SAN FRANCISCO — In an ideal world, the Giants would’ve probably liked 22-year-old Hayden Birdsong to make more than two starts with Triple-A Sacramento before he made his debut. The Giants, though, do not live in an ideal world.
With a depleted rotation, Birdsong’s time is now.
Birdsong, San Francisco’s No. 6 prospect per MLB Pipeline, will be called up to start on Wednesday against the Cubs and make his major-league debut, manager Bob Melvin announced on Tuesday.
“There’s some risk involved with a guy that was just in Triple-A,” Melvin said. “He’s a young kid. He’s very talented. It’ll be his first big-league look, but we’re excited about it. Hopefully, he gets off to a good start. In my opinion, he’s going to have a long big-league career.”
Melvin made clear that the promotion of Birdsong, who began the season with Double-A Richmond, is the result of the team’s need for starting pitching. San Francisco’s injury list currently features an entire five-man rotation of Blake Snell, Robbie Ray, Kyle Harrison, Alex Cobb and Keaton Winn.
The hope in San Francisco is that Birdsong can not only perform well, but help eat innings, too. Entering Tuesday, San Francisco’s starters have thrown 91 1/3 innings this month, the fewest in baseball — a figure that’s the result of Melvin having to use openers.
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Birdsong will have “a couple of opportunities,” per Melvin, who pointed out that the team would not add him to the 40-man roster for just one start. That said, Birdsong will likely be optioned back to Triple-A as San Francisco’s starters come off the injured list and get more seasoning in the minors.
“You watch his bullpens and it’s true starter stuff,” Melvin said. “It’s talent. He’s young, but it’s pretty exciting to think that he’s going to get the chance to start here.”
Birdsong, selected by the Giants in the sixth round of the 2022 MLB Draft, began this season with Double-A Richmond. After posting a 2.05 ERA over 11 starts with 61 strikeouts over 48 1/3 innings, Birdsong was promoted to Sacramento on June 11.
The right-hander has started just two games …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
