Giants' Bochy hopeful MadBum can return in early June
San Francisco Giants ace Madison Bumgarner had three pins surgically inserted in his hand on Saturday after being struck by a comebacker.
The big lefty won't be able to begin throwing until the pins are removed in four-to-six weeks. Manager Bruce Bochy confirmed Bumgarner could miss two months.
"I'm hoping by early June, he'll be pitching for us," Bochy said, according to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Normally a lock to throw 200-plus innings, this is now the second consecutive season where the southpaw has been forced to miss considerable time due to an unlucky injury.
Losing Bumgarner is one thing, but losing him in addition to Jeff Samardzija is another level of misery for the Giants.
Related: Bumgarner, Samardzija injuries are death blow for Giants
San Fransisco won't need a fifth starter until April 10 due to off days, and Bochy told Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area that he hopes the spot will only come up two or three times before Samardzija is ready to return.
Right-hander Tyler Beede could get the call in a pinch as he is on the 40-man roster. Beede, who enters the season listed as the Giants' fourth-best prospect by MLB Pipeline, went 6-7 with a 4.79 ERA over 19 Triple-A starts in 2017.