Giants' Blanco in line to replace Cabrera
Manager Bruce Bochy praised Gregor Blanco, who snapped out of his 0-for-21 funk with a 2-for-4 afternoon.
"Blanco swung the bat better today," Bochy said. "We have a pretty good player here who did a lot to get this club going. He's had his struggles the last three weeks and lost playing time. When things like this happened, you have to step up, and hopefully Gregor is one of those guys who'll take advantage of the playing time he's going to get."
For now, Blanco is the new left fielder after Melky Cabrera was suspended 50 games for testing positive for testosterone, a performance-enhancing drug.
Cabrera was in Bochy's original lineup. Once the Commissioner's Office notified the Giants about the suspension, Bochy put Blanco in left and made Pablo Sandoval the No. 3 hitter.
Justin Christian was the last outfielder used from the current Class AAA Fresno roster, so he could be called up. Or first baseman Brett Pill. Or outfielder Xavier Nady, recently signed off the scrap heap.
A stretch is Gary Brown, the club's best hitting prospect, who's at Class AA Richmond. All along, the Giants have looked at September as the earliest they'd call him up.
Does the Cabrera suspension change that?
Bochy and GM Brian Sabean were to talk about options. The Giants need to add two players before Friday's game in San Diego. Not only to replace Cabrera but reliever Dan Otero, who was optioned after Wednesday's 6-4 loss to the Nationals.
Sabean could also make a trade, but only if a player clears options. Or he could claim a player off waivers, as he did with Cody Ross in 2010.
One option could have been Fresno's Roger Kieschnick, but he's shelved with an injury.
Either way, the Giants won't be as solid without their .346 hitter (second in the league) and All-Star MVP.
"Ultimately, it was a bad decision," Buster Posey said of Cabrera's choice to use PEDs.
Posey added, "Every team, whether it's an injury or not, you're going to lose guys during the year. So we have to approach the rest of the year with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder and give everything we've got."
