By Chris Estrada
San Jose baseball fans were in for treat Thursday night as San Francisco Giants ace Madison Bumgarner, second basemen Joe Panik and Alen Hanson made rehab appearances with the single-A affiliate San Jose Giants.
Bumgarner is recovering from a broken pinkie finger suffered in spring training. He made a previous rehab start with the triple-A affiliate Sacramento River Cats last Saturday and struck out eight hitters in 3.2 innings.
With the big-league Giants struggling, Bumgarner felt he was ready to join them. The front office however, wanted one more minor league start.
“I felt like I was ready after the last time. As long as the front office says I’m ready, I feel ready,” said Bumgarner.
He showed he was ready to return to San Francisco by throwing 74 pitches in 4.2 innings in another dominant performance. Bumgarner hit the first batter he faced, but recovered nicely by only allowing a run on two hits and striking out seven.
Arizona Diamondbacks top prospect Pavin Smith took Bumgarner deep in the second inning, but followed by striking him out in the fifth.
Of the 74 pitches, 52 were strikes with his fastball ranging from 87-90 mph. While that seems low, Bumgarner wasn’t concerned as he was more focused on his breaking pitches.
“I was working on everything, making sure I’m ready to get guys out,” he said.
With the San Francisco Giants four games out of first place in the NL West, they will be getting a major boost to the rotation. Bumgarner is scheduled to make his season debut in San Francisco next Tuesday.
“I’m going to do everything I can to help us win every five days,” Bumgarner said.
As for the second basemen, Joe Panik and Alen Hanson performed just as well in their rehab. Panik is recovering from a sprained thumb suffered back in April while Hanson is recovering from a strained hamstring.
In the two days, Panik went 2-for-7 with a double and an RBI. He played at second base for nine innings Wednesday and was the designated hitter for Thursday’s game.
Panik said he was ready to return to San Francisco Friday and that just might be the case. He was hitting .267 with three home runs and five RBIs before the injury.
Hanson was Panik’s replacement when he got injured and was performing well, hitting .298 with four home runs and 12 RBI in 14 games before getting hurt himself.
He played five innings at shortstop and went 1-for-3 on Wednesday and played second base for seven innings on Thursday. He homered to right field in his first at-bat and finished 1-for-3.
Hanson definitely would provide an offensive threat off the bench for San Francisco. However, there just might not be room for him.
In the meantime, Hanson will return to play with the San Jose Giants and continue his rehab Friday night.
The San Francisco Giants will have many moves to make Friday. Joe Panik is expected to return, as are outfielder Hunter Pence and reliever Mark Melancon, who are rehabbing with the River Cats.
The Giants will have to get creative with their roster moves, but one thing is for sure: the reinforcements are coming. If they return and produce as expected, it could be a fun summer in the “Wild West” division.
Follow Chris on Twitter @estradadotc