Birdsong opts for Tommy John surgery, will miss 2026 campaign

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Hayden Birdsong will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery to repair a right forearm strain and ulnar collateral ligament sprain in his throwing elbow, the Giants announced Thursday.

The procedure, which will be performed by Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas next week, typically has a recovery period of 12-16 months, meaning Birdsong probably won’t return to the mound for the Giants until midseason next year.

Birdsong, 24, said he felt “a pop, like a rip,” in his right elbow after throwing a curveball on the penultimate pitch of his Cactus League outing against the Guardians on March 10. He underwent an MRI exam that revealed a Grade 2 forearm strain and UCL sprain, then he sought a second opinion from Meister before deciding to take the surgery route instead of trying to rehab the injury.

“I think clarity is a positive,” manager Tony Vitello said Thursday. “He's got convicted thoughts. There are options, but I think he already had those thoughts before. It truly is a little bit of a time-consuming deal where messages got to get relayed, things got to get looked at. I think before even all that came to light, he was convicted in his thoughts.

“He would just like to kind of move on and make sure there's not any creeping thoughts behind his back. ‘Am I healthy?’ Or this or that and just kind of push forward with what he and others think the best thing is. It’s hard to use the phrase, 'you're happy for him based on the circumstances,' but it is nice after a few days of muddy waters to have some clarity.”

Birdsong allowed eight runs over 2 1/3 innings in three Cactus League appearances (one start) this spring, but he looked like he was starting to put it together against the Guardians. He wasn’t projected to crack the Giants’ Opening Day rotation, but he was in line to take down meaningful innings as a starter or a possible bullpen piece this year.

With Birdsong expected to miss the entire 2026 campaign, the Giants will have to lean on other young starters like Trevor McDonald (No. 16 prospect), Carson Whisenhunt (No. 12), Blade Tidwell (No. 10) and Carson Seymour to serve as their next layer of rotation depth during the regular season.

Birdsong endured an up-and-down season last year due to command issues, but he has some of the most electric stuff in the organization -- which he showed when he topped out at 99.6 mph during that last outing against the Guardians.

“He was really sharp last time out,” Vitello said. “But you can’t undo the past. I think the big thing for him is to take that baton on the mental side of the game and the intangibles and carry it. Because you can still watch the game, you can still have conversations, you can still learn.

"And you’d like to think the best-case scenario, like a lot of guys in the past, you can come back stronger because you can attack other parts of your body or your physique and strengthen certain things, whether it be mental or physical. And then when the arm comes along, at the very least, throw without any doubts and with 100% health, be the best version of him.”