Giants lineups: Belt back in RF, Sanchez hits the road to DH

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Bruce Bochy has announced both lineups for Saturday's split squad matchups against the Brewers and Angels.

Home split squad lineup vs. Brewers:

Angel Pagan CF
Melky Cabrera LF
Pablo Sandoval 3B
Brett Pill 1B
Brandon Belt RF
Hector Sanchez C
Ryan Theriot 2B
Brandon Crawford SS
Tommy Joseph DH
(Barry Zito SP)

Bochy is clearly keeping his A-squad at home as the 1-2-3 could be what the Giants trot out on Opening Day against the Diamondbacks.

The most interesting aspect of this lineup is Brandon Belt in right field. Belt came into the Giants win over the Reds on Friday as a defensive replacement for Nate Schierholtz in right field and robbed Miguel Rojas of a hit in the 8th inning with a nice catch off his shoetops on a sinking line drive.

Belt has played four innings in right this spring, along with six in left field and 21 at first base.

If Belt is forced to the outfield by either Aubrey Huff, Brett Pill, or even a catching weary Buster Posey, left field would seem to be the easier transition for the slick-fielding first baseman. A right fielder should have the strongest arm on the team, an honor which belongs to Nate Schierholtz. And while it may not be a factor at Scottsdale Stadium, the brick wall at AT&T Park makes it one of the hardest right fields to defend in the big leagues.

Hector Sanchez is back in the lineup to catch Barry Zito after tweaking his hamstring and taking a few days off. Sanchez was batting .444 with a home run and four RBIs before the injury. In his absence, and before Buster Posey was ready to return, top prospect Tommy Joseph saw a little more playing time and took advantage of it, as he is 2-for-6 with two RBIs in limited action heading into Saturday's game as the designated hitter.

Barry Zito takes the mound for his second start of the spring. He debuted on March 6 against the Dodgers and allowed two runs on four hits and a walk in two innings pitched. Despite living in the 81-83 MPH range, Zito threw 28 of 35 pitches for strikes against the Giants' N.L. West rivals.
Road split squad lineup vs. Angels:

Gregor Blanco CF
Emmanuel Burriss 2B
Freddy Sanchez DH
Aubrey Huff 1B
Conor Gillaspie 3B
Eli Whiteside C
Joaquin Arias SS
Tyler Graham RF
Justin Christian LF
(Shane Loux SP)

Bochy put together a less recognizable lineup for the Giants' road game against the Angels.

Gregor Blanco, hitting .429 with four steals this spring, gets an opportunity to state his case for a roster spot as the Giants' fourth outfielder.

Freddy Sanchez will get a second straight game as a designated hitter, with Bochy saying Friday that he may put him at second base for the first time this spring on Monday.

When the Giants' lineup was posted Friday with Aubrey Huff starting in left field, he looked at the print out and said "Am I really in left field? OK." Looks like the veteran will get a break Saturday as he returns to his natural position at first.

Conor Gillaspie, who the Giants drafted with the 37th overall pick in 2008, is only hitting .231 but has made some solid contact in his 13 at-bats. In 19 at-bats with the big-league club last season, Gillaspie hit .250 with a home run.

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