San Francisco Giants Seem Poised to Get Reinforcements Back Soon

Three San Francisco Giants players have begun their rehab assignments as the team begins to get healthy.

May 7, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; San Francisco Giants left fielder Michael Conforto (8) hits an RBI single in the seventh inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. / Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

The San Francisco Giants have been bitten by the injury bug all season long, most recently placing shortstop Marco Luciano on the injured list.

However, as they try to climb up the Wild Card standings, help is on the way in the form of three players who have begun rehab assignments.

Nick Ahmed, who hit the IL on May 10 with a wrist injury, had been the everyday shortstop and was playing excellent defensively as usual. The two-time Gold Glover has produced four outs above average at short before going down. At the plate, he had struggled, but the Giants brought him in for his glove, not his bat.

His 67 OPS+ had him in the nine hole everyday, but he did come up with more than one clutch hit.

With Luciano out, Ahmed coming back to lock down the shortstop position will help on the defensive side. He is a set it and forget it type of defender and can provide stability until Luciano gets healthy. This will also give their star rookie a chance to work on his own defense at the position.

Austin Slater is also on his way back after suffering a concussion on May 11. He had been having a down year at the plate, hitting just .128 with no extra base hits in his 49 plate appearances as a platoon bat.

If he is indeed healthy, he will likely return to his role as the fourth outfielder, spelling Luis Matos every once and a while. Slater has been penciled in at center against lefties for the past few seasons, and while that seems to be Matos' job at this point, he could very well be a bench bat to face those left-handers.

Finally, Michael Conforto is eyeing his return.

Prior to his injury, the outfielder had been one of the steadiest hitters for San Francisco. In 38 games, he had posted an .821 OPS and 139 OPS+ with seven home runs.

He will return to an outfield that is still crowded, but the way that he was hitting before the injury, Conforto will no doubt be an everyday starter again.

All three played in Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday, with only Slater getting hits, but Conforto drew a walk.

Their returns will mean difficult decisions for the Giants.

With an already crowded roster, they will likely have to send players down who were just called up. For example, it would not be surprising to see both Tyler Fitzgerald and Casey Schmitt sent down to make room.

Schmitt was brought back after the Luciano injury, but Brett Wisely's hot streak will keep him on the team. As for Fitzgerald, there will not be enough room in the outfield to keep him on the roster at this point.

Trenton Brooks could be a casualty of the mass return, as well, leaving Wilmer Flores to take over full first base duties.

While San Francisco will have some tough choices to make, the return of three players marks the start of this team getting healthy again.

With Conforto back, who was one of their best hitters before the injury, their lineup will be getting stronger, as well as their defense.