Giants Injury Update: Carlos Beltran, Second Coming of Pierzynski May Head to DL

I was ridiculed by San Francisco Giants fans a few weeks ago for my sneaking suspicion that the Carlos Beltran trade may ultimately be viewed as a disaster—or at least a non-factor—in the same light as Sidney Ponson or A.J. Pierzynski.

I had spoken with more than one Giants fan who remembered the impact Fred McGriff had on the Atlanta Braves' 1993 season, wherein the Giants (who won 103 games) lost the division by one game to the Atlanta Braves (who won 104 games), thereby missing the playoffs. 

These fans had hope that Carlos Beltran would be Fred McGriff's second incarnation. Instead, the Philadelphia Phillies' acquisition of Hunter Pence seems to mirror McGriff's contribution, and most rational Giants fans with whom I have spoken are at the very least skeptical that Beltran will contribute in a particularly meaningful way throughout the remainder of the season. 

Part of this skepticism hinges on Beltran's right-hand injury, as Mark J. Miller of Yahoo! Sports reports, 

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"X-rays and an MRI ruled out any fractures or other structural damage, but Beltran was unable to swing when he tried Wednesday," the Post reports. And Giants manager Bruce Bochy "acknowledged that Beltran could be headed to the disabled list if he" isn't in the lineup Friday night."

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As such, the Giants would stand to lose at least two more weeks from their investment, meaning that—discounting Beltran's already unspectacular results—Zack Wheeler was essentially traded for one month's worth of Carlos Beltran (September). 

Chalk it up to another front office failure. Granted, Beltran was injury prone, but the Giants could never have expected only a .616 OPS from the former slugger. Some might argue that he will eventually turn his season around. This injury suggests otherwise. 

Forget about October. At the rate this team is playing, with their offense getting progressively worse (which I didn't believe was possible) while their pitching indicates late season fatigue, there will not be October baseball in San Francisco.