SAN FRANCISCO — Dominic Smith sacrificed his body for the Giants on Friday night. Now, there’s a possibility that his regular season is over.
Smith landed on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain prior to Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, leaving San Francisco without its best defensive first baseman for at least the next week-and-a-half. With 15 games remaining, Smith may not have enough time to rehab the injury and return for the end of the regular season.
In a corresponding move, infielder/outfielder Jerar Encarnacion was reinstated from the 10-day injured list after he dealt with his own right hamstring strain.
“He’s not a speedster, but hamstrings typically take a couple weeks,” said manager Bob Melvin. “I know he’ll be itching to (return). It just kind of depends on what we need him to do, but our doctors will have more clarity today.”
Smith, 30, injured himself in the top of the fourth on Friday. With runners on second and third, third baseman Matt Chapman made a diving stop of Andy Pages’ grounder and fired to Smith, who inadvertently did the splits. Smith’s extended lunge was needed as Chapman’s throw barely beat Pages’ speed, but Smith instantly collapsed onto his side.
As the Dodgers challenged the call, Melvin and assistant athletic trainer Ryo Watanabe met Smith near first base to assess Smith’s health. Melvin had Wilmer Flores pinch-hit for Smith in the bottom of the fourth.
Smith has been a valuable contributor since joining the Giants during president of basball operations Buster Posey’s roster shakeup in early June. Over 63 games, Smith has a slash line of .284/.333/.417 with five home runs and 33 RBIs (115 OPS+). On Aug. 29, Smith hit the 107th Splash Hit in Oracle Park history.
“He’s been great, both offensively and defensively,” said manager Bob Melvin. “Hitting in the middle of the order, getting big hits for us. I think this is probably as comfortable as he’s been in a long time with a team, too. He’s well received here. He’s respected here. You’re going to have injuries over the course of the season that are impactful. This is definitely one for us.”
In Smith’s absence, Rafael Devers and Flores will serve as the Giants’ first basemen. Devers, who is starting at first on Saturday, has fared well there despite having no experience at the position prior to this season. Over a very small sample of 178 innings, Devers has been worth one defensive run saved.
“I think he’s way more comfortable now than maybe he was early on,” Melvin said. “He look like he’s fine out there. The only thing I worry about a little bit was the ankle thing he had going on, but I think he’s past that now. Talking to him yesterday, he was ready to play first base today either way.”
Encarnacion has been limited to only 10 games this season due a left hand fracture in March, a left oblique strain in June and a right hamstring strain in August, the last of which was especially brutal.
On Aug. 5, Encarnacion was reinstated from the injured list and homered in his first game back. The next day, Encarnacion hit a 442-foot homer in his second at-bat of the game, then injured his hamstring in his third at-bat as Encarnacion tried running out an infield single.
“He brings a lot of power, and he’s hit left-handed pitching too,” Melvin said. “It was a short stint, but he made a big impact in those games in Pittsburgh that he played. We wanted to give him the proper amount of at-bats (with Sacramento). We wanted to maybe play him through the weekend, but obviously, the need was to get him now.”
Miller, Whisenhunt throw bullpens
Left-handed starter Carson Whisenhunt and left-handed reliever Erik Miller both threw bullpen sessions on Saturday afternoon, though Whisenhunt is closer to returning than Miller.
Whisenhunt (back strain) threw his full repertoire of pitches on Saturday and said he is going to Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday to throw a couple innings. Miller (left elbow strain) threw exclusively fastballs during his bullpen and is “still a ways out,” according to Melvin.