Pat Burrell: Foot Injury Sends Giants Outfielder To DL

On July 1st, Pat Burrell was set to start as the designated hitter for the San Francisco Giants in an interleague game against the Detroit Tigers, but a bone spur in his right foot kept him out of the lineup. While he's been available for pinch-hitting duty since then, the foot hasn't healed as quickly as the Giants hoped, and Friday the team placed him on the disabled list.

Burrell pinch-hit against the San Diego Padres Thursday night, but he only had to run slowly up the first-base line after grounding out. He hasn't played in the field since July 7th, which was his only start in the month. Part of that has been the foot issue, but another part has been that he's been more of a pinch-hitter than a starter for the Giants in the past couple of months.

To take Burrell's place on the roster, the Giants called up 21-year-old catcher Hector Sanchez, who started the season in high-A before skipping double-A and hasn't looked bad in triple-A. They likely want a first-hand look at his receiving abilities, as there's a chance he could provide a little more offense than Eli Whiteside or Chris Stewart.

Meanwhile, after a big game Thursday night that lifted his batting average to .336, Brandon Belt continues to learn good manners or something with triple-A Fresno.