The Giants announced a series of plays ahead of today’s contest with the Rockies. infielder Tommy LaStella was reinstated from 10-day injured list with outfielder Luis Gonzalez Option to Triple-A Sacramento in a corresponding active roster turn (via Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle). San Francisco also selected relievers Mauricio Llovera and optional Yunior Marte. To make room on the 40-man list for Llovera, starter Anthony DeSclafani was transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day casualty list.
La Stella is in the lineup as the designated hitter tonight, setting him up for his debut of the season. The left-hander slammed a three-year deal in the 2020-21 off-season and suffered a couple of injuries in his debut season at San Francisco. La Stella missed a few months due to a left hamstring strain and then a right hand fracture. Later in the season he was disabled by pain in his left Achilles tendon and underwent surgery at the end of October.
Recovery from that procedure lasted well into the regular season, costing La Stella the first five weeks of the year. Now that he’s back, he’ll likely slip into a regular second base role. La Stella hit a .250/.308/.405 line in 242 plate appearances in his first season as a Giant, but he had put up an excellent .281/.370/.449 mark in virtually the same season during the shortened Campaign 2020. Finally, as one of the best contact hitters in the game, La Stella could be a top-of-the-lineup tablesetter for skipper Gabe Kapler. His imminent return undoubtedly played a role in the Giants’ decision to sell Utilityman Maurice Dubon to Houston over the weekend.
Llovera is back at the Oberliga club for the second time this season. The former Phillies reserve signed a minor-league contract over the winter and was selected in late April while the team was dealing with COVID-19 concerns. He appeared in four games and worked as many innings, allowing one run while striking out five without a walk. Despite solid work, Llovera lost his 40-man squad spot as the club recovered.
The 26-year-old’s first call-up came as a designated COVID surrogate, meaning the team was able to bring him back to Sacramento without putting him through waivers. That’s not the case this time, suggesting the Giants plan to keep him on the 40-man roster even longer. That’s understandable after Llovera pitched 12 2/3 innings in the minors and fanned 17 batters against a pair of walks. Llovera still has one minor league option year left, so he can still flip back and forth between San Francisco and Sacramento while retaining a 40-man roster spot.
DeSclafani originally landed on the 10-Day IL on April 22 while battling a right ankle infection. Today’s transfer keeps him out of MLB action for sixty days from that date, meaning he won’t be returning to an Oracle Park mound until at least late June. The move comes as a bit of a surprise as the right-hander had moved to hill work during his recovery last week.
Kapler emphasized that DeSclafani didn’t suffer a setback (via MLB.com’s Maria Guardado). Rather, the club only appear to be committing to a cautious rehab for the 32-year-old, who they re-signed on a three-year deal in the off-season. DeSclafani threw 167 2/3 innings with 3.17 ERA balls last season.