Yet another roster move.
The San Francisco Giants arrived in Pennsylvania and were immediately met by a little extra oomph. Ahead of their series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Giants announced that outfielder and first baseman Jerar Encarnación had been activated off the 10-Day IL. He takes the place of outfielder Luis Matos, who was optioned to AAA Sacramento.
It’s been a funny year for Encarnación. He started Spring Training on absolute fire, then slowed down in March, before sustaining a serious injury at the very end of the preseason, which landed him on the 60-Day IL. He returned in early June, but played in just eight games before suffering an oblique injury. He finally started a rehab assignment around the All-Star break and, with his rehab about to expire, has returned to San Francisco.
The numbers in his short time in the Majors this year were quite poor, as he hit just 3-22 with a double and six strikeouts. Needless to say, they’ve been better during his recent stint in Sacramento, where he played 12 games and hit 13-44 with two home runs, two doubles, six walks, and 14 strikeouts. It seems safe to assume that Encarnación will split time between the corner outfield spots, first base, and designated hitter.
It’s a tough break for Matos, who looked primed to slide into an everyday role following the departure of Mike Yastrzemski. Instead, Matos played only half of Friday’s game, before ceding the rest of the weekend to the just-called-up Grant McCray. Matos has been having a poor season, but also had been playing sporadically. He’ll finally get a chance to play regularly again, though it will be in AAA, at least for now.