Giants win, but Mitch Haniger fractures forearm and J.D. Davis sprains
ST. LOUIS — In a span of two pitches, the San Francisco Giants lost their third baseman and their right fielder Tuesday at Busch Stadium.
J.D. Davis, one of the team’s All-Star candidates, awkwardly bent his right ankle sliding into third base in the third inning, and one pitch later, Mitch Haniger left the game after being hit on the right arm in the Giants' 11-3 victory over the Cardinals. “I didn’t even know he got hurt until he came into the training room and I was like, 'Dude, you too? What’s going on?' Davis said.
The team announced that Haniger has a fractured forearm, which all but guarantees a quick promotion for Luis Matos, Triple-A’s youngest and hottest-hitting player. Matos, who was pulled from Sacramento’s game at Sugarland, Texas, right after Haniger’s exit, is the Giants' top outfield prospect. He was batting .398 after going 1-for-2 — with a homer — on Tuesday night. The 21-year-old has seven homers in 23 games with Sacramento, including six in the past six games to go along with his 1.094 OPS.
Haniger was the team’s top winter addition, signing for three years and $43.5 million. He’s had one stint on the IL already, missing 21 games with an oblique strain to start the season. Davis, who leads the team with 35 RBIs and is tied for second with nine homers, was diagnosed with a right ankle sprain and it’s unclear if he’ll need to go on the IL; he said he’s able to put weight on it and the only discomfort he had was when moving down a slope or twisting to the right. David Villar, the Giants' projected third baseman going into the season, was also lifted from the River Cats' game Tuesday.
Manager Gabe Kapler said that one or both of the players arriving Wednesday morning could be on the roster, but it seems clear that with Haniger out, Matos would have to be the one assured a spot.
“I think it’s all right to talk about the silver lining: Matos has been swinging the bat really well,” Kapler said. “It’s an exciting moment for for the organization. Obviously, it comes on the heels of something that was really disappointing in the Haniger injury, but certainly we’re excited to see what what Matos can bring to the table when he ultimately makes his debut for us.”
There is an excellent crop of rookies already in San Francisco, many of whom were instrumental Tuesday. Blake Sabol, who came into the game in left after Haniger left, started the Giants' three-run rally in the fifth with a single, and Casey Schmitt, who took over at third for Davis, sent Sabol in with a base hit. Yet another rookie, impressive catcher Patrick Bailey, drove Schmitt in with a base hit, and Brandon Crawford — not a rookie — provided a squeeze bunt for the final run of the inning.
"It’s very unfortunate to have me and Haniger go down, but at the same time, props to Casey and Sabol, they came in, they got a couple of hits, and they kept the train rolling,” Davis said. “The offense didn’t miss a beat.”
In the immediate wake of Mike Yastrzemski’s two-run homer in the sixth, Bailey added a solo shot, his second while hitting right-handed and third in 19 big-league games.
Giants 11, Cardinals 3 San Francisco St. Louis ab r h bi ab r h bi Totals 41 11 17 11 Totals 33 3 7 3 Wade Jr. 1b 5 1 2 0 Donovan 2b-3b 4 1 1 0 Estrada 2b 5 1 2 1 Goldschmidt 1b 3 1 2 1 Pederson dh 2 2 1 0 Baker 1b 1 0 0 0 Flores ph-dh 2 0 1 0 Gorman dh 4 0 0 0 Davis 3b 2 0 1 0 Arenado 3b 3 0 2 0 Sabol lf 2 1 1 1 Burleson ph-lf 1 0 0 0 Conforto rf 6 1 4 3 Contreras c 3 1 0 0 Haniger lf 1 0 0 0 Carlson rf-cf 3 0 0 1 Schmitt pr-3b 4 1 1 1 J.Walker lf-rf 3 0 1 1 Yastrzemski cf 4 2 1 2 DeJong ss 4 0 0 0 Bailey c 5 1 2 2 Edman cf-2b 4 0 1 0 Crawford ss 3 1 1 1 San Francisco 201 033 002 — 11 St. Louis 200 000 010 — 3 E_J.Walker (1). DP_San Francisco 1, St. Louis 0. LOB_San Francisco 13, St. Louis 9. 2B_Conforto (4), Wade Jr. 2 (11), Flores (9), Donovan (6), Arenado (10), J.Walker (5). HR_Yastrzemski (7), Bailey (3). SF_Sabol (1). S_Crawford (1). IP H R ER BB SO San Francisco Cobb 4 5 2 2 2 5 Jackson W,1-0 1 1 0 0 0 3 Winn S,1-1 4 1 1 1 3 2 St. Louis Flaherty L,3-5 4 1-3 10 6 6 3 3 Cabrera 1 2-3 4 3 3 1 2 Woodford 2 1-3 3 2 2 3 3 VerHagen 2-3 0 0 0 0 0 HBP_Flaherty (Haniger), Winn (Carlson). Umpires_Home, Tripp Gibson; First, Gabe Morales; Second, Adam Beck; Third, Dan Iassogna. T_3:17. A_40,917 (44,494). See More Collapse
More fun rookie stuff? Keaton Winn made his big-league debut and got the save, working four innings, in his second game ever at a big-league stadium, with Monday night’s stint after being called up earlier in the day his first. He was feted with the usual postgame condiment shower to celebrate, and, like Sabol, made the unwise decision to keep his mouth open, and got a particularly gross combination of sriracha and toothpaste.
No complaints from Winn, who was walking on air, or it seemed like it. “I still can’t feel my legs!” he said. “I’ll never forget it.”
Haniger needs more imaging to determine the severity of his fracture, but he’s likely to miss six to eight weeks. If it’s displaced, he could be out even longer. “It’s just disappointing,” Haniger said. “Injuries are part of the game. but at the same time, I’ve got to focus on what’s next and on the recovery process and getting back out there to help this team win. I’ve been back from a lot worse, so I know I’ll come back better than ever.”
As if losing two everyday players on consecutive plays wasn’t enough, the teams had a spat in the middle of the fourth, which started when Cardinals starter Jack Flaherty appeared to yell at LaMonte Wade Jr., who was at second base when the inning ended; given Wade’s position at the time, it’s possible Flaherty thought Wade was communicating pitch information to Thairo Estrada at the plate. Wade had to be restrained as both benches emptied along with the bullpens. Former Cardinals reliever John Brebbia led the charge out of the San Francisco bullpen, then happily greeted former teammate Génesis Cabrera.
Flaherty wouldn’t address the tiff after the game, and Wade said, “Tempers flare, you know? I’m just happy we got the win. I can’t really speak to what he thought.”
“I think Flaherty may have taken some exception to LaMonte moving around on the bases, which is totally within the norm, not unusual at all,” Kapler said of Wade’s activity. “And LaMonte was justified in his frustration.”
Alex Cobb started for the Giants and was again porous in the first, allowing two runs as the first four batters reached base. His ERA in the first inning in his 14 games: 7.07. In all other innings: 2.23.
The Giants had 17 hits; Michael Conforto had four of them and drove in three runs.
Reach Susan Slusser: sslusser@sfchronicle.com; Twitter: @susanslusser
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
