Giants' Angel Pagan to Miss 10-12 Weeks Due to Hamstring Surgery

The setback that San Francisco Giants center fielder Angel Pagan suffered during a minor league rehab game on Thursday will cost him nearly the entire season. 

News comes via the Giants' official Twitter account:

Pagan's wife, Windy updated fans on his condition, saying that surgery was successful and that he was doing well.

Pagan, who has been out since May 25 with a hamstring injury, was anticipated to return to the Giants sometime this weekend before seriously re-injuring himself on Thursday while with High-A San Jose. 

The 10-to-12-week recovery time puts him out until at least September, and missing the entire season is still a very real possibility.

The defending World Series champions are 38-37 and locked in the middle of a tight NL West battle, making the timing of this news hardly optimal. 

In 46 games this season, Pagan is hitting .262/.314/.374 with 30 runs scored, three homers and 24 RBI. Last year, he was crucial to San Francisco's success, leading the league with 15 triples on his way to an impressive .288/.338/.440 line. 

In his stead, the 29-year-old Gregor Blanco is likely to continue handling duties in center field, while Andres Torres will stay in left.  Blanco, a career .261 hitter, is enjoying a fantastic start to his fifth major league season, hitting .304/.357/.406 with 25 runs scored and nine stolen bases.

Twenty-six-year-old rookie Juan Perez should also get more time. 

Nevertheless, while the Giants have options to fill in for Pagan, this potential season-long injury hurts their depth. As such, expect them to be buyers once the trade deadline rolls around at the end of July.