Giants make it official: Melky Cabrera won’t rejoin team during postseason

Giants outfielder Melky Cabrera will not be rejoining the team for the postseason after serving his 50-game suspension. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

Giants outfielder Melky Cabrera will not be returning to the team for the postseason after serving his 50-game suspension, Alex Pavlovic of the San Jose Mercury News reported on Thursday.

Manager Bruce Bochy said Cabrera would not be added to the postseason roster. The suspended outfielder was eligible to rejoin the club after the fifth postseason game, if the Giants get that far.

On Tuesday, Bochy said he would meet with GM Brian Sabean to finalize the 25-man postseason roster. Prior to the official announcement, Bochy said,

“I think both on our side and Melky’s side, you’re getting down to the time period where he can start working out and doing some things. I think he needs to know and we need to know.”

Pavlovic tweeted Cabrera’s reaction to the announcement:

Melky: “While I am disappointed that I won't have the chance to join my team in (playoffs), I wish my teammates the best in the postseason."—
Alex Pavlovic (@AlexPavlovic) September 27, 2012

More from Melky's statement: "I’ll be rooting hard for them to bring another World Championship to San Francisco!"—
Alex Pavlovic (@AlexPavlovic) September 27, 2012

Cabrera was suspended on Aug. 15 after testing positive for testosterone. He was leading the league with a .346 batting average but requested that he be made ineligible for the batting title; the league made an exception to the rule on individual batting champions and granted the request on Sept. 21.