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Already-depleted Giants lose two additional key players in loss to Red Sox
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- Already-depleted Giants lose two additional key players in loss to Red Sox
Already-depleted Giants lose two additional key players in loss to Red Sox originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
BOSTON — Bruce Bochy used to call it his "bomb squad." When the Giants would face prime Clayton Kershaw , Bochy would use as many right-handed backups as he could, figuring that they had as good a shot as anybody.
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Tony Vitello might want to check in with Bochy on the flight home, because Monday's game might be beyond a bomb squad.
Vitello already was down to four regulars in his lineup, but he lost another in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Red Sox , along with a young bench bat. Willy Adames left the loss with a left elbow injury and Victor Bericoto departed a few minutes later with a right knee injury. Both will get MRIs when the Giants return to San Francisco on Monday.
The initial news for Bericoto was at least positive. He had a noticeable limp after the game, but said team doctors think he escaped serious injury.
Bericoto was chasing a flyball down the left field line when a fan reached over and interfered. He tried to turn so that he wouldn't get hit by a ricochet and his right leg gave out. After lying on the dirt for several minutes, Bericoto limped back to the dugout.
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"I thought I had damaged my knee really badly," he said through interpreter Erwin Higueros. "I felt (really bad) pain."
Non-contact knee injuries can lead to serious injuries for position players, but Bericoto was pleased with the initial diagnosis. The MRI is to make sure there isn't some injury that wasn't apparent at Fenway Park on Sunday.
For Adames, there's a bit less clarity. His left arm hit the dirt hard on a slide into the plate in the first inning and it got worse as the game went on. He departed after striking out in the fifth.
"The last at-bat, I felt it," Adames said. "It was more painful then."
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In a cruel twist, Adames said his back — which cost him four games recently — had actually started to feel a lot better. He homered on Saturday and had a single in the first inning Sunday before getting hurt.
At the very least, the Giants figure to be without Adames and Bericoto on Monday against the Cincinnati Reds . Bericoto did not look like someone who will escape even a short IL stint, but Adames said it's too soon to tell if he'll finally land on the IL.
The Giants already are without Matt Chapman , Casey Schmitt , Harrison Bader and Daniel Susac , and they traded Luis Arraez and Heliot Ramos earlier this month. Marcelo Mayer could be an option, but it's unclear when he will be ready to go after pausing his rehab assignment with a bone bruise in his foot.
Nate Furman, Shay Whitcomb and Grant McCray are the healthy position players left on the 40-man. The Giants also could start to add others; outfielder Bo Davidson has been red-hot and was pushing for a September promotion anyway. The staff will try and sort it all out before taking the field Monday.
"That kind of year, huh?" Adames said, shaking his head. "Unbelievable."
