Notes: Gausman, Beck, injury news

Over a crisp, efficient two innings, right-hander Kevin Gausman completed his first Cactus League outing on Friday without incident, a first step toward taking the mound as the Giants’ Opening Day starter.

That particular bit of information hasn’t yet been announced, of course. But Gausman was arguably the Giants’ best starter in 2020 and, if he pitches every five days through the rest of Spring Training, his turn in the rotation would land on the same day as the Giants are slated to open the season in Seattle on April 1. That’s probably not a coincidence.

But first things first. Pitching for the first time at Scottsdale Stadium after an 18-pitch simulated game a few days earlier, Gausman was sharp in his spring debut, a 9-8 Giants win over the Rockies in eight innings. He struck out Ryan McMahon in the first on a 97 mph fastball, and after yielding a second-inning double to Josh Fuentes, Gausman wrapped up his Cactus League debut on a Brendan Rodgers lineout, resulting in a double play.

“To be honest I wasn't as sharp as I've been. I missed some fastball locations,” he said, pointing to the pitch to Fuentes. “But other than that, I felt pretty good.”

The matchup with the Rockies also gave Gausman his first exposure to working with catcher Buster Posey. Because Posey elected not to play in ’20, the two veteran batterymates did not cross paths until this year.

“We kind of joked earlier in the morning -- ‘Hey, you’re finally catching me,’ and he's like, ‘Well, you're finally in a game,’” Gausman said. “It's always good to have him back there.”

Beck on deck

One full calendar year ago, the world was in the process of essentially closing, baseball was put on hold, and hundreds of Minor Leaguers would soon learn that their seasons would not be played.

Today, many of those Minor Leaguers are in big league camp, not only making up for lost time but enjoying every moment of their exposure to the very place they hope to reside with some permanency not too far in the future.

Count right-hander Tristan Beck as one of those players. Listed as the club’s No. 20 prospect by MLB Pipeline, Beck, who was acquired from the Braves in the Mark Melancon trade in '19, is enjoying the structure and inclusiveness of big league Spring Training after having to mostly fend for himself last year. He did not train at the Giants’ alternate training site, so between baseball’s shutdown and reporting to instructional league camp that fall, Beck was on his own.

He spent that time living with his family in Corona, Calif., working out in a home gym with his younger brother, a college pitcher.

“We had a throwing corner all summer,” Beck said. “I was able to do some really good work. I was really happy with the stuff I was able to get accomplished, [under] the circumstances.”

By the time he got to instructional league, he was happy with where he was physically, having felt he didn’t lose much with the lack of the structured environment an organization can offer for prospects.

“I was feeling good to where I showed up at instructs and was able to just hit the ground running,” Beck said. “I felt like I made some really significant strides there to take into the next four months this last offseason. I was just kind of focusing on a couple different things mechanically, trying to just feel myself get stronger and stay lean. I showed up feeling great.”

Injury updates

After Friday’s game, manager Gabe Kapler gave the following health updates:

First baseman Brandon Belt, sidelined with a non-COVID illness, hit on the field and ran on the treadmill at a high pace -- around 17 mph.

Right-handed reliever Dedniel Núñez had wrist pain during his outing Friday and was removed for precautionary reasons.

Non-roster outfielder Luis Alexander Basabe saw a hand specialist on Friday and was diagnosed with a moderate wrist sprain. He'll be put in a cast for two weeks and will be sidelined for approximately six to eight weeks.

Coming up

The Giants will host the Indians at Scottsdale Stadium on Saturday, beginning at 12:05 p.m. PT. Right-hander Logan Webb will take the hill for the Giants. The Indians will counter with righty Zach Plesac.