San Francisco Giants: Clayton Blackburn, the Dark Horse in Rotation Race
By Keaton Moore
With his strong start against the Royals, Clayton Blackburn is quickly becoming another option for the San Francisco Giants’ starting rotation.
As Matt Cain and Tyler Beede are neck-and-neck for the fifth spot in the San Francisco Giants’ rotation, Clayton Blackburn is proving himself to be another strong candidate for the final spot. His strong start against the Kansas City Royals gives manager Bruce Bochy another arm to round out his 2017 rotation.
Although the Giants ended up losing to the Royals, Blackburn pitched two scoreless innings to start the game. He held Kansas City to three hits, one walk and struck out three to bring his ERA down to 4.50.
He began the spring by holding the Cincinnati Reds hitless while striking out three on Friday, Feb. 24. Although he gave up three runs to the San Diego Padres in his next appearance, he settled down for another inning and retired the side in order.
The Race Is On
Meanwhile, Cain and Beede are both having phenomenal springs, further putting Blackburn’s chance at a rotation spot out of reach. Through four innings of work, Beede has yet to give up a run this spring. After holding the Reds to just two hits, he did the same in his start against the Los Angeles Angels.
Likewise, Cain flashed moments of his former glory in his first two starts. He started the spring by holding the reigning World Series champion Chicago Cubs to one run through two innings. However, the Los Angeles Dodgers managed to score three runs off of Cain in his next start, ballooning his ERA to 9.00.
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At the very least, Blackburn adds to the Giants’ starting rotation depth. He is just one of many pieces with the potential to fall into place this upcoming season.