ATLANTA -- San Francisco Giants closer Brian Wilson was ruled out for the series finale against the Atlanta Braves because of an ailing elbow, the latest worry for the defending World Series champions.
Giants trainer Dave Groeschner said Wilson was getting extensive treatment and put his status as day to day. But the right-hander was definitely unavailable for Thursday night's game against the Braves.
Wilson reported the pain after blowing a save Monday night. He gave up three runs in the ninth as the Braves pulled out a 5-4 victory.
Wilson flew to Pensacola, Fla., on Wednesday to get his elbow checked out by Dr. James Andrews, who performed major elbow surgery on the reliever eight years ago.
Andrews found no major problems, sending Wilson back to Atlanta with a recommendation of rest and treatment. But he will continue to monitor Wilson's progress by telephone.
"Any time a guy says his elbow is tight and sore, you always worry about that," Groeschner said. "I think Brian has the ultimate respect for Dr. Andrews, as do we. It was good for him to go see the man, put his mind at ease a little bit, too."
Persuaded that Wilson won't be out for an extended period, the Giants decided not to put him on the disabled list right away.
"He's our closer," the trainer said. "He's the best guy we've got in the bullpen. Even if it takes a few extra days, we'd rather have him. If (the DL was) what we'd gotten from Dr. Andrews, we would have done it. But that wasn't his recommendation."
Still, there's no timetable on when Wilson might be able to pitch again.
"He has a remarkable ability to recover, so I wouldn't put anything past him," Groeschner said. "But we also need to make sure he's healthy."
On Monday, the Giants placed outfielder Carlos Beltran and pitcher Sergio Romo on the DL. They already lost catcher Buster Posey, last year's NL Rookie of the Year, to a season-ending injury.
Sunday
February 2nd, 2025
5:04AM
