Eric Halterman urged adding Hayden Birdsong now that Jordan Hicks slid to the bullpen and opened a permanent rotation seat. Birdsong blanked Kansas City over five innings in his season debut and owns a 1.91 ERA, though Halterman pointed to a 3.57 SIERA that keeps expectations realistic. A 24 % strikeout rate, 8 % walk rate and pitcher-friendly Oracle Park give him a solid floor, and Birdsong has historically missed more bats as a starter in the minors. If the control gains hold, Halterman believes Birdsong can settle in as a mid-rotation arm who piles up strikeouts and ratios good enough to matter in mixed leagues.

Boston advised taking San Francisco on the money line behind 22-year-old righty Hayden Birdsong in his first 2025 start. Birdsong posted a 2.11 ERA and 34% K-rate in multi-inning relief this year and throws a slider 42% of the time—bad news for a Kansas City lineup that grades 27th in run value versus sliders. Opposing starter Michael Lorenzen has allowed a .312 average and .507 slug to current Giant hitters across 71 plate appearances, and Boston pointed out Lorenzen’s swinging-strike rate has dipped below 8% for the first time since 2020. While conceding Birdsong could struggle with command, Boston still sees more paths to a Giants win, citing San Francisco’s superior OBP, a rested back-end bullpen, and Oracle Park’s marine layer keeping any Royals hard contact in the yard. He projected a 5-3 Giants victory and would play them down to ‑115.