Around 4:30 p.m. PT on Friday, Joc Pederson found out he would be heading to Dodger Stadium later this month to start in the 2022 MLB All-Star Game.
Roughly an hour later, Pederson wasn't part of the Giants' announced starting lineup against left-handed pitcher Blake Snell and the San Diego Padres at Petco Park.
It seems odd that arguably the best player for the Giants this season wouldn't start on a day he received such a huge career honor. But that's the way manager Gabe Kapler has used the roster since he was hired prior to the 2020 season.
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SIGN UP HERE Pederson and Snell never have faced each other, so it's not clear if the Giants outfielder would have had any success against the former AL Cy Young award winner. But San Francisco might have been able to use his pop as they lost 6-3 to the Padres.
After the loss that dropped the Giants to 41-41 this season, The San Francisco Chronicle's John Shea asked Kapler about Pederson not starting against Snell.
"Joc and I talked about this series," Kapler told reporters in San Diego. "He was going to get one of the starts, either against [MacKenzie] Gore or [Blake] Snell ... off and decided to give it to him against Snell, start against Gore [on Sunday]. We talked about this prior to the game. He's going to start against some left-handed pitchers, he'll get some at-bats against lefties. I mean, obviously [Padres left-handed reliever Taylor] Rogers might have come into that game at some point and Joc was going to face [Taylor] Rogers. I'm not trying to avoid having Joc start against lefties. We think he can do a fine job. But I don't think Joc thinks, I don't think, that Joc is built to play every game of the season. And I think we're going to have to find him places where he can be off his feet. And every bit of volume we can save some of our players that have to get up for every game because even on days when they aren't starting, they're still trying to get ready for the game."
Pederson eventually was used by Kapler in the eighth inning as he pinch-hit for Austin Slater against Nick Martinez. The All-Star outfielder earned a walk but was erased on a double play by Wilmer Flores.
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"By way of example, even though [Mike Yastrzemski] didn't start today and [Brandon] Belt didn't start today, they both had to prepare for that game, and Joc as well," Kapler said. "So, knowing that's how we use our roster, knowing that's the way we intend to score runs, we also have to be cognizant of limiting their volume."
Once Snell was out of the game and Martinez entered in the seventh, Kapler was able to get all his lefty bats into the lineup. In the ninth, Yastrzemski struck out while Belt crushed a two-run homer that cut the Giants' deficit to three runs.
"It's not an indictment on the guys who aren't playing," Kapler said. "Our roster is built to have our right-handed bats face left-handed pitchers and our left-handed bats face right-handed pitchers. We're not dogmatic about it. Nothing is set in stone. I think we've demonstrated that, too."
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The Giants will face right-handed starter Yu Darvish on Saturday, so Pederson likely will be back in the starting lineup. And as Kapler already indicated, Pederson will start against Gore on Sunday.
