Giants Hunter Pence Placed on 15-Day DL: Fantasy Fallout

Giants star right fielder Hunter Pence finds himself on the 15-day DL with a strained right hamstring. He missed some time earlier with the same issue.

The San Francisco Giants have been banged up all season, but still hold a five-game lead in the National League West. The team will be without star outfielder Hunter Pence for at least two weeks with a hamstring injury. He will join teammate Angel Pagan on the recovery table. There is no timetable for Pence’s return.

Pence missed about a week towards the end of May with the same issue. He looked fine when he came back, but came up lame in an attempt to run out a ground ball Wednesday and was unable to even finish running to first base.

After 50 games, he is hitting .298 with seven home runs 36 RBI and a 39:23 K:BB ratio. He is tied for first with Buster Posey with seven home runs and leads all Giants in RBI. His absence will stifle the Giants offense a bit.

More from Fantasy Baseball

• 5 fantasy baseball waiver wire pivots to replace Triston McKenzie
• Fantasy baseball mock draft 2023, 12-team: Aaron Judge over Trea Turner?
• 3 fantasy baseball sleepers being drafted too late
• NBA DFS picks December 25: Merry Bucking Christmas
• Fantasy Baseball: Hot pitchers worthy of starting this weekend

The Giants recalled Mac Williamson to fill in for Pence. The 25-year-old is hitting .287 with six home runs and 29 RBI in 36 games with Triple-A Sacramento this season. In eight MLB games, he is hitting .188 with one RBI.

There are plenty of other options available to replace Pence. Adam Duvall is crushing the ball, six home runs and 13 RBI over his last 15 games. Matt Holliday has three homers and 12 RBI in the same time. Both are owned in less than 60 percent of ESPN leagues.

Hunter Pence played in only 52 games last season after playing in 162 games in 2013 and 2014. He then played in just 39 games in 2012. He is a little injury prone, so don’t be surprised if he’s hindered by the hamstring for the rest of the season. If you own him, I would look to trade him once he returns so he doesn’t affect you later this year.

Next: Miguel Sano Lands on the DL

It will be hard to replace Hunter Pence’s production. A 20-home run, .300 hitter is not readily available on the waiver wire. As I mentioned, there are players that could close the gap, but it’s only a short-term solution. You need to keep Pence rostered, but definitely look for a way to move on from him.