SAN FRANCISCO — The one-two tandem at the top of the lineups Bob Melvin schemed up in spring training likely didn’t include either Heliot Ramos or Brett Wisely, and the Giants’ manager also likely didn’t envision Wisely and Casey Schmitt making up his double-play duo up the middle.
That, however, is what Melvin had to work with Sunday as he filled out his lineup card for the Giants’ series finale against the Yankees, who after taking the first two games this weekend improved to 41-19, trailing only the last team to visit Oracle Park, the Philadelphia Phillies, for the best record in the majors.
The Giants were without their starting second baseman for a second straight game, as Thairo Estrada continued to battle a bruise on his right hand, and they may have to find a longer-term solution at shortstop as their Opening Day starter, Nick Ahmed, suffered a setback on his rehab assignment at Triple-A Sacramento.
“You can weather one or two sometimes and we’ve been getting good contributions from the guys coming up from Sacramento, but it’s kind of hard, especially when you come up against a team like this,” Melvin said. “Hopefully we can take one today, go 3-3 against these two teams that we’ve had to play, wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.”
Estrada, who had only missed one of the Giants’ first 58 games, was feeling “a little better” Sunday, according to Melvin, but was still not available after jamming his thumb Friday night. The Giants hoped that he could take swings off a tee but, Melvin said, “for him not to play, he’s banged up. So there’s a pretty good bruise on there.”
It may take longer than expected for the Giants to get Estrada’s double-play partner back, too, after Ahmed’s wrist didn’t respond well Saturday night in the first game of his rehab assignment. Playing his first game since spraining his left wrist May 9, Ahmed’s wrist “didn’t feel great,” Melvin said. “So he might have had a little bit of a setback.”
Hosting the top two teams in the sport this week, the Giants have gone 2-3 in the first five games of the homestand despite their laundry list of injured players.
Ramos was a different presence in the leadoff spot with Luis Matos moved down to sixth, and Wisely shifted to second base with Schmitt at short in Estrada’s absence. Without Ahmed or Marco Luciano (hamstring), Wisely has been the team’s primary shortstop, batting .423 with a 1.000 OPS over his past eight games, but has more experience at second base.
If either shortstop’s absence draws on, the Giants do have a creative solution handling the hot corner on a daily basis, and Matt Chapman was briefly taking ground balls with Schmitt at shortstop before first pitch Sunday. It is not an option the club is actively considering, though, Melvin said.
“Nah, I don’t think so right now. He’s so good where he is,” Melvin said. “And Wisely’s done a nice job over there. Schmitty’s settling in a little bit, too, and (Tyler) Fitzgerald can play there. I don’t think there’s really a need.”
Without LaMonte Wade Jr., who was leading the league in on-base percentage when he suffered a hamstring strain that is expected to sideline him for the next month, Melvin cited the on-base abilities of Ramos (.352 OBP) and Wisely (.423) as the reason for hitting them one-two, sliding down Matos, who has reached base only five times in 36 trips to the plate over his past eight games (a .139 OBP).
While Michael Conforto (hamstring) and Austin Slater (concussion) are expected to be activated on their upcoming road trip, the Giants have replaced them in the training room with Estrada and Wade Jr.
Slater was back in the home clubhouse before first pitch Sunday after playing in four rehab games, including three hits and a stolen base in the past two, but Melvin said, “My feeling is he’s going to play a few more.” Conforto is 1-for-5 with a walk in two games and was also set to be re-evaluated.
Along with Jung Hoo Lee, who is set to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery on Tuesday, “we have Lee, Wade and Conforto – who were basically hitting 1-2-3 for us – not in the lineup for a significant amount of time, and that takes its toll on you,” Melvin said. “We’re pretty banged up. We have some guys in the lineup that aren’t normally in the lineup. Now, they’re doing fine. But we would like to be at full strength to play teams like this.”