Giants manager Bruce Bochy said Tuesday that an announcement on the status of Melky Cabrera will be made before the end of the homestand on Thursday.

There has been much speculation about whether the Giants will activate Cabrera and use him in the postseason. In August, Cabrera was suspended 50 games for testing positive for testosterone. The suspension goes through the first five games of the playoffs.

"We're down to a time period where he can start working out and doing some things," Bochy said. "I think he needs to know and we need to know."

Buster Posey said a potential Cabrera return wouldn't be a distraction internally, but he knows there would be a backlash.

"The main thing would be the extra attention from (the media)," said Posey, who has been hoping for a quick decision.

For more on the Giants, see Alex Pavlovic's Giants Extra blog at blogs.mercurynews.com/Giants. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/AlexPavlovic.