Chris Stratton to start tonight; Derek Law sent back to Triple-A

Derek Law’s encouraging pair of innings in last night’s slog maybe didn’t go unnoticed by the Giants, but they alone weren’t enough to stop Law from being sent back down to Triple-A this afternoon. Of course, the Giants needed a roster spot for tonight’s starter, Chris Stratton, and they have Ty Blach ready to back up Stratton if the start goes sideways, but it’s a move that reminds you of how tough the business can be.

Law has been up and down since he semi-established himself in 2016, mainly because he de-established himself with poor performances over the past season and a half. Last night, though, Law’s stuff was electric and he was able to throw his 97 mph fastball for strikes. Command and control have both eluded, but not last night.

We’ll see if Chris Stratton can bounce back. Since the first month of the season, he has been an extraordinarily below average major league starting pitcher. His Triple-A numbers following his demotion have been solid (at least, per Baseball Cube): 4 starts, 24 innings pitched, 24 strikeouts, 8 walks. Look, a relevant tweet!

If you squint you can see a little bit of Vogelsong’s game in Stratton’s. They’re both predominately fastball curveball guys, but mix in sliders and changeups at times. Given Vogelsong’s reputation, the mechanical fix simply could’ve been getting Stratton to swallow shards of glass whole. Ryan Vogelsong didn’t like to give in and I think we saw Stratton start to drift into a full-time nibbler as his season regressed, so that’s why I’m saying that all Vogelsong really had to do was help Stratton with his posture or something.

Stratton has a chance to turn his season around starting tonight. The Giants will need him to give them some innings.