Wednesday BP: Austin Slater is nearing a return

Hello and happy Wednesday. Is it only Wednesday? Wow, it’s only Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the San Francisco Giants issued an injury update on their six players on the Injured List: Aramis Garcia, Reyes Moronta, Joey Rickard, Jeff Samardzija, Austin Slater, and Drew Smyly.

The most important and exciting update is for Slater, who is “working towards a weekend return.” It sure would be nice to see him back in the lineup.

Did Barry Bonds hit a home run today?

Well, obviously.

September 2, 1993: Against the Atlanta Braves, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 4th inning off of Steve Avery. It gave the Giants a 2-0 lead, but they would lose 5-3. It was his 40th homer of the year.

September 2, 1996: Against the Montreal Expos, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 2nd inning off of Mark Leiter. It gave the Giants a 1-0 lead, but they would lose 4-3. It was his 36th homer of the year.

September 2, 1998: Against the Montreal Expos, Bonds hit a 3-run home run in the 5th inning off of Shayne Bennett, scoring Marvin Benard and Bill Mueller. It gave the Giants a 12-2 lead, and they would win 12-3. It was his 32nd homer of the year.

September 2, 2006: Against the Chicago Cubs, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 4th inning off of Sean Marshall. It gave the Giants a 1-0 lead, and they would win 4-2. It was his 20th homer of the year.

Old, random MCC article for you to read

It’s the 30th anniversary of Bob Brenly’s four-error, two-homer game (Sept. 16, 2016 — Grant Brisbee)

Giants links

• Grant Brisbee on why it was the right trade deadline for the Giants to stand still (The Athletic, subscription required)
• Grant Brisbee on why it’s now time to focus on Kevin Gausman (The Athletic, subscription required)
• Maria Guardado on how the work Daniel Robertson did over the winter intrigued the Giants (MLB)
• Kerry Crowley on how the Giants stack up with their playoff competitors (Mercury News)
• Alex Pavlovic on why Farhan Zaidi was intrigued by the Giants deadline pickup, Anthony Banda (NBC Sports Bay Area)
• Dalton Johnson on why Scott Harris isn’t worried about Joey Bart’s struggles (NBC Sports Bay Area)
• Steve Berman on Farhan Zaidi’s reasoning for the quiet deadline (The Athletic, subscription required)
• John Shea on how the Giants fell further behind the Padres at the deadline (SF Chronicle)
• Dieter Kurtenbach on why the Giants not making moves was a good sign (Mercury News)
• Mark W. Sanchez on how Sam Coonrod’s fastball is getting him close to a closer job (KNBR)
• Tim Kawakami got TV, book, and movie recommendations from Bay Area sports leaders, including Gabe Kapler (The Athletic, subscription required)
• Alex Pavlovic on Sam Coonrod standing by his decision to not kneel during the Black Lives Matter moment of silence (NBC Sports Bay Area)

Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone.