San Francisco Giants To Be Without Two Roster Players For Start Of Season

The San Francisco Giants will be without two players when they begin the season, after announcing that both Luis Gonzalez and Donovan Walton will be out with injuries.

The Giant say it's a low back strain for Luis Gonzalez and he'll be out 4-6 weeks. They also announced that Donovan Walton (who had shoulder surgery last year) will be out until May.

— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) February 26, 2023

27-year-old outfielder Gonzalez was hampered by a back issue much of last season, but according to manager Gabe Kapler, the lower back strain that will keep him out now for four-to-six weeks is actually a different injury. That makes this the third back strain injury for Gonzalez in the past year.  

Gonzalez batted .254 with a .683 OPS, with 10 SBs in 98 games last season.

As for utilityman Walton, he had shoulder surgery in September and was still in recovery mode. The prognosis now is that he will be out until May. He can play second base, shortstop and third, as well as left field. The Giants signed him to a minor league deal this past offseason after he made 78 plate appearances for them last year. He'll be entering his 5th season with at least some major league action. 

 Photo: Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports