Fansided

San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt suffers broken left thumb

By Brad Rowland

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San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (9) hits a two run double against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (9) hits a two run double against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

The 2014 San Francisco Giants are off to a incredibly hot start, but on Friday night, disaster struck as one of their best young players, Brandon Belt, suffered a broken left thumb in the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

At this point, there are little in the way of details with regard to Belt’s recovery time, but this is devastating news for the San Francisco offense. After a hot start, the 26-year-old Belt has cooled off a bit at the plate, but even with that, he has posted a .264/.317/.504 slash line with nine home runs thus far, and he is considered one of the best young first basemen in all of baseball.

In 2013, Belt posted a 4.0 fWAR season despite hitting just 17 home runs, and he has a pure “hit” tool that rivals many of the best hitters in the league. A broken thumb could derail that in a major way, however, and it will be crucial to see just how bad the injury is before making any long-term conclusions about his availability. Still, the Giants need him back sooner rather than later, and they will be holding their breath until the prognosis arrives.

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