SAN FRANCISCO -- A wild curveball accelerated Pablo Sandoval's return to the majors.
Sandoval had his contract purchased on Saturday morning a few hours after Brandon Belt was hit in the head by an Anthony Banda pitch. Belt was put on the seven-day concussion disabled list.
The concussion is the fourth for Belt in eight years. Late Friday night, there was a bit more optimism about Belt's condition, but there was no doubt he would be placed on the DL regardless of how he is feeling. There's no reason for the Giants to take any chances with one of their best players.
Sandoval used to fit that mold, but he left for Boston after 2014 and struggled mightily. The Panda was designated for assignment last month and returned to the Giants. He was hitting just .207 in Triple-A but the Giants had vowed to give him a look eventually, and they're short on options. Conor Gillaspie was just cut, Ryder Jones will move to first for the time being and Christian Arroyo is hurt. The Giants, then, chose Sandoval over Jae-Gyun Hwang.
