Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Harness

After the Giants concluded the annual pre-season Bay Bridge series with the A’s, the Giants had a day off Wednesday and are now preparing to face the Dodgers in Los Angeles to kick off the 2018 season on Thursday.

However, one thing will be glaringly different about the way the Giants look on the field for Opening Day. Madison Bumgarner has consistently been the team’s Opening Day starter, but due to his suffering a broken metacarpal on his left hand, he will not be out there Thursday.

Instead, it will be fellow lefty Ty Blach to take the hill for the Giants opposite Dodgers star Clayton Kershaw.

Blach earned the Opening Day start almost by default, as Jeff Samardzija suffered a pectoral strain and will miss his first scheduled start of the year. However, he is reportedly expected to test out the strain on Wednesday, to gauge how much time he expects to miss.

If that’s not enough, the Giants have another injury concern on the mound, and it surrounds closer Mark Melancon. He last pitched March 23, and there is growing concern that he’s not fully back from the forearm surgery that he had in September.

The rosters need to be turned in by 8:30 a.m. Thursday, sand there is a strong possibility that Melancon will be placed on the disabled list along with Bumgarner and Samardzija.

The Dodgers, on the other hand, don’t have nearly as many injury issues, but they do have one. Third baseman Justin Turner was hit by a pitch by A’s righty Kendall Graveman about a week ago and suffered a broken wrist as a result, and he will miss significant time.

Johnny Cueto will start Friday night for the Giants, as he goes up against Dodgers lefty Alex Wood.