SAN FRANCISCO – Pitchers Matt Cain and Jeremy Affeldt, both on the mend from injuries, will head to Arizona to continue rehabbing as the Giants hit the road for a nine-game road trip starting Monday.
Cain went on the DL for the first time in his career Friday with a forearm contusion. There’s no plan yet for him to start throwing, according to manager Bruce Bochy.
Affeldt, nearing a return from a groin injury, came out of Saturday’s throwing session fine. He will throw off the mound Monday at the team’s minor league complex in Scottsdale. If that goes well, Bochy said the reliever could face hitters in San Diego when the Giants play a three-game set against the Padres starting Sept. 2, then perhaps be activated after that.
Similar to what Bochy said about center fielder Angel Pagan, the manager thinks it’s important for Affeldt to pitch in the majors before the season ends.
“I think it’s going to be important to him get back on the mound, have a good September and go into the offseason with a good frame of mind,” Bochy said. “It’s been an up-and-down year for him with injuries, some occasional struggles too. We want to get this right, have these guys in the right frame of mind as we go into next year.”
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Pagan will take Sunday off after playing nine innings for Triple-A Fresno on Saturday. The plan remains to activate the center fielder Sept. 1.
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Buster Posey is hitting third Sunday with Brandon Belt in the cleanup spot. With leadoff man Marco Scutaro getting the day off, and left-handed hitting Gregor Blanco and Brandown Crawford hitting 1-2, Bochy said he liked the idea of slotting the right-handed hitting Posey in the third spot.
