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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Hayden Birdsong is the youngest pitcher in Giants camp this year. When the 23-year-old right-hander threw one of his first bullpen sessions of the spring last week, he found himself receiving instant feedback from the oldest member of the group: three-time Cy Young winner Justin Verlander.
A 13-second clip of Verlander’s tips for Birdsong has drawn 1.1 million views on the Giants’ TikTok page, providing a glimpse at the impact the future Hall of Famer is already making on the talented group of young pitchers that are rising within the organization.
“It’s good to have a guy like that,” Birdsong said. “It’s nice to bounce ideas off of him because he’s done it for so long. Hopefully all of us young guys can learn from all of his years of experience."
What can they pick up?
"Literally anything. Anything he’s done in the past. Anything he wants to do. Learn how to scout guys. Learn how to throw pitches in certain counts or what I shouldn’t throw here.”
Verlander, who turned 42 on Thursday, has quickly impressed with his willingness to be hands-on with his new teammates, as he’s frequently stayed to watch other pitchers throw their bullpen sessions and has been proactive in offering up his advice. Last week, he pulled aside pitching prospect Carson Ragsdale and chatted with him about a new slider Ragsdale has been working on.
“He has so much wisdom, so much experience, so it’s been really cool to see how he’s been wanting to pass that on and share it with the younger guys,” Ragsdale said. “Just to be able to pick his brain and talk to him and know that he’s willing to help has been really cool.”
Verlander acknowledged that he wasn’t always as open to sharing his wealth of knowledge when he was younger, but his perspective has changed now that he’s on the cusp of his 20th season in the big leagues.
“Early in my career, I was kind of like a horse with blinders on,” Verlander said after signing a one-year, $15 million deal with the Giants last month. “I was just going to do what I need to do to be successful and kind of go about my business. As I've gotten older, more mature, especially as a father, learning to communicate better, I've really felt like I've been able to take those blinders off and be more of a help to the younger guys around me. I think it's something that I'm continually working on. I get a lot of reward from that now.”
“I think he’s at a point in time in his career where he realizes that there’s a lot for him to give back,” manager Bob Melvin said.
The Giants recently showed their appreciation for Verlander by having the rookies in camp sing him “Happy Birthday” after he was jokingly rolled out onto the field on Thursday morning. Verlander later organized his own party after the workout, inviting a group of approximately 20 players to play laser tag as a team bonding exercise.
Right-hander Logan Webb said he’s looking forward to seeing what other gifts Verlander might be able to impart on the Giants as he continues to settle in with his new organization.
“He’s a brilliant baseball mind,” Webb said. “He knows more than all of us. When you’re throwing a bullpen or you’re watching something, he’ll say something and it kind of just clicks because he’s a smart baseball player. It’s actually really crazy to listen to him talk about hitters’ takes and hitters’ swings and the scouting part of it. It’s been really cool for me to see that. I do a lot of homework, but he does even more, so I want to learn as much as I can learn from that.”