SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – The Giants have every intention to start Eduardo Núñez at third base this season.

At this early stage of the spring, though, Núñez’s shoulder has other ideas.

Núñez is at designated hitter and not third base in Saturday’s exhibition lineup against the Chicago Cubs because of mild shoulder tightness, but he insisted the issue was minor and he would be on the field if it were a regular-season game.

“They just want to make sure everything is loose,” said Núñez, who is playing catch every other day.

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The Giants didn’t order any tests and there’s little long-term concern over the shoulder.

Núñez also has no concerns about his strained right hamstring – the injury he sustained while stealing his 40th base of the season and eventually opened the door for Conor Gillaspie to become a postseason hero.

Remember how the Giants tried to coax Núñez back onto the field for the postseason, hoping he could turn a corner? He said the hamstring didn’t begin to feel close to 100 percent until five weeks after the Cubs eliminated the Giants in their NL Division Series.

“I was running again in December,” he said.

It was around that time that officials from the Dominican Republic club in the World Baseball Classic called Núñez about being on the roster. But the 29-year-old infielder, who was a first-time All-Star with the Minnesota Twins last year, preferred to concentrate on getting ready for the season – a pragmatic choice, since he’ll be eligible for free agency when it’s over.

It would have been interesting to see what the Giants would have done with their roster if they had forced a Game 5 of that NLDS at Wrigley Field. In addition to Núñez’s injury, Angel Pagan was dealing with back spasms and would not have been on the flight to Chicago, according to sources.