catching his breath?

At first blush, it seemed a little strange. On July 7, San Francisco demoted the winningest pitcher on its staff. Former Mississippi State star Chris Stratton, sporting an 8-6 record for a club battling to stay in the playoff chase, was sent down to Triple-A Sacramento. The Giants needed a roster spot for Jeff Samardzija, coming off the disabled list. Giants manager Bruce Bochy said Stratton, who had been knocked around in his last two starts, needed to “catch his breath.” How’s that working out? Hard to tell. Stratton was scratched Wednesday night from what would have been his third start for Sacramento, and he isn’t scheduled for tonight. Could mean something’s up. He is 1-0 with a 4.91 ERA at Sacramento, his second outing having been much sharper than his first. In 38 big league appearances over the past three years, Stratton is 13-10 with a 4.41 ERA. P.S. A well-done article published in the Tupelo Daily Journal earlier this week featured the four former American Legion Tupelo 49ers who have played in the big leagues this season. Stratton, a Tupelo native, is among them, along with Mitch Moreland (Amory), Brian Dozier (Fulton) and Brandon Woodruff (Wheeler). All four were coached on the 49ers by former Tupelo High star Kirk Presley, whose promising pro career was curtailed by injury. Presley “was always such a good mentor,” Stratton told the Daily Journal. Moreland and Dozier were teammates on the 2004 49ers, and they’ll be on the same field this weekend when Boston hosts Minnesota.