SF Giants provide encouraging update on young pitcher after scary injury

On Friday, the SF Giants provided an encouraging update on young pitcher Tristan Beck. According to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area, Beck has been cleared to throw for the first time since he underwent surgery to remove an aneurysm in his right arm.

SF Giants provide encouraging update on young pitcher after scary injury

Being cleared to begin a throwing program could still be a long way away from Beck returning to the mound, but it is a sign that he is making progress. He was originally penciled into the Opening Day rotation, but underwent the procedure at the beginning of March.

It was expected to be a long road to recovery with no timetable established. The Giants did immediately place him on the 60-day injured list. He is eligible to be activated near the end of May, but it would be surprising to see him by then.

It was an unfortunate series of events for the 27-year-old pitcher. He was coming off of a strong 2023 campaign in which he posted a 3.92 ERA, 4.00 FIP, 1.22 WHIP, 7.2 K/9, and a 3.24 SO/W ratio in 85 innings with the Giants. He worked primarily out of the bullpen, but it was disappointing that he did not get a longer look in the rotation, especially with how that unit struggled for much of last season.

It seemed like the Giants were going to start the year with a relatively young rotation consisting of Beck, Kyle Harrison, and Keaton Winn to go along with Logan Webb and Jordan Hicks. However, the late signing of Blake Snell changed that to some extent. Snell has landed on the injured list since then with an abductor strain, but he is expected to return soon.

By the end of the year, San Francisco could have a surplus of pitchers assuming that the current core remains healthy. Both Robbie Ray and Alex Cobb should return from the injured list before the All-Star break with the latter being back sooner than that.

The Giants could have an innings limit on Hicks, Harrison, and Winn. Ray and Cobb will help to offload some of those innings, but it could provide an opportunity for Beck as well. That said, baseball is not nearly as important as him just being healthy after a scary injury like that.