SAN FRANCISCO -- Two days after activating third baseman Matt Chapman, the Giants welcomed another key infielder back into the fold.
Casey Schmitt was reinstated from the injured list on Monday after missing 10 games with left wrist inflammation, with Tyler Fitzgerald heading back to Triple-A Sacramento in a corresponding move.
Schmitt, who batted sixth and started at second base, made an instant impact in his return to the lineup, knocking in the go-ahead run in the Giants’ 3-1 win over the Phillies in Monday night’s series opener at Oracle Park.
The game was tied, 1-1, before San Francisco’s starting infield teamed up to key the decisive rally against Philadelphia reliever Orion Kerkering in the bottom of the eighth inning. Shortstop Willy Adames and first baseman Wilmer Flores were hit by pitches, and Chapman singled to load the bases with no outs for Schmitt, who grounded into a forceout that scored Adames from third.
The Giants (50-42) added another run on Jung Hoo Lee’s fielder’s choice grounder, helping them secure their fifth victory in the past six games. Landen Roupp didn’t factor into the decision, but he continued to impress by holding the Phillies’ deep lineup to one run over five innings, lowering his ERA to 3.39 on the season.
“It was a good team win,” Schmitt said. “It felt good to be back out there with everyone.”
Schmitt emerged as one of the Giants’ hottest hitters while filling in for Chapman at third base, batting .353 with four home runs and 12 RBIs over 15 games, but he endured a setback after he took a fastball off his left wrist on June 25. The Giants initially hoped Schmitt would be able to return within a few days, but they were forced to scratch him from their lineup twice during their series against the White Sox before finally placing him on the IL last week.
Once the inflammation in his wrist finally subsided, Schmitt was cleared to begin a rehab assignment with Sacramento on Saturday. He went 1-for-5 with three walks in two games with the River Cats and started reacclimating to second base, where he figures to now get most of his playing time.
“I’m just taking it one day at a time,” Schmitt said of his position change. “I’m not really worried about anything else. I’m just focusing on playing and trying to do everything I can to help the team win.”
With Chapman back manning third, Schmitt will once again be blocked from his natural position for the foreseeable future, but the Giants believe he’ll have no problem adjusting to life at second base, where he made a leaping play to snag a liner that ended a 13-pitch battle between J.T. Realmuto and closer Camilo Doval in the top of the ninth.
“He’s played there before,” manager Bob Melvin said. “He played his rehab games there. Like any new position, it’s going to take a little bit of time, but he does have some experience playing there. [Brett] Wisely has been playing pretty good, too. We’ve got to mix him in there as well, but predominantly second base for Casey."
Fitzgerald served as the Giants’ Opening Day second baseman this year, but the club optioned him to Sacramento after he batted only .186 with a .472 OPS in 32 games after returning from a left rib fracture on May 16. The Giants hoped the demotion would give him some time to reset at the plate, but they ended up recalling him only a week later after Schmitt and Christian Koss went down with injuries.
Now that Schmitt is slated to take over the starting role at second base, the Giants felt it was better to give Fitzgerald a chance to play every day in the Minors and work on finding his swing again.
“Look, when we sent him down, we wanted him to get some at-bats to get going,” Melvin said. “Based on injury, it didn’t work out that way. I think he kind of knew that was coming, too. He needs to get comfortable again at the plate. There’s a lot to like about Fitzy. I think this is a little bit of a reset and take a little pressure off and just work on your swing and be productive. Like last year, if that happens, he can be back here.”
Melvin said Fitzgerald was dealing with some back tightness during the Giants’ series at Arizona last week, but he felt better this past weekend at Sacramento, where he homered for the first time since April 17 when A’s outfielder Tyler Soderstrom inadvertently tipped his drive to left field over the wall on Sunday.
“Man, it felt like it was never going to come,” said Fitzgerald, who launched 15 homers in 96 games during his rookie season for the Giants last year. “It’s kind of like the first hit of the season. Sometimes it takes a long time, then you start thinking about it more, and it just never comes. It had been a while. It just feels good to finally put one over.”