Matt Cain said there’s no need for widespread panic over his
inflamed right elbow, which forced him to skip his start Thursday
afternoon. As distressing as the injury to Cain might be, a speck
of good might be coming out of it. Ryan Vogelsong not only replaced
Cain ably, but also dominated over three hitless innings, and the
non-roster right-hander has emerged as a legitimate candidate to
make the staff as a long reliever or
— should the need arise — as a rotation replacement.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.
Matt Cain said there’s no need for widespread panic over his inflamed right elbow, which forced him to skip his start Thursday afternoon.
As distressing as the injury to Cain might be, a speck of good might be coming out of it. Ryan Vogelsong not only replaced Cain ably, but also dominated over three hitless innings, and the non-roster right-hander has emerged as a legitimate candidate to make the staff as a long reliever or — should the need arise — as a rotation replacement.
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The 33-year-old already feels validated this spring while he wears a Giants uniform for the first time in nearly 10 years. In July 2001, the club sent Vogelsong to the Pittsburgh Pirates along with outfielder Armando Rios for ace right-hander Jason Schmidt — a deal that still ranks among GM Brian Sabean’s biggest career coups.
Pittsburgh might be baseball Siberia, but Vogelsong had to travel longer and further after washing out with the Pirates in 2006. He pitched three seasons in Japan, then trekked to Venezuela this winter to find the consistency that always had eluded him.
“The numbers didn’t show it, but I really felt I was pitching better toward the end of last year,” said Vogelsong, who was released from the Phillies’ Triple-A club in July and then caught on with the Angels’ Triple-A team.
“That’s why I went to winter ball. I felt I was on the verge of jumping that hump, and I ended up putting together the best two months of my career.”
Under the surface of a 4.81 ERA at his two Triple-A stops last year, Vogelsong struck out 110 in 95 1/3 innings. He’s never had a problem missing bats. But his whole career had been a mix of good and poor outings, the bad ones littered by walks and deep counts.
“My stuff plays. It’s always played,” said Vogelsong. “Now I’m trying to quiet everything down and stay focused on every pitch. It’s real exciting. I’ve said to a couple guys, ‘I feel comfortable again.’ I feel like I’m supposed to be here.”
Vogelsong sawed off the bats of Arizona’s Xavier Nady and Russell Branyan while tossing two scoreless innings Saturday; during his three clean innings Thursday, he struck out two Rockies and walked one.
“He threw well — really well — both times,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “We have to give him innings and he’s earning them, too.”
—Cain still hopes he’ll miss just one start, but admitted he hadn’t picked up a baseball since waking up with elbow discomfort on Monday. His fastball was consistently at 91 mph during his two-inning exhibition debut on Sunday.
He said he hadn’t dealt with any elbow issues beyond normal soreness since he had a stress fracture as a 19-year-old in the minor leagues.
Cain is on anti-inflammatories and said he already feels improvement. He didn’t chalk up the elbow issue to his workload last season, which included 21 1/3 scoreless innings in the postseason.
“It just happens sometimes. You get some irritation,” he said. “I don’t think this has anything to do with last year.”
—Brian Wilson (lower back) didn’t hold back during an impressive batting practice session against Aubrey Huff, Mark DeRosa and others, and pitching coach Dave Righetti said the bearded closer probably would make his exhibition debut Sunday.
—Buster Posey hit his first home run of the spring, and he got all of it. The ball landed in the third tier of the center field batter’s eye, at least 450 feet away.
—Jeff Suppan will start the afternoon home game against the Milwaukee Brewers, while Barry Zito will start for the night squad against the Dodgers at Glendale.
— Story by Andrew Baggarly, San Jose Mercury News
