San Francisco Giants pitcher Jeff Samardzija injured his shoulder. He will be getting an MRI and is likely to start the season on the DL, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic.
Samardzija has had a rough spring thus far. In 11 innings, he allowed 15 runs, 13 earned, walked seven and struck out seven. Pitching in Arizona in the spring is as tough as it is, leading to his 10.64 ERA and 2.182 WHIP.
This is a huge blow to the Giants’ rotation. As Baggarly pointed out in his tweet, the back end of the rotation is unproven. What’s maybe even more important is that the Giants’ top two pitchers are coming of injury filled seasons. Madison Bumgarner had his shoulder injury and Johnny Cueto dealt with blister problems.
While Bumgarner has looked fantastic so far this spring, Cueto has continued his struggles, which is why Samardzija was going to be so important for the Giants this season.
While his counting numbers haven’t looked so good his first two years in San Francisco, he has been a workhorse. He has gone over 200 innings both seasons, and his strikeout-to-walk numbers have been very solid.
Baggarly also noted that Derek Holland is likely to take Samardzija’s rotation spot.
The Giants’ rotation looked like it could have been one of the best in the league if it panned out, but without Samardzija it makes that a lot more difficult.