable season in Toronto, slashing

.243/.340/.429 with 11 homers in 348 plate appearances. He’ll likely serve as a fourth

outfielder and pinch hitter for a team already employing Christian Yelich, Ryan Braun

and Lorenzo Cain, but he adds to Milwaukee’s strong bench (though the defensive

metrics grade him as a below-average outfielder).

Granderson was traded to the Dodgers before the August deadline last season, but he

hit just .161/.288/.366 (despite hitting seven homers) and was left off of the World

Series roster after going 1-for-15 in the playoffs. Here’s to hoping the eminently likable

veteran has a more successful run with another NL competitor.

Brewers acquire LHP Gio Gonzalez from Nationals

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It's a move that's long overdue, but at least the Brewers acquired another starting

pitcher. Now that Milwaukee has dipped five games behind the Cubs in the playoff race

as of Friday and is clinging to the second Wild Card spot, GM David Stearns opted to

bolster his starting rotation with the veteran lefty. Gonzalez had a great start to the

season (a 2.10 ERA and 8.33 K/9 over 11 starts), but has been pretty dreadful since then

(6.53 ERA, .304 batting average against in 16 starts). Despite his struggles, the Brewers

need the help. While lefty Wade Miley has been a pleasant surprise (2.18 ERA in 11

starts), Milwaukee's starters don't strike many hitters out (their leader is Junior Guerra

at 8.5) and none between Guerra, Jhoulys Chacin and Chase Anderson have an ERA

under 3.60.

What Gonzalez can offer the Brewers is a rubber arm. One of the league's most reliable

innings eaters, Gonzalez has made at least 31 starts in seven of the last eight seasons.

Having already relied heavily on the bullpen all season (we'll talk about that more

below), manager Craig Counsell can use a starting pitcher who can give top relievers

Josh Hader and Jeremy Jeffress a rest.

Dodgers acquire RHP Ryan Madson from Nationals

Madson is a worthy boost for a tired Dodgers bullpen, but it remains unclear how

healthy the 38-year-old righthander is. A year after producing a 1.86 ERA and 10.2 K/9

for the A’s and Nationals, Madson has battled injuries and ineffectiveness throughout

2018. He currently sits with a 5.28 ERA and a paltry 2.73 K/BB rate (compared to 7.44

last year) and is coming off of the disabled list due to shoulder irritation.

Despite the red flags, the Dodgers are willing to take the risk. Since he was activated

from the disabled list on Aug. 20, closer Kenley Jansen has a 15.75 ERA with four home

runs allowed over four appearances. Jansen allowed just four home runs in his 45 prior

appearances, and a combined nine home runs over 136 regular-season games in 2016

and 2017. Even if Jansen corrects his issues, manager Dave Roberts isn’t sure how to get

to him. One option is starter Kenta Maeda, an ace reliever in last year’s playoffs who has

been working out of the bullpen since Aug. 14. Maeda closed out a recent 3–1 win over

the Rangers, but surrendered the winning run in a 2–1 loss to the Giants in his first relief

outing of the season. Another option will be Ross Stripling, who earned All-Star plaudits

as a starter this season, but was moved to the bullpen after Hyun-jin Ryu returned from

the disabled list. Stripling has been on the disabled list since late July with a toe injury,

but is expected to return soon.

After that, few, if any of the relievers inspire confidence in high-leverage situations.

Pedro Baez is loathed by most of the fan base, but he’s been the team’s best reliever in

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August (0.34 ERA, 11.57 K/9 over his last nine appearances). Scott Alexander was briefly

offered the closer’s job in Jansen’s absence and quickly proved himself better as a

situational lefty than a closer or a setup man. Righty Dylan Floro shows flashes of a

shutdown righty, but has surrendered the winning run in two of his three high-leverage

ninth-inning appearances. Daniel Hudson and J.T. Chargois, key components for most of

the season, are currently on the 10-day DL.

The point of it all? Madson may not inspire great confidence right now, but Roberts

needs all the help he can get for an inconsistent unit.

Brewers acquire Xavier Cedeño from White Sox

It’s a small move, but more proof that the Brewers plan on using an arsenal of relievers

to win games late in the season. Cedeño is a journeyman lefty (167 IP over eight

seasons) who is compiling a strong year in Chicago (2.84 ERA, 9.9 K/9 in 33

appearances). He’ll probably be no more than a situational lefty, but adds another layer

to a bullpen that is reeling a bit since the demotion of former closer Corey Knebel.

Expect Cedeño to be a seventh-inning option before the likes of Jeremy Jeffress and Josh

Hader.

Athletics acquire Cory Gearrin from Rangers

Gearrin will play for his third team in 2018 and will add bullpen depth to an A’s team

that may have to consider the Rays' “bullpenning” strategy. In the last two weeks,

Oakland has lost starting pitchers Sean Manaea and Brett Anderson to the disabled list.

General manager David Forst conceded that the A's are considering the "bullpenning"

strategy with a dearth of available starters, so Gearrin exists as a bullpen reinforcement

just in case manager Bob Melvin adopts that strategy.

ESPN.com

What it means to be in first place on Sept. 1

Sarah Langs

As baseball enters September, the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Houston Astros, Atlanta

Braves, Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks lead their respective divisions. Since 1996, the

first full season with at least one wild card, 104 of 132 division champions (79 percent) held at

least a share of the division lead entering September.

Last year, all six of the division leaders entering September went on to win their divisions: the

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Red Sox, Indians, Astros, Washington Nationals, Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers. It was the

fourth time that had happened since 1996. The other times were in 1999, 2001 and 2002.

Since 1996, there has not been a season in which none of the division leaders entering

September went on to win their divisions.

Comfort zone?

With the Red Sox (7½) and Indians (14) each leading their divisions by large margins. it's worth

noting that the largest division lead entering September for a team that did not end up winning

that division is 7½ games by the 1995 Angels, who missed out on the playoffs entirely when the

Yankees won that year's wild card.

Since 1996, four teams have had a division lead during September (through games of a given

date) of five or more games and failed to win the division: the 2009 Tigers (7-game lead), 2007

Mets (7), 2006 Tigers (5½) and 2012 Rangers (5½) (Source: Elias).

The Indians are up 14 games in the AL Central. But what does that lead get you? Since 1996,

only two of 16 teams to lead their division by 14 or more games entering September have gone

on to win the World Series.

Largest Division Leads Entering September Since 1996

LEAD ON SEPT. 1 WON WORLD SERIES?

1999 Indians 20 No

1998 Yankees 18 Yes

2008 Angels 17 No

2002 Braves 17 No

2001 Mariners 17 No

2017 Dodgers 16 No

2006 Mets 15 1/2 No

2004 Cardinals 15 1/2 No

2017 Nationals 15 No

2016 Cubs 15 Yes

2013 Braves 15 No

1998 Padres 15 No

2018 Indians 14 ?

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LEAD ON SEPT. 1 WON WORLD SERIES?

2005 Cardinals 14 No

2003 Braves 14 No

2002 Twins 14 No

1998 Braves 14 No

What about the wild cards?

In the multiple wild-card era (since 2012), there has been only one season when each team in

wild-card position on Sept. 1 held on to make the playoffs -- and it was last year, when the

Yankees, Twins, Diamondbacks and Rockies did so.

Also of note, the Red Sox and Yankees each have winning percentages of .630 or higher.

According to Elias, the last time at least two teams in the same league had winning percentages

of .630 or higher entering September was in 1998, when the Braves (.652), Padres (.645) and

Astros (.630) did so in the NL.

Also from Elias, this is the first time in the divisional era (since 1969) that two or more teams in

the same division have had winning percentages of .630 or above entering September.

Meanwhile, the Royals and Orioles both have winning percentages below .325.

According to Elias, the last time two teams in the same league entered September with winning

percentages under .325 was in 1979, when the Blue Jays (.321) and A's (.324) did so.

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