We knew that Matt Chapman’s season was almost certainly over. But now it’s really official. During Thursday’s off day, the San Francisco Giants quietly moved Chapman from the 10-Day IL to the 60-Day IL with an abdominal strain. It had already been revealed that Chapman would undergo surgery for his sports hernia.
The Giants have yet to announce the news, it just showed up on their transaction log, along with the promotion of AAA outfielder Turner Hill. Both moves should be formally announced before Friday’s series opener against the Colorado Rockies. The Giants had to make a move to clear a space on the 40-man roster for Hill, and moving Chapman to the 60-Day IL accomplished exactly that. They can do the same with Harrison Bader and Casey Schmitt, should they need to open up any additional spots in the 40-man roster.
With that, Chapman’s 10th — and worst — MLB season comes to an end. It’s the first time in his career that he’s ended the season with a below average wRC+ (95) or single-digit home runs (7). His fWAR (1.3) is the second-lowest of his career, trailing only the 1.1 mark he posted in 2020, when he was limited to 37 games in the pandemic-shortened season.
Some of that may have been generic struggles or regression, but it’s also fair to assume that he spent much of the season playing through his core muscle injury, and had his performance negatively impacted. Hopefully he can get fully healthy over the offseason, and be back to his All-Star level talent come 2027.