ST. LOUIS -- Center fielder Gary Brown, the Giants' top minor league prospect, has been out of action since Monday after a bat struck him near the eye during batting practice at Double-A Richmond.
Giants manager Bruce Bochy said according to the report he received, shortstop prospect Ehire Adrianza was swinging the bat when it hit Brown. He underwent tests including a CT scan that ruled out a fracture or concussion and was expected to return to action soon.
Brown, 23, struggled through May before heating up in June and taking off in July, when he hit .355 with four home runs. The speedy center fielder still could be a September call-up when rosters expand, Bochy said.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
"You never know," Bochy said. "(GM) Brian (Sabean) always has been open minded about young players. He's brought them up before. But I can't answer that because I don't know right now."
The Giants are three weeks away from making those decisions, but they generally bring up only those players who can help the club in a pennant race. Brown's speed could make him a nice option as a pinch runner and defensive option off the bench, although he's still learning the art of basestealing. He's been caught 14 times in 44 attempts.
Bochy said the organization wouldn't bring Brown up just to expose him to the big leagues.
"He's a different kid," said Bochy, noting that Brown was glad to be reassigned to minor league camp relatively early in spring training. "He wanted to get down there and get his four at-bats every day. Some guys enjoy staying around big league camp, getting their meal money. He was wanting to go down."
San Francisco Giants
--
Not much more pregame news. Buster Posey is catching a day game after a night game, telling Bochy that he felt OK. Posey is almost certain to rest at least once in this weekend's series at home against the Colorado Rockies, and Bochy noted yet again that catching Tim Lincecum (who starts on Friday) is a physical task he'd like to spare Posey while he can.