Roster Spot To Open After San Francisco Giants’ Brett Pill Tears Meniscus

February 20, 2013; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants first baseman

(6) poses for a picture during photo day at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Ah yes, the famed meniscus – the injury that takes no prisoners.

It’s a temperamental piece of the body that often times allows players to recover to their natural state while in a few select others, it ruins their career. Thankfully in baseball, a meniscus injury isn’t as debilitating as it would be in something like football or basketball, welcoming news for Giants utility man Brett Pill who is scheduled for surgery to repair the meniscus in the next few days. The operation is expected to sideline Pill for about a month, leaving the door open for another roster spot as it’s likely Pill would’ve made the Giants’ opening day roster.

The most likely candidates to open the year with the big boy club now that Pill will miss the start of the season would be Cole Gillespie or Francisco Peguero, with Peguero the most likely of those two. Gillespie has struggled this Spring, only hitting .242 but does have a respectable .342 OBP in his 33 at-bat’s. Peguero on the other hand has been one of the hottest hitters of the Spring, ripping the cover off the ball with a .424 average though only three of his 33 at-bat’s have lead to an extra base hit.

Neither should see much action until Pill returns, though, if I had to pick I’d expect Peguero to break camp on the Opening Day roster as Pill’s replacement – assuming the Giants go position player over pitching, which is likely given the first week or two of the season schedule is usually wonky and allows for more arm rest.