Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Austin Slater and Steven Duggar are riding different kinds of roller-coasters this year.
Slater has hit another nadir, being placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday, as the well-traveled Duggar is recalled from Sacramento to replace the outfielder.
Slater has a left groin strain, Gabe Kapler announced before the Giants took on the Diamondbacks at Oracle Park. The manager said he is “optimistic that this isn’t too long term,” but an outfielder who first had a flexor strain in his right (throwing) elbow now has a groin issue.
“It’s tough,” Kapler said before his Giants went for a fifth straight win. “I felt really bad for Slater, obviously he just worked so hard to keep his body in peak physical condition, and I know how frustrating it is to have one injury and then be almost all the way back and ready to be in the lineup. There’s a possibility that he would have been in the lineup on defense for us tonight.
“And then to have something else happen, it’s tough for the club, but even tougher for Slater.”
The outfielder has played like a star this year, slashing .347/.458/.653 in 59 plate appearances, but has not been able to stay healthy in his breakout season thus far. Slater sustained the injury Friday while advancing from second to third on a play that required a lot of starts and stops, a ball that seemed as if it would be caught dropping instead.
Duggar, meanwhile has not been able to stay in one place, being flipped back and forth from the alternate site as the Giants have traded defensive outfielders for additional relief arms and back again.