Brandon Belt Called Up, In Lineup Against Dodgers

The San Francisco Giants called up Brandon Belt on Tuesday, according to Andrew Baggarly, and the rookie first baseman is in Tuesday night's lineup against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

If you go by Wins Above Replacement, one of the least valuable players in the majors this year when accounting for position, has been Aubrey Huff. The first baseman for the San Francisco Giants was a postseason hero and fan-favorite last year, but his season has been a bit of a chemical fire this year. Making it especially awkward was the fact that the Giants' best hitting prospect -- and one of the better hitting prospects in the game -- was a first baseman.

The Giants experimented with Belt as the starting first baseman, with Huff in the outfield, to start the season. But after some memorable defensive flubs from Huff and a lackluster start from Belt, the rookie was sent down. When Huff continued not to hit, Belt was called up again, and he was in the majors just long enough to have his hand broken on a Trever Miller fastball.

The injury sidelined Belt for over a month, after which he was activated and sent down to Fresno. At no point did Huff ever come around with the bat. After being activated, Belt hit .324/.477/.706 for triple-A Fresno over a ten-game stretch. His minor-league numbers for his career:

Those are impressive numbers, and considering that Aubrey Huff is hitting .232/.286/.359 -- though he is leading the team in RBI! -- Belt should start to see some playing time. Just how much, though, will be up to manager Bruce Bochy, a manager who has never been comfortable playing rookies over veteran players with a history of performance.

Brandon Belt Injury: Wrist Fracture Puts Rookie On Disabled List

On Tuesday night, San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt was hit on the wrist by a Trever Miller fastball. The Giants' rookie was in obvious pain, but he stayed in the game. Later, after diving for a ground ball, he left the game

He was expected to be day-to-day, and though he was still too sore to swing a bat, the Giants were expecting to have him back within a week. So it was a surprise, then, when this came through the official SF Giants Twitter feed:

Following today's game #SFGiants have placed Brandon Belt on DL with hairline fracture in left wrist. Conor Gillaspie recalled from Fresno

It seemed like just two months ago that Giants fans were thrilled to watch a lineup with homegrown favorites like Buster Posey, Pablo Sandoval, and Brandon Belt -- mostly because it was two months ago. A lot has changed for a team that managed to avoid a crushing injury at all in 2010, as all three of those players are on the DL now.

From John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle:

Belt said he was told hairline fracture would heal in a month, but he expects to play before it heals. Timetable up to 3 weeks.

Bad news for a rookie who had just recently found his way back into the starting lineup, and whom the Giants were expecting to provide some of the offense that Posey and Sandoval took with them to the disabled list.

Gillaspie is a 23-year-old third basemen with a career .284/.350/.402 minor league line, and it's doubtful that he'll see any significant playing time.

If a member of the Giants organization is reading this, I'll just leave this link for you to pass along to the powers that be.