SF Giants’ McDonald diagnosed with ‘moderate’ UCL sprain

SAN FRANCISCO — Trevor McDonald’s prognosis isn’t promising.

McDonald underwent an MRI that confirmed a moderate UCL sprain in his right elbow, the Giants announced on Friday afternoon, and the rookie right-hander will be getting a second opinion.

“He’s going to miss some time, for sure,” said manager Tony Vitello. “I think looking at that second opinion will help kind of solidify what’s the best path after that, but at the minimum, it would be a good chunk of time.”

The worst-case scenario for McDonald would be Tommy John surgery, which would end the rest of his season and keep him out for most of — if not all of — the 2027 season. San Francisco has already seen right-hander Hayden Birdsong undergo Tommy John surgery earlier this year, and losing McDonald for an extended period of time would be another brutal blow for the pitching staff.

McDonald sustained the right elbow sprain during his outing on Monday against the Kansas City Royals. The rookie right-hander signaled for a trainer while warming up for the bottom of the fifth inning and departed from the game after throwing only 67 pitches.

The 25-year-old has battled inconsistency during his first extended run of starting in the majors, posting a 5.12 ERA and 4.27 FIP over 14 starts. Still, he’s shown flashes of being a rotation mainstay alongside Logan Webb and Landen Roupp. McDonald has pitched at least six innings on five occasions this season, the most recent instance being when he pitched seven frames of one-run ball on July 12 to close out the first half.

Additionally, outfielder Harrison Bader is no longer doing baseball activity due to continued soreness in his recovery from left plantar fasciitis, which has held him out of action since late May. Bader will see a foot and ankle specialist in Indianapolis on Monday.

“He’s really frustrated,” Vitello said. “Every time he picks up some momentum, there’s a little discomfort. Pain there is probably more of a keyword. So, there’s no point in pushing forward. It’s a rest, you get back to it, and then another reset. So, how many of those can you do before you dive into it a little bit further, see if there’s anything different that needs to be done? There’s a lot of season left, but also there’s not a lot of season left.”

Bader, 32, has been limited to just 30 games since signing a two-year, $20.5 million deal to join San Francisco in the offseason. During the little time he’s been on the field, Bader has hit .170 with five home runs and a .557 OPS over 111 plate appearances but has been worth +5 defensive runs saved.

Vitello said he expects to see Bader again sometime this season, but described McDonald’s chances as “less likely.”

Gonzalez, Hernandez to be moved up to Single-A San Jose

Josuar Gonzalez and Luis Hernandez, the Giants’ über-talented teenage shortstop prospects, will be promoted from the rookie-level Arizona Complex League to Single-A San Jose, farm director Kyle Haines said on The Glen Kuiper Show.

The 18-year-old Gonzalez and the 17-year-old Hernandez are the Giants’ No. 1 and No. 2 prospects, according to Baseball America. They were both considered to be the top position players in their respective signing classes, and they’ve both shown why they’re worthy of the hype in the Complex League.

Gonzalez, who is from the Dominican Republic, battled a hamstring injury but hit .343 with two home runs and eight steals over 30 games while playing superlative defense. Hernandez, who is from Venezuela, justified the team’s decision to have him skip the Dominican Summer League entirely, hitting .298 with six home runs and six steals over 54 games.