In the midst of a fifth straight MLB season at or under .500, few bright spots exist for the 65-94 Giants, but the emergence of rookie left-handed pitcher Matt Wilkinson certainly is one. Wilkinson was acquired in May from the Cleveland Guardians as part of the Patrick Bailey trade and made his major league debut against his former team on Aug. 19, tossing two scoreless innings.
The Giants have exercised precaution with Wilkinson as he ramped up his arm. In five starts so far, Wilkinson has exceeded four innings just twice and has thrown under 80 pitches in six of his seven appearances.
Despite the pitch limit, Wilkinson appeared increasingly comfortable as the season progressed. He has gone 10 consecutive shutout innings over his last three appearances, including his first win in relief against the St. Louis Cardinals on Sep. 9 and a five-inning, six-strikeout performance against the Los Angeles Dodgers last Sunday.
“I think with Tugboat [Wilkinson], it’s silly to limit what he can do, but I do think he’s always going to kind of fit in that category if things are going to work out for him as a starter –...