SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Giants right-hander Hayden Birdsong is being evaluated for elbow soreness, manager Tony Vitello said following San Francisco’s 3-3 tie against the White Sox on Thursday night.
Birdsong, 24, topped out at 99.6 mph while working a scoreless sixth inning in his most recent Cactus League appearance against the Guardians on Tuesday, though he left the game earlier than expected after experiencing discomfort in his right elbow. Birdsong will undergo more testing to determine the severity of the injury.
“I think he’s getting looked at from some soreness,” Vitello said. “We’re trying to get it looked at and see what’s going on. I don’t think he had anything going on before that.”
It’s been a difficult spring for Birdsong, who gave up eight runs over 2 1/3 innings (30.86 ERA) in his first three Cactus League outings. The results are a far cry from the dominant form he showed last year, when he pitched so well that he ended up winning a spot in the Giants’ Opening Day bullpen.
Birdsong went on to record a 2.31 ERA with 25 strikeouts over 23 1/3 innings in his first 11 relief appearances of 2025, but he lost his feel for the strike zone when he rejoined the rotation in late May. He struggled to a 6.17 ERA with 27 walks over 42 1/3 innings in 10 starts before he was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento, where he spent the final two months of the regular season.
The Giants hoped their promising young starter would be able to bounce back and reestablish himself as a big league contributor this spring, but those plans are now on hold as they await the results of Birdsong’s medical evaluation.