Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval will begin his minor-league rehab assignment Saturday night for Class-A San Jose (Giants Talk).Sandoval, 25, hasn't played since May 2, when he fractured the hamate bone in his right wrist/hand area. He had surgery to remove the bone the following day and has been rehabbing since.
Sandoval was hitting .316/.375/.537 with five homers, 15 RBI and 16 runs in 24 games before his injury. Sandoval is one of the anchors of the Giants lineup and will obviously provide a huge boost. Buster Posey, Melky Cabrera, Angel Pagan and Gregor Blanco have been hitting well with Sandoval down, but third base has been a black hole in terms of offensive production.
Oh, by the way, the Giants entered Saturday just four games behind the Dodgers -- who are now without Matt Kemp for about a month. Might we be treated with a heated rivalry divisional race out West? It would appear that way.
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