LOS ANGELES -- Leery of Mark Melancon's inactivity, the Giants assigned the right-hander to the 10-day disabled list prior to Thursday's Opening Day game vs. the Dodgers and replaced him as closer with Hunter Strickland, the team's best reliever during Spring Training.
Manager Bruce Bochy stopped short of naming Strickland to the closer's role permanently.
"I feel, on this day, we're better off going this way," Bochy said.
However, if Strickland merely approaches the excellence he sustained in exhibition games, he could remain the closer for quite a while. Adding a slider to his pitching repertoire and using it to devastating effect, Strickland recorded 7 1/3 scoreless innings spanning eight appearances.