Notes: Dickerson to IL (back); Wisler DFA'd

ARLINGTON -- The Giants’ roster churn continued on Wednesday after left fielder Alex Dickerson landed on the 10-day injured list with an upper back strain and right-hander Matt Wisler was designated for assignment, opening a pair of spots for new relievers Sammy Long and Jimmie Sherfy.

Dickerson, 31, tweaked his back after striking out against Jordan Lyles in his first at-bat of the Giants’ 9-4 win over the Rangers on Tuesday night at Globe Life Field. Dickerson exited the game after the first inning as a precautionary measure, but he’s dealt with back issues previously in his career, so the Giants felt the best course of action was to place him on the IL to ensure that he has enough time to heal and get back to full strength.

“It made sense to get him the rest that he needs to be strong and healthy going forward,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “I don’t anticipate this being a long stint. I still feel optimism, perhaps not quite as much as I did last night, but I still feel pretty good about it after a conversation with Alex today.”

Dickerson is batting .226 with a .693 OPS and six home runs this year, but he showed signs of an offensive turnaround over the weekend, when he went 5-for-13 with two home runs over the Giants’ four-game series against the Cubs. Wednesday marked the second IL stint of the year for Dickerson, who also missed eight games with a right shoulder injury in May.

The Giants have been snakebitten by injuries this year, as they currently have 15 players on the shelf, including seven on the 60-day IL.

Wisler, 28, was cut after logging a 6.05 ERA over 19 1/3 innings this year. The Giants signed the slider specialist to a one-year, $1.15 million deal after he was non-tendered by the Twins over the offseason, but Wisler couldn’t replicate the success he enjoyed in 2020, when he posted a 1.07 ERA over 18 appearances.

“It was really tough because there were some underlying things that he’s done really well,” Kapler said. “I still think he’s a good pitcher. He’s striking guys out. He wasn’t walking a ton of guys. There was just some contact at more unfortunate times that turned into big innings, and it was just kind of tough for him to get out from underneath. The conversation was tough because I think he’s good. I think he thinks he’s good, but ultimately, I think he understands that this game is about performance, and we have a lot of competition for every roster spot.”

Long, 25, received his first big league callup after logging a 1.99 ERA with 37 strikeouts over 22 2/3 innings in six appearances between Double-A Richmond and Triple-A Sacramento this year.

Sherfy, 29, is back in the Majors for the first time since 2019 after helping Team USA qualify for the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. Sherfy didn’t allow a run over 7 2/3 innings in six appearances for Triple-A Sacramento before heading to Florida to pitch in the Olympic qualifiers. On the same day Team USA clinched a berth to the Summer Games, Sherfy learned that the Giants planned to add him to their big league roster.

“It’s been a little bit of a blur right now, but it was an amazing experience,” Sherfy said. “It was a lot of fun. It was a great mix of veterans and young guys, and then some Triple-A guys like me kind of sprinkled in. Overall, it was a great team.”

Long came on in relief of Zack Littell in the second inning and delivered an electric performance in his Giants debut on Wednesday afternoon, racking up seven strikeouts over four-plus innings in a 4-3 extra-inning loss to the Rangers at Globe Life Field.

“That was above and beyond right there,” Long said. “It’s been a crazy few days, but that was probably the most comfortable I felt in these last three days. On the mound, I felt like I was in my element. That was a really awesome day.”