Giants' key injuries bring Matos to Giants roster

ST. LOUIS -- The Giants lost two key players in the span of two pitches in an 11-3 win over the Cardinals on Tuesday night at Busch Stadium. At least one will be down for quite a while.

Left fielder Mitch Haniger suffered a fractured right forearm after being struck by an 88.8 mph sinker from Cards right-hander Jack Flaherty in the third inning, while third baseman J.D. Davis exited with a right ankle sprain after sliding awkwardly into third base.

The Giants didn’t offer a timetable for Haniger’s return, but the 32-year-old veteran was placed on the injured list on Wednesday. It’s unclear if Davis will need an IL stint, though he said he could put weight on his ankle and only felt discomfort in certain situations.

Manager Gabe Kapler said after the game that hot-hitting outfield prospect Luis Matos and infielder David Villar were on their way to St. Louis after being pulled from Triple-A Sacramento’s game at Sugar Land, Texas. Both were activated on Wednesday for the series finale as San Francisco seeks a three-game sweep.

And with Haniger likely to miss significant time, the Giants promoted Matos, who is batting .398 with a 1.120 OPS and seven home runs over 24 games with the River Cats, on Wednesday. The 21-year-old Venezuelan, who is ranked as the club’s No. 4 prospect by MLB Pipeline, has homered six times in the past six games.

“Obviously, Matos has been swinging the bat really well,” Kapler said. “It’s an exciting moment for the organization. Obviously, it comes on the heels of something that was really disappointing in the Haniger injury, but certainly we’re excited to see what Matos can bring to the table when he’s ultimately making his debut for us.”

The injuries to Haniger and Davis cast a pall over an eventful evening for the Giants, who pounded out 17 hits -- including back-to-back home runs by Mike Yastrzemski and Patrick Bailey in the sixth -- to win their second straight over the last-place Cardinals and climb to a season-high three games over .500 at 35-32.

The game also featured a fourth-inning spat between Flaherty and first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr., as well as an impressive pitching performance by prospect Keaton Winn, who fired four innings of one-run ball to become the first Giants pitcher to earn a save in his Major League debut since saves became an official stat in 1969.

"It’s very unfortunate to have me and Haniger go down, but at the same time, props to Casey [Schmitt] and [Blake] Sabol, they came in, they got a couple of hits and they kept the train rolling,” Davis said.

“The offense didn’t miss a beat.”

Still, it will be difficult to erase the sting of losing Haniger, a Bay Area native who was the Giants’ top free-agent addition after signing a three-year, $43.5 million deal in the offseason.

“It’s definitely disappointing,” Haniger said. “Injuries are part of the game. At the same time, I’ve just got to focus on what’s next and focus on the recovery process and getting back out there and helping this team win.

“I’ve been back from a lot worse, so I know I’ll be back better than ever.”

Haniger immediately grimaced in pain after taking Flaherty’s pitch off the right forearm in his second plate appearance. Haniger walked off the field accompanied by team trainer Dave Groeschner.

X-rays later confirmed the fracture, which will send Haniger to the IL for a second time this season.

Haniger also missed the first 21 games of the season with a left oblique strain that he sustained during Spring Training. He’s batting .230 with a .653 OPS and four home runs over 40 games this season, though he had begun to show signs of regaining his timing at the plate in recent games.

“Super challenging,” Kapler said. “We all know how difficult it was for him to come back from the oblique injury that he had in Spring Training. He put all that work in in the offseason to get ready for spring. Came in feeling good and feeling strong. He had a little bit of a setback with that oblique injury and then here we are.

“He worked so hard to get back and he was just starting to get on a roll. He was starting to swing the bat good and feel good. This is a pretty big gut punch for Mitch and for our club.”