SAN FRANCISCO — Left fielder Nori Aoki was all set to start Tuesday night against the San Diego Padres despite some pain in his lower right leg.
He convinced San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy to allow him to return to the top of the lineup after he was held out of the club’s previous game.
Then came the bad news: X-rays taken during the day revealed a fractured leg, prompting Aoki’s removal from the lineup and, on Wednesday, his placement on the disabled list.
The Giants expect Aoki to miss at least six weeks.
No doubt, the .317 hitter will be missed. But that wasn’t the case for one night anyway.
Aoki’s replacement will be supersub Gregor Blanco, who moved atop the lineup Tuesday and got on base four times, twice via hits and twice on walks. He scored one of the Giants’ runs in a 3-2, 11-inning loss to the Padres.
With right fielder Hunter Pence also out of action, the Giants almost surely will dip into their farm system for an outfielder when they create a roster spot by putting Aoki on the DL.
They left the field Tuesday with only three healthy outfielders on their active roster. One of them is Justin Maxwell, whose 0-for-5 night Tuesday dropped his season average to .219.