Alex Wood lands on injured list, plus when SF Giants expect to get back Pederson, Stripling, Estrada

SAN FRANCISCO — Standing at his locker Sunday morning, Giants starter Alex Wood made a plea for empathy: “I don’t know if anyone has back issues,” he said.

A low back strain forced Wood to the 15-day injured list, and he didn’t have to look far for someone understanding of his situation, joining Ross Stripling as a pair of Giants starters both dealing with back issues. Wood, however, remained optimistic that his strain was less severe than Stripling’s, who remains a way off from returning.

“We didn’t want to push it for my next start,” Wood said. “I think it should just be the 15 days.”

Wood said an MRI on his back came back clean and that “I already feel like I’m moving better today than the last few days.” The back began causing discomfort before his start in Milwaukee last week but became more serious following his start Wednesday, when he said his lower left side “just locked up a little bit.”

Wood’s best start of the season came against the Brewers, pitching into the sixth inning for the first time this year, but he followed it by allowing six runs in a loss to the Pirates in his final outing before landing on the IL. He has a 4.80 ERA in eight games (seven starts), averaging less than 4 innings per outing.

To fill his roster spot, the Giants recalled right-hander Tristan Beck, who figures to help cover innings for a rotation now down two starters.

After Anthony DeSclafani’s start in Sunday’s series finale against Baltimore, the Giants have Stripling and Wood’s turns in the rotation due up in their upcoming series in Colorado. With an off day Monday, though, they can keep the rest of the rotation on regular rest while skipping one of those slots. Sean Manaea has typically entered after an opener in Stripling’s rotation slot and been effective as a bulk reliever, while Beck and Jakob Junis offer the Giants more options who can take down multiple innings.

Stripling, who was eligible to be activated Saturday, has progressed to throwing off a mound but likely remains a few weeks away from rejoining the rotation. After a 25-pitch session Friday, he planned to throw his second bullpen Monday. The next step is facing live hitters, which he said could come around the end of next week, before a rehab assignment that would likely include two outings.

Stripling said he received a cortisone shot on the sacroiliac joint in his lower back, which he said helped with an issue he had been dealing with since tweaking in while lifting weights over the offseason.

“I don’t know that I gave it the rest and recovery that it needed,” Stripling said. “I think this injury was bugging me a little bit more than I thought because I actually feel good now. I’m actually like, oh, this is what it feels like to feel good physically. Because it feels like I haven’t felt that. By no means am I saying that’s a reason for any of the struggles. I was perfectly fine and capable of pitching. I just think now I’m a little bit better physically as far as feeling free and all that stuff.”

Stripling has been among the most homer-prone pitchers in the majors, averaging one nearly every three innings, which would lead all qualified starters, but his time on the IL has allowed him to make adjustments that he feels will help once he is fully healthy. Already one of the most upright pitchers in the majors, Stripling noticed that he was slightly more hunched over in his delivery, which led to his body flying open when he released the baseball.

“I guess I can be even more straight up,” Stripling said. “The idea there is just maybe I’m a little bit off, which creates a little inconsistency, which creates a little bit more misses, and those misses are getting hammered. And that’s the difference between maybe being pretty good and pretty dang bad. So we’ll see.”

Notable

— Joc Pederson, aka “Señor Churro,” is expected to be activated Tuesday before the Giants begin their three-game series in Colorado. He was back in the Giants clubhouse Sunday, after completing a one-game rehab assignment at Single-A San Jose, which was wearing its “San Jose Churros” uniforms. Pederson has been out since being hit in the hand by a pitch while squaring to bunt on May 12, an absence he said “100%” has drawn on longer than he expected. “It wasn’t fun,” he said. “I just ramped up my swings lately. It felt good to get some at-bats underneath me and back into the game flow. I’m feeling better now. I’m just excited to get back and help this team win.” … Thairo Estrada (wrist) is also trending to return Tuesday after missing the minimum 10 days.