Who will pitch? No one knows.
The schedule-makers did the San Francisco Giants no favors this week, as the team returned from a six-game East Coast road trip on Sunday, and not only doesn’t get Monday off, but has to play a day game. Just for good measure, that game is against the Philadelphia Phillies, arguably baseball’s best team … and a squad that already swept the Giants in a four-game set this season.
Close watchers of both the games and the transactions page might have noticed that Blake Snell was reinstated from the Paternity List on Sunday, but not in the dugout. That’s because Snell was — as he certainly should be — at home in San Francisco with his partner.
A baby Snell didn’t come into the world during Snell’s three-game Paternity List stint, so Snell and his partner, Haeley Mar, are still waiting for a kiddo. The Giants are — as they certainly should — letting Snell be with his family, but since MLB’s archaic Paternity List only lasts a maximum of three days, he had to be added back to the roster. So even if not physically present, Snell had to re-enter the 26-player roster fray, resulting in the team optioning Nick Avila.
Snell is the scheduled starter for Monday’s series opener, and you can see the problem. Because the game is at home — and because Snell threw a bullpen over the weekend — he could make the start. And it appears as though that is the current plan. But should Mar go into labor, it’s safe to say that Snell will be occupied with more important things than trying to get Bryce Harper out.
Adding to the complication for the Giants is that they don’t have a starter for Tuesday, either. Mason Black was recently optioned, which means that he cannot come back on Tuesday unless it’s to replace an injured player. Keaton Winn isn’t eligible to return from the IL until the end of the week. Kai-Wei Teng is the only healthy pitcher who is in AAA and on the 40-man roster, and he has been struggling mightily this year. Perhaps a bullpen game? Perhaps Sean Hjelle gets a chance to start?
The Giants will likely try to get a second Paternity List stint for Snell when the time comes, but it seems unlikely to be granted. Businesses that only give three days of parental leave aren’t usually interested in … well … giving more.
And so the rotation is a giant question mark right now. We’ll wait and find out. And, more importantly, we’ll all hope for the best for Blake and Haeley.
What time do the Giants play today?
The Giants and Phillies play at 2:05 p.m. PT today.