SF Giants starter Tristan Beck diagnosed with aneurysm in upper arm

The SF Giants will be without right-handed pitcher Tristan Beck on Opening Day after he was diagnosed with an aneurysm in his arm.

The SF Giants had sent right-handed pitcher Tristan Beck back to San Francisco earlier this week with numbness in his right hand. According to a team press release on Thursday, Beck has been diagnosed with an aneurysm in his upper arm and will be taking the next few days to make a decision about the next steps in his treatment.

rSF Giants starting pitcher Tristan Beck pitches the ball against Atlanta. (2023) / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

"Tristan Beck (vascular injury) was diagnosed with an aneurysm in his upper arm," per the team release. "He was seen at Stanford by a vascular specialist. Beck will weigh his treatment options over the next few days."

It's an incredibly unfortunate development for Beck, who has seen his development stunted by injuries dating back to his collegiate career at Stanford, when he was unable to build on an impressive freshman season because of a stress-fracture in his back that sidelined him for his entire sophomore campaign.

It is not entirely unheard of for a professional pitcher to deal with an aneurysm in their arm. David Cone missed the majority of the 1996 with an aneurysm in his arm, but returned to his pre-injury form from 1997-1999.

In 2021, Kohei Arihara was diagnosed with an arm aneurysm in his first big-league season and missed close to four months of action before returning to the field. Arihara would never find consistent success in the majors and was ultimately designated for assignment the following year and has since returned to Nippon Professional Baseball. However, it's hard to gauge whether his struggles were a result of the injury or not since he had just made the transition stateside.

Beck is coming off a promising rookie season with the Giants. While former manager Gabe Kapler seemed hesitant to give Beck a chance as a traditional starter, Beck was an effective swingman and finished the season with a 3.92 ERA (3.99 FIP) with 65 strikeouts and 21 walks in 85 MLB innings pitched. This year, the table was set for Beck to compete for a spot in the Giants rotation.

Now, that is up in the air. Manager Bob Melvin told reporters on Thursday that Beck will not be ready for the start of the season, and hinted at a more prolonged absence, per Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle.

Melvin says Beck isn’t expected to be back for the start of the season and could miss quite a bit of time. The other options are being evaluated, and he mentions Hjelle as a possibility much as he likes him in the long man role.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) February 29, 2024

With Winn, Beck, and other young pitchers sidelined, it's worth wondering if the Giants would return to the free agent market for a more proven option. While the team seems high on minor-league free agent signing Daulton Jefferies, he remains quite unproven. 

Moreover, it was reported earlier this week that the SF Giants have remained engaged in negotiations with reigning National League Cy Young winner Blake Snell (#6-ranked free agent), who is still a free agent. Other starters on the open market, like Jordan Montgomery (#5-ranked free agent) and Michael Lorenzen (#36-ranked free agent), could help solidify the rotation as well.