SEPT. 4: The problem that requires surgery is chronic compartment syndrome in Melancon’s forearm pronator muscle, according to Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News. That has left him with a persistent feeling of tightness in the elbow joint, Baggarly explains, which a surgical procedure will relieve.
Melancon suggests he is hoping to wait until the season is over to go under the knife, though he notes it’s “literally day to day” as to when it’ll take place. (Basically, it seems, he’ll keep pitching unless the problem isn’t allowing him to do so regularly and tolerably.) The fairly unusual procedure is expected to require a two- to three-month layoff, so Melancon ought to be ready to go next spring regardless of when the surgery occurs.
SEPT. 1: Giants reliever Mark Melancon is likely to undergo forearm surgery relatively soon, manager Bruce Bochy told reporters including John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). It is not yet clear exactly when Melancon will stop pitching this year.
It still isn’t even known precisely what procedure the veteran righty is contemplating, beyond the fact that it’s to address a longstanding issue to his forearm. But Bochy said the recovery time is expected to be from six to eight weeks.
While the club isn’t concerned that Melancon could further injure himself by continuing to throw, it also wants to ensure that he has plenty of time to get healthy and ramp back up next spring. After all, the team has a long-term interest to protect and isn’t going anywhere in 2017. In the meantime, Sam Dyson will likely continue to operate as the close.
Melancon is under contract for three more years and $38MM after the end of the current season. There’s an opt-out opportunity after 2018, though at present that seems unlikely to be taken.
San Francisco will hope that Melancon can not only stay off the DL in 2018 and beyond but also that he can improve upon his current 3.95 ERA. He allowed just 1.80 earned per nine over the prior four seasons, setting up the big contract despite his relatively advanced age.
It is encouraging, at least, that Melancon has continued to post similar strikeout-to-walk (8.6 K/9 vs. 1.7 BB/9) and groundball (54.2%) numbers to those he carried in recent years. He has surrendered a few more hits (.358 BABIP-against) and homers (0.99 HR/9; 14.3% HR/FB) than is typical, helping to explain the difference in the bottom-line results.
Get it done ✅Mark obviously wants to help his team and that is everyone’s goal here. ⚾️ Praying they can get in there and find what’s hurting him.
Melancon is owed $53 million through 2020.
Wow that is money spent… Surely the Giants new the player was not 100% healthy… What do the care, right?
“Fairly unusual” is right Jeff. I have never heard of a Baseball player getting “forearm” surgery. TJ surgery yes. Even Torn Labrum Surgery (which sucks) but I’ve never heard of forearm surgery for pitchers.
Anyone here got any comps? It Doesn’t sound that serious just wierd and uncommon.
If I’m not mistaken Kyle Lohse had basically the same issue and had surgery to alleviate the condition.
Do it now…. our season is over. Don’t understand the delay. It would give him time to rehab……
Yeah it really makes no sense at all that he is continuing to pitch
The Giants have zero reason not to have him in the OR tomorrow. Season has been lost for months at this point. Hope they have insurance on that contract.
Good luck, Mark. Your friends in Pittsburgh are rooting for you.
The season’s been over for a while. Why not get it done asap and allow for more time to heal before next season.
With the Giants out of any shot at the playoffs it makes more sense for Melancon to have the surgery asap.
No reason at all to have him continue to pitch. Get it done ASAP, it just leaves that much more time for rehab. Another GREAT move by Bobby Evans!!
Reminds me of the horrible deal we gave Rowand some years back. He wants to play hero, but what is he saving us from…losing 100 games??
Evans and Sabean need to wake up and realize that we need offense. Will Smith will be back next year, hopefully adding stability to a desperate need. Crick looks good out of the pen in what I’ve seen, but he could be in the mix for rotation.
IMO Suarez, Crick, Gearrin, Smith, Dyson would be a solid 5 in our pen. Osich, Okert, Strickland, and Melancon all need to go. Maybe we could flip Melancon for a solid bullpen piece that’s maybe in AA or AAA right now — I’d rather roll the dice with a rookie with some potential vs. watching these current clowns.
In free agency, I think we should target Moustakas. We need 3B and power, he is both. I think we can get him with a contract similar to that of Pence. And on the trade market, what about a one for one Strickland for Grichuk swap??
Another option, would be to look across the bay and see if the A’s would flip us Khris Davis. The asking price would be most likely a little high, but they need to look at everything for offense.
I think Melancon is fine, but Suarez hasn’t been great.
I’m going to disagree. Melancon currently sports a 3.99 ERA more than 1.30 higher than his career average. In 29.1 innings he has looked anything but the closer who got the 4/64 deal last winter.
Idk currently how many blown saves he has, but currently he’s making just under 10mil this year. Dyson meanwhile has seen a resurgence under Righetti. Not saying Melancon is awful, but it was a very stupid move to spend that kind of money on a closer not named Mariano Rivera.
Suarez has not had a good year for us. What makes him invaluable is he can come out of the bullpen, but also spot start when needed. Remember Suarez is much younger than Melancon, far cheaper, and even though he has an awful 5.61 ERA currently, he’s averaging 10.5 K/9.
And if I’m not mistaken Suarez has 25.2 IP this year. Far from ideal sure, but he has good stuff. Melancon is known for his control, which in all honesty has not been all that great this year. He likes to pitch to contact, and the rest of the NL thus far has had no problem handling him.
I think the Giants will be a lot better off if we could find some sucker to take that contract off of our hands. I would say Boston, but he already bombed out there too. Outside of this season, that was the worst of his career.
Why would a team take on Melancons salary this offseason without knowing how he’ll pitch after surgery and coming off a bad year while also giving up an MLB ready AA pen arm?
They won’t. It’s wishful thinking.
It would be nice if they could accomplish acquiring offense via trade. And I think your point about the bullpen is true, though I don’t know about Strickland for Grichuck. I think he stays with the Giants unless a better package presents itself. But productive outfielders should be priority.
I think a Strickland for Grichuk swap could work. St. Louis has a log jam in the outfield and a bunch of top prospects currently in the minors. Fowler I think is safe, and based on what they have, Grichuk and Piscotty look like the odd men out to me.
I say Grichuk because he has decent power and would fit nicely IMO at AT&T Park. Could plug gap in LF. Sabean/Evans had great success earlier in the decade. But the rest of the league has not only caught up to SF — but bypassed in a lot of ways.
I think that we could fill Stricklands role from within. Personally I would kind of like to see them call up Ray Black to fill that role and see what he’s got. For as atrocious as the pen has been, our offense is the laughingstock of the league.
Hopefully they will realize that Parker is a bench player, Hernandez is a late inning defensive replacement, and Williamson is a minor-leaguer. We have no viable options in the house in the minors when it comes to outfield production.
Insightful, and I agree, for the most part. I guess I see Strickland as a potentially better reliever than Grichuck is an OFer, but maybe my perspective is wrong. Relievers are much less predictable, anyhow. I guess I’d hate to see them lose on a trade involving Strickland, given the current trends in bullpen usage and the rising cost of quality relief pitching.
I definitely see where you are coming from… To me Strickland needs a change of scenery as does SF. Grichuk has power that translates to the park, and would be a viable 20-25 HR option in LF at a fraction of what the impending OF FA class is going to cost.
I’d love to get JD Martinez as well, but he’s going to paid. I’m not sure if with our commitments to Melancon and a few others if ownership wants to balloon payroll.
I would advocate getting Moustakas as our priority this off-season. Fills two needs in 3B and power, also I think we can get him on a contract similar to Pence’s 5/90.
Whatever we do this year, nobody knows at this point. But we DEFINITELY need an overhaul of some kind.
Stop hurting yourself and get the surgery ASAP.
It’s amusing how these doctors invent these type of injuries/surgeries and all of you gobble it. I guess surgery and pills fixes everything right, gang?
You know for a fact that the injuries are made up? Not like the good old days, right? Yeah back in the early 70’s and priior. guys quit pitching because the had “dead arms”. Back then, all anyone knew was that they guys arm hurt and could not throw as hard or with as much “stuff” anymore. It is called medical advancements.roadapple.. Just like cancer diagnosis and treatment. They can diagnose stuff better and have developed ways to treat it know. Guess you would be the one who would want to tough out the cancer and beat the disease that way instead of surgery, chemo, and radiation that is actually beating the illness.
@roadapple Don’t take this the wrong way but are you the type of guy who sleeps with money stuffed in his mattress because you don’t trust banks?
I personally, marvel at modern medicine.
Sounds like Melancon is getting a fasciotomy and that’s not an “unusual procedure” at all. It’s rather common among athletes whose sport puts heavy workout loads on their forearms and hands, e.g. motorcycle and MTB downhill racers. MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa is known for struggling with compartment syndrome that required multiple surgeries. The syndrome, also known as “arm pump”, is caused by a tight grip around the handlebars while constantly pulling brake and clutch levers with one’s fingers. Centrifugal forces of pitching can also cause those symptoms.
Interesting, thanks for the info.