San Francisco Giants player notes: Latest news on Brandon Crawford, Joe Panik, Matt Cain, Tim Hudson and more

August 25, 2015; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Matt Cain (18) reacts during the fourth inning against the Chicago Cubs at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Cain

Cain, who is expected to rejoin the team on Thursday, will be utilized in relief down the stretch.

And according to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, the right-hander has figured out the mechanical flaw behind his 2015 struggles. Cain told Shea that dropping his elbow and pushing the ball was what caused his pitches to hang up, which makes sense if you’ve watched his outings this season.

Even so, it’s going to take some quality outings out of the ’pen for Cain to convince the organization that he’s ready to rejoin the rotation next season. If he’s not, it’s going to be hard to justify keeping his massive contract on the books.

In his second go-around with the River Cats, Cain tossed four scoreless innings with five strikeouts and no walks. The three-time All-Star was blasted in 10 starts for the Giants, going 2-4 with a 6.15 ERA and 1.58 WHIP.

Next: On to Hudson